Interview with Melissa Lubitz, Director of Business Development North America

WT: Please introduce yourself to our viewers.

Lubitz: My educational background was Environmental Biology. Drinking water treatment became my passion and I continue to love the industry. I had a 15-year career with a prominent UV manufacturer but left after the company went through a buyout. After a one-year hiatus from the drinking water market I began a new UV company with my business partner. Following a successful 6 years I decided to leave the UV industry and jump into full water treatment. I was introduced to greywater recycling and after discovering the immense volume of potable water that could be saved, I jumped in with both feet!

I have since moved on with one of the most innovative companies that I've been involved with since the beginning of my career. Hydraloop. Hydraloop is a greywater recycling manufacturer based out of the Netherlands. Since moving into the position of Business Development Director for North America, I am able to assist in pursuing Hydraloop's mission of saving water.

I now travel North America speaking to some of the top minds of the treatment industry.

WT: Please give us an overview of Hydraloop.

Lubitz: Hydraloop empowers people and organizations to save water and energy by offering smart and affordable water recycling products. We believe that water recycling should become a standard item in every single home, just like a fridge, oven or washing machine. Hydraloop is a certified innovative water recycling system that collects 85 % of all in-house water--from showers, baths, washing machines and air conditioning. After treatment, Hydraloop water is clean, clear, safe, and disinfected. Hydraloop water meets the highest international standards, like EU and NSF. It can be utilized for several purposes, like toilet flushing, irrigation of gardens, topping off swimming pools and cleaning.

WT: Hydraloop’s origins are in The Netherlands. Please tell us about the founders.

Lubitz: The company started in The Netherlands in 2015, when CEO, Arthur Valkieser, who is passionate about the environment took over a friend’s recycling patent. Working out of his garage, Arthur completely redesigned the equipment using actual shower water.

While Arthur is the designer and mastermind, his wife Sabine Stuiver, CMO and co-founder is the face of the company. It was Sabine who presented:

BLUEPRINT FOR A CIRCULAR WATER-SMART SOCIETY AT COP28 -- The Blueprint presents concrete solutions for the practical application of circular water and a vision of water usage in the built environment. In collaboration with the Embassy and Consulate of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Water Alliance, and Metito, this event was built upon the successful launch of the Blueprint during the UN Water Conference in NY.

WT: Hydraloop has received several global Innovation Awards and Sustainability Awards and has also been featured in the Netflix documentary, Brave Blue World.

Lubitz: Brave Blue World, is a powerful documentary that shows how people and organizations around the world are addressing global water and sanitation challenges. Hydraloop is presented as one of the solutions to solve the worldwide water crisis.

Hydraloop had a unique relationship with BlueTech Research that is joined with The 50 Leader Organization to bring water education workshops worldwide with a mission to get everyone’s home down to 50 litres of water per day.

Hydraloop was pulled into the documentary at the same time as the company was gaining recognition with numerous awards.

Our mission is to save water.

WT:Why should recycling water be a big deal?

Lubitz: In North America, especially, the perception is that we have an abundance of water. We are not concerned. We don’t even think about it. I live just outside of Toronto. We have many areas around here that by July are in Stage 4 water scarcity and they literally do not have water.

The same things are happening much more rapidly in the US. Arizona for instance, in June of last year, stopped issuing building permits in a specific area because their groundwater had dried up. People were trucking in water.

Our message is -- the time is now. To say we must change the regulations, we must change the plumbing codes -- there’s just not time for that. We need to start incorporating the source that we have and use it.

WT: You mentioned being part of the UN Water Conference,

Lubitz: Water is central to all United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and therefore saving water directly impacts all the SDGs. Hydraloop’s filterless, sustainable technology directly impacts the following SDGs: 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and 13 (Climate Action).

Hydraloop’s impact is even bigger. Hydraloop future-proofs buildings, adds LEED and BREAAM certification points and is suitable for dense cities, rural areas, and off-grid situations.

Additionally, Hydraloop water meets the highest international standards, like the US NSF-350 and European EN 16941-2.

Hydraloop increases the value of any building, lowers the running expenses for water and energy, and reduces carbon footprint.

WT: Please describe the Hydraloop technology.

Lubitz: When Arthur was looking at the design, he wanted to incorporate the principles of Nature. He didn't want to have consumables that we had to throw out.

There are no filters or membranes. The only thing to replace is the UV disinfection lighting once every 2 years.

The system is a series of tanks where the water comes in at the top. Because of the top entry point, the water is turbulent and foaming.

