Water is becoming a rarefied commodity in parts of Africa, how do you see this in Asia?

Clean water is a human necessity – without it, all living beings will not be able to flourish.

Asia is blessed with abundant water resources, with 47 per cent of the global average of freshwater per person as of 2012. However, issues of water stress and security have risen in recent years due to rapid population growth, urbanisation, increasing water needs from various sectors, and climate change, which is now happening in all parts of the world.

Climate change is already an ongoing phenomenon – its negative impact towards the world is now evident such as the worsening of water quality, which will lead to a challenge where access to clean water will be reduced. As such, the right question to ask is how big the impact will be on Asia and the whole world.

As a business tool, water needs to be used efficiently. How are you doing this?

At Waterco, we understand that clean and safe water as well as efficient usage of it are crucial matters to be considered for most industries.

Waterco provides products on water treatment system solutions through filtration technologies to ensure water is safe for its intended use and where possible, water is re-circulated.

These can be seen in industries such as aquaculture, agriculture, hydroponics, aquaponics, desalination, industrial water treatments, car-wash stations, lifestyle and commercial swimming pools, spas, recreation parks, fountains, ponds in zoos and more where water is used & reused.

Products such as MultiCyclone, filters with “Fish Tail” laterals helps user conserve water.

Additionally, our factory is equipped with a rainwater harvesting system where rainwater is collected and kept in storage tanks. The collected rainwater is filtered by our filtration equipment before being used for product cyclic testing, cooling towers and toilets.

We do not stop researching and improving our offerings to ensure that our products are energy-efficient and environmentally friendly to benefit our customers in the long run.

With more than 40 years of continuous efforts, Waterco was recognised by the Climate Care Certification by the Swimming Pool & Spa Association of Australia Ltd (SPASA Australia) based on water efficiency, energy efficiency, environmentally sustainable designs, and sustainability innovation of the products.

How is Waterco finding current business conditions?

Waterco’s swimming pool business has improved as many realise the importance of clean water especially when we are living with Covid, but we are starting to see that increase in business activities start to wane.

This is because of high inflation, increased interest rates and energy rates, which impact the cost of living and dampen consumer demand. However, as clean water is a definite necessity, we see enormous opportunities for growth and expansion in the future.

With our recent expansion into Vietnam, we are confident that it will contribute to business growth as we continue our mission of creating a clean and safe water environment. With more than 40 years of experience, Waterco currently has a global presence with offices in most parts of Asia, China, the USA and Europe.

Apart from domestic use, which areas of business are the bigger users?

On average, 70% of water resources in Asia are used for growing food, which makes agriculture the biggest consumer of water in the region. Freshwater consumption is high in agriculture due to the demand for livestock products and is expected to increase in the coming years. Apart from that, water use is expected to be high in energy production and industrial use.

Apart from agriculture, commercial swimming pools or aquatic centres are also some of the highest users of water. In recent years we have also been providing our filtration equipment to assist businesses in recycling water such as car and truck washes.

And how can they be supported when their manufacturing efforts assist national economies?

The business and their expansion in the industry will be able to provide jobs employment and technological development to the country to be globally competitive. As such, we need to look into the perspective where we are creating more productivity and bolstering the country’s technology department which will then contribute to the economic growth of country – if the right support and equipment were being put into placed for that particular industry.

Please provide examples as to how Waterco assists companies to be more efficient?

New technology in water treatment of swimming pools has resulted in a safer, clearer and more comfortable environment for swimmers. On top of that, it has lesser maintenance issues.

Waterco’s filtration products are widely used in various aspects such as in RAS (recirculating aquaculture system), desalination of seawater to potable water, eco-system where aquaculture and hydroponics co-exist and many more examples.

Take our MultiCyclone centrifugal filter as an example, it requires minimal water to flush its chamber of trapped sediment contents. Our filter is also equipped with our “Fish Tail” laterals which require less water than traditional filters to backwash.

Therefore, our equipment minimises water usage when used as components in water recycling systems. To sum up, we help businesses save water through our products.

Big business treats water as a high yield investment – how is it kept in the realms of smaller companies, for example, so their supply is not interrupted?

Installing basic water sanitisation and management systems is something for small businesses to start with before investing in more advanced technologies. On top of ensuring a clean water supply, investing in water storage products such as a rainwater collection system will be helpful to maintain stable water flow while preserving water resources at the same time.

We recommend for smaller companies to be aware of the latest technology and its availability, for this may greatly help the company to either save their cost or further propel efficiency and productivity.

We want to highlight the importance of correct usage methods among small businesses and this is an ongoing education that we are determined to excel in.