FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Meghan Jensen (414) 988-8754
mjensen@thewatercouncil.com
NEW ORLEANS, LA, September 26, 2016 – In conjunction with WEFTEC 2016, the world’s largest annual water quality exhibition, The Water Council, headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, today launched a groundbreaking commercialization initiative that will match manufacturers, utilities, and the agricultural industry with promising water and water-related technology research and innovations for advancement into the marketplace.
As part of a dramatic expansion of The Water Council, the ICE (Innovation Commercialization Exchange) Institute will aggregate, evaluate, and connect emerging technologies that address water issues across a wide range of industries. Working in partnership with the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (FLC), Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), and Alliance for Water Stewardship – North America, the ICE Institute will serve as a technology-vetting program, providing:
“Water technologies are often a generation behind, due to a variety of factors, including lack of federally led channels or venture capital, siloed research in university and federal labs, and lack of awareness and resources among small and medium businesses,” stated Rich Meeusen, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Badger Meter and co-founder and co-chair of The Water Council. Meeusen added, “While water technology solutions may readily be available in labs across the country, industry is likely unaware of the research nor can they easily access this work.”
Increasingly, it is understood that water is the lifeblood of the world’s economy. Pressure is now growing for investors and companies to build long-term resilience to water security into their businesses.
“Similar to scouts in sports, we will utilize a team of experts to identify promising research and innovations that are spread across the United States,” said Dean Amhaus, president and CEO of The Water Council. “In addition, much like an executive search firm, the ICE Institute will also incorporate a powerful evaluation process that will target promising innovations for our members, which will save them considerable time and money.”
The ICE Institute focuses on an array of water intensive issues and processes common to all industries and translates solutions between sectors. Its pipeline provides prioritized needs, assessed technologies, and routes to market.
In March of 2016, The Water Council made a commitment during the White House Water Summit to develop a channel of access to Federal Labs’ water and water-related technologies. By partnering with the FLC and the U.S. Water Partnership, the ICE Institute will make water technologies from federal labs more accessible through the Global Water Port.
In coordination with the launch of the ICE Institute, on October 26, 2016, The Water Council is joining efforts with the FLC to host the Water Innovation Virtual Forum, a one-day, online event where Federal labs will showcase their available water technologies, and policy makers and industry will converge to strategize new solutions to water challenges through innovation.
WEDC invested $75,000 through a Targeted Industry Projects Program grant to support the development of strategy, institute design, and operating model, recognizing that this is a highly important phase in the evolution of The Water Council.
With the launch of the ICE Institute, The Water Council is debuting a new membership structure for the organization with special reduced memberships through December 31, 2016. More information on this promotion and about the ICE Institute can be found at www.thewatercouncil.com/ice.
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About The Water Council
The Water Council was established in 2009 by Milwaukee-area businesses, education and government leaders. The nonprofit organization, consisting of more than 180 members, links together global water technology companies, innovative water entrepreneurs, acclaimed academic research programs and, most importantly, some of the nation’s brightest and most energetic water professionals. The Water Council is capturing the attention of the world and transforming the Milwaukee region into a World Water Hub for freshwater research, economic development and education. Visit www.thewatercouncil.com for more information.
About Global Water Port
Global Water Port amplifies global collaboration through a super-charged, web-based, research and data dashboard. A dynamic tool of The Water Council, the Port makes available the latest social collaboration tools and access to the most relevant content including patent, academic and industry databases to help the water ecosystem learn, connect and execute the most pressing water innovation needs. Visit www.globalwaterport.com for more information.
About Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (FLC)
Organized in 1974 and formally chartered by the Federal Technology Transfer Act of 1986, the FLC is a nationwide network of approximately 300 federal laboratories, centers, parent departments, and agencies that establishes strategies and opportunities for linking laboratory mission technologies and expertise with the marketplace. To accomplish their mission of assisting with the movement of innovative federal research and development into the U.S. economy, the FLC provides various resources from training to regional and national meetings so its members can obtain the resources they need to achieve successful technology transfer. To learn more about the FLC and its mission, visit its website at www.federallabs.org.
About U.S. Water Partnership
Announced in March 2012, the U.S. Water Partnership (USWP)’s mission is to unite and mobilize the best of U.S. expertise, resources and ingenuity to address global water challenges where needs are greatest. With a membership of 112 partners from the private sector, U.S. Government and civil society, the USWP is a unique catalytic platform that facilitates public-private sector collaboration and engagement with top water sector experts and leaders. The USWP serves as a single entry point for access to the best of U.S.-based resources and ingenuity that help others develop innovative solutions to global water security challenges. Since its inception, the USWP has leveraged the work of its partners to impact millions of people in more than 160 countries. For more information, please visit uswaterpartnership.org and follow on Twitter @USWP.