Soaps are coming out of solution and all that foam rises to the top. Then it travels over a skimmer and goes straight to drain. The water then sits for a period where gravity allows the heavier particles to fall out of solution. These particles are captured and put to drain.

There is a bioreactor within the second set of tanks. We initially start up the device and allow the greywater to run through. It is not collected or treated.

The bioreactor that is being created in the second set of tanks is an environment of “bioballs” where organisms can attach and grow.

Then water that is full of organics and soaps is pacified in this microbiological environment and the organisms eat everything in the water. The water comes through clear. The final step is UV disinfection.

If in the final tank the water sits for a longer period of 2 hours, it will cycle itself back through the UV system so it's really functioning on the principles of Nature.

The system is completely automatic, and IoT connected via Wi-Fi. Because this is in the home, we did not want the installers going into the home for servicing -- 80-90% of troubleshooting can all be done remotely.

WT: What are some other features of an in-home unit?

Lubitz: The unit can be placed in the basement where it would be gravity fed, or in the kitchen or utility room -- as long as it is protected from outside debris.

It has some rather unique monitoring capabilities. It learns the users' habits and reminds them of how much water they have available, so it really gets the homeowner involved.

Once every 7 days, usually in the middle of the night, it will close the device and pull in a volume of clean water. The system is completely automatic. There's nothing the homeowner needs to do and the installer can gauge everything on the device manager.

WT: Other than residential homes or condos, where else could the systembeinstalled? Any unique applications?

Lubitz: Basically, anywhere there is a building with water. We are looking to install our system in schools.

WT: What a great idea! This could provide so many teachable moments.

Lubitz: Exactly. We can show the younger generation what can be done --that this should be the norm. The data that is collected from the device is not just something that’s sitting there, it’s visible and there are so many takeaways for kids and teachers.

I am in a working relationship with Al Duffy who used to be mayor of an Ontario region. He's working with a group that is piecing together all the different technologies for schools that will be built in Ontario. Over the next 10 years more than 1700 schools--elementary through to high schools need to be built just to be able to accommodate the high population of children that we’re going to have.

He wants to incorporate a Hydraloop system in every one of those schools. 

The systems and the Hydraloop app on the monitor will be behind glass so these kids will be able to watch that water going through the Hydraloop every time they wash their hands.

WT: Any other projects on the drawing board in Canada?

Lubitz: The Region of Waterloo purchased devices from us because they want to rewrite their water plan. With this pilot project they will be studying the operation and the data over six months to determine how much water is being saved per home. With the data they will collect on a bar graph they can determine the potential for different projects.

I'm finding the big thing in Canada is not only the water saved but also the water being saved from going to a wastewater treatment plant. That's more of a concern in Canada.

WT:Have there been any commercial applications that you can share with us?

Lubitz: The first big application that we had was in Belgium in a student residence Ten devices in a cascade were set up. In the morning when all students are showering the water cascades along the line of devices saving over 350,000 gallons (about half the volume of an Olympic-size swimming pool) a year by taking the shower water and using it for toilet flushing.

In another project, we joined with the IHD Hotel Group in Belgium for an organization called Living for Tomorrow. We’re taking water only from a section of the hotel going through 5 devices. Instead of using energy to pump that usable water all the way to the top floor there is a convention center on the ground floor where toilets in the building are being used the most, so the water is specifically being used for the toilets on that floor

We do have a few boutique hotels within North America, but our previous applications are in Europe at the point

Hydraloop has only been in North America the last 2 years. I really started pushing it Canada when I came on board. I knew there was a need.

Now we have installments in B. C. in a new condominium ready to go this spring, so it is catching on.

WT: But you could go anywhere there is a building with water. Could you provide your service to remote First Nations Communities. So many have to truck their potable water.

Lubitz: Absolutely. We have a smaller device that's just under development right now for smaller homes that is going to be perfect for those applications especially in areas where they are trucking in water. Definitely an area of interest right now.

We have a partner in Iroquois Falls who is looking to get Hydraloop introduced to the bands.

WT: What is your business model?

Lubitz: We have 3 different companies within a company, Hydraloop Mena which is our Middle East branch, Hydraloop Europe, and then Hydraloop Inc which is the North America branch.

We don't have salespeople per se. Rather we bring in partners in different states and provinces and then we support those partners – they are the salespeople. They are working with developers, municipalities, or end users to promote the product. We support them by providing everything they need.

WT: Do you have a message you would like to leave with our viewers?

Lubitz: We are not as water rich as we think we are. Water is not as abundant as we think it is. It is possible to run out of water.

We need to be proactive not reactive

We need to understand that turning the faucet on and having water is a privilege that could have an end date if we do not act now.