Jacobs Shares in Important Water Dialogue at Global Water Summit

Key players from across the water sector are convening in London April 8 - 10  for the Global Water Summit - an event bringing decision makers and thought leaders together to candidly talk about how money,  water, and disruptive design combine with innovation and leadership to create strategy. This year’s theme is focused on Disruptive Designs.

The variability of the global economy makes funding and innovation in the water sectors critical. Currently, 2.1 billion people around the world still lack access to safe drinking water, and while water is essential to human life, users pay nowhere near its actual cost—a problem the water sector is working hard to address.

“As one of the consistently top ranked water companies, Jacobs takes our responsibility to improve our clients’ business while addressing the value of water issue seriously, which is why we participate in events like the Global Water Summit and why we also support the Leading Utilities of the World initiative,” says Jacobs Global Water Director Peter Nicol.

Nicol will be providing closing remarks during the Leading Utilities of the World session strand at the summit. He will discuss how Jacobs is working with our utility partners and helping shape the future of water by driving change to address the needs of a rising population, unpredictable weather patterns and an increasingly data-driven economy. 

The Leading Utilities of the World organization is the gold standard of utility innovation and performance, striving to move the water sector forward through greater collaboration, experience-sharing and knowledge-pooling. Since the organization’s inception, Jacobs has served as the organization’s foundation partner, further demonstrating our commitment to making a difference in the water sector. Each year, the network inducts new members to the organization for their outstanding achievement in multiple utility management categories and ambition to continue to drive performance in the years to come.

“These organizations are helping improve the state of water by using innovative solutions and inspiring other utilities to do better,” adds Nicol. “We are proud to work with such distinguished utilities to do our part in bettering the water sector. It’s also important to note that in many instances the solutions they’re implementing are projects that Jacobs is leading for them. It’s a great partnership and continues to demonstrate our water industry leadership.”

Also, during the summit on April 9, Jacobs will learn if the company and two shortlisted projects Jacobs worked on will walk away with the top prize. Jacobs is shortlisted for three prestigious Global Water Awards including as a finalist for Water Company of the Year and two Jacobs projects for Water Project of the Year and Desalination Project of the Year – Green Meadows Water Treatment Plant and Tuas in Singapore, respectively.

Established in 2006 by Global Water Intelligence, the Global Water Awards recognize the most important achievements in the international water industry within several categories, and reward those initiatives in the water, wastewater and desalination sectors that are moving the industry forward through improved operating performance, innovative technology adoption and sustainable financial models.

Some of the achievements that positioned Jacobs for the Water Company of the Year nomination include its work on the world’s largest membrane bioreactor (MBR) water recycling plant in Singapore; securing the role of engineering design manager for the California WaterFix project; retaining our slot at the top of the trenchless engineering leaderboard and Jacobs’ successes in both the green infrastructure and digital space.

Green Meadows was shortlisted for Water Project of the Year in part because it is a first-of-its-kind plant in southwest Florida, combining new with existing technology to treat water from three different aquifers using the latest, large scale treatment technologies. Jacobs served as the prime engineer on the project, beginning with early evaluations more than a decade ago.

For the Tuas Desalination Plant, we served as PUB’s consulting engineer for the state-of-the-art desal plant that covers just 3.5 hectares, making the plant the most space-efficient facility in the country, and potentially the world, a crucial issue for a state like Singapore where every square foot of space counts and real estate is at an absolute premium. Additionally, Singapore aims to meet much of its water demand in 2060 with water reuse and desalination practices – and this project is a crucial component to make the country’s vision a reality.

Through a rigorous selection process, projects and companies from around the globe are selected for Global Water Awards because of their innovation and contributions to the international water sector. From these nominees, four finalists are shortlisted in each category and the winners are determined by a worldwide water industry vote.  Be sure to watch our social media channels during the summit for results and more from London.