According Dr. Roger Radke, CEO of Siemens Water Technologies and USFilter Corporation, Siemens (www.siemens.com) will use its acquisition of USFilter to better serve water treatment companies in the United States. “The increased capabilities resulting from the acquisition enable Siemens to offer more comprehensive solutions for municipal and industrial markets,” said Radke at a breakfast meeting at WEFTEC 2005 in Washington D.C.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Flow Control was not in attendance at the breakfast meeting, but was informed of Dr. Radke’s statements via a press release.
As stringent environmental standards for water and wastewater treatment are being introduced across the globe, Radke said pressure is growing on existing facilities for the treatment of clean drinking and process water, safe industrial effluents, sewage and the resultant sludge.
In the United States, new standards are forcing the domestic water industry to increase investment in technology upgrades, and system expansion at a faster pace after years of relative inactivity. According to a recent Frost & Sullivan study, the overall spending on water in the U.S. grew by only 2 percent between 1992 and 2003, while the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA, www.epa.gov) estimates that $138 billion is required by 2016 to upgrade or replace the water infrastructure. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO, www.cbo.gov) recently set projections over the next 20 years for investments on drinking water and wastewater systems in the United States with a low estimate of $24.6 billion annually.
“It”s no wonder then, that the industry has seen recent consolidation with the entry of large companies like Siemens AG which are able to capitalize on this opportunity by providing an expanded portfolio of solutions and services,” Radke said. Siemens purchased USFilter from Veolia Environnement in 2004, making it the cornerstone of the new Siemens Water Technologies global business — which now generates nearly $1.9 billion in annual revenues.
In addition, Siemens Water Technologies has started integration of its primary water business focused on electrical systems and drive technology, instrumentation, process control systems, IT technologies, and process engineering. “This new subdivision — Electrical Systems & Automation — extends our portfolio of USFilter with solutions for the water management,” Radke said. “Coupled with Siemens expertise in automation and process control, the company is offering what our customers in the United States and worldwide want from a water treatment supplier.”
— Flow Control Staff
