Water & Manufacturing
A sector study of the EMCP
Water is integral to manufacturing operations. The need for ample supplies of water and the efficient use and re-use of water for manufacturing provides significant opportunities for further development in water technology and water policy. As the call to reduce energy and water use in manufacturing processes grows, opportunities arise to develop and deploy new technologies at the nexus of water and energy. To gain a competitive advantage, companies must strategically manage water across their supply chain, innovate to improve efficiency, and ensure a robust talent pipeline and investment pool exists.On February 16, 2016, the Council, in partnership with Marquette University and A. O. Smith Corporation held a workshop in Milwaukee, WI where leading experts gathered to identify challenges and opportunities at the nexus of water, energy and manufacturing in the U.S. The robust conversations during the dialogue formed the basis for the Council's report Leverage: Water & Manufacturing, released at a press conference in Milwaukee on September 27, 2016, and led to a set of recommendations that will feed into a larger EMCP paper and eventual action plan for the president-elect. These recommendations include:
- Using a stewardship approach to water management in which laws and regulations surrounding water reuse support natural processes whenever possible and treat water as the limited resources it is rather than a limitless commodity.
- Integrating natural infrastructure, including roof installments, rain barrels and constructed wetlands, into water management approaches to improve energy efficiency and water quality while reducing overall water infrastructure investment costs.
- Encouraging development and deployment of technologies and microbiological barriers that increase overall water supply by diversifying sources and improving quality and efficiency such as desalinization, nutrient recovery and wastewater re-use.
- Promoting the uptake of sensors and monitoring equipment and aggregation of big data across sectors and geographies to improve water management and increase information available on water quality and efficiency.
- Increasing federal funding available for water technology test beds to accelerate development and reduce cost and risk associated with deployment of advanced technologies for improving water quality and efficiency.
- Modeling water consumption and availability using high performance computing to address gaps in supply and demand and reduce overall waste and costs associated with managing water and energy systems.
- Engaging government and private sector stakeholders in an enhanced public awareness campaign to address water conservation needs.
- Addressing the skills gap in the water and manufacturing sector by de-stigmatizing technical careers, reintroducing hands-on training in K-12 and encouraging cross-sector partnerships between industry and academia.
News: Council Convenes Experts to Tackle Water & Manufacturing Issues
