Siemens Water Day, hosted at the Silver Star Casino in Krugersdorp, communicated the company’s commitment to sustainable water solutions as part of its goal to balance people, the environment and value creation.
Water sustainability is a critical issue in South Africa and the adequate provision of water is an imperative for economic development going forward, a major challenge considering South Africa’s scarcity of water.
The Department of Water and Environmental Affairs has been mandated to ensure that the country’s water resources are conserved and protected. The Government continues to prioritise its goal of ensuring that each citizen has access to safe and clean water and to this end has a number of initiatives in place including water conservation awareness programmes, initiatives to fix leaking taps and leaks as well as projects to monitor groundwater and climate change. However, to be effective, water conservation needs to become everybody’s priority.
“Sustainability has been part of our DNA since 1847,” comments Stuart Clarkson, CEO of Siemens South Africa. “Indeed, Siemens founder, Werner von Siemens, was once famously quoted as saying, ‘I will not sell the future for short-term profit’.”
To this end, Siemens Water Day targets Siemens employees as well as customers, OEMs, channel partners, distributers and system integrators. “In addition, we want to address the media, end users and government officials on our specific water solutions, positioning ourselves as a reliable technology partner to the industry,” explains Clarkson. “Ultimately, the company’s vision for Water Day is a vehicle to facilitate conversation in the industry around issues such as sustainability, energy efficiency and optimised water use – all core Siemens topics.”
The Siemens Water Portfolio operates across three divisions: industry solutions, industry automation and drive technologies. “Our water portfolio targets a range of end users,” says Clarkson. “These include municipalities, mining, food and beverage and power generation. The portfolio also offers solutions to problems such as acid mine drainage and water reuse.”
Because Siemens is committed to ensuring that the water needs of industry and communities worldwide are met, the company has invested in ongoing research and development of sustainable technical solutions. “These solutions aim to ensure that water supplies are effectively managed, as well as facilitate processes such as waste reduction, resource recovery, water re-use, energy and process efficiency,” explains Clarkson.
The agenda for Siemens Water Day included addresses from Siemens water experts as well as panel discussions on water reuse, energy and waste water. There were also a number of breakaway sessions, along with an interactive session conducted by Siemens’ Rob Holmes, Stuart Clarkson and Siemens industry expert, Marvin Benjamin. The event concluded in a gala dinner featuring guest speaker Lewis Gordon Pugh.
For more information contact Keshin Govender, Siemens Southern Africa, +27 (0)11 652 2412, keshin.govender@siemens.com, www.siemens.co.za
| Tel: | +27 11 652 2000 |
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| www: | www.siemens.co.za |
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