Getting to Know Our Experts - Mark Simkiss

Here we talk to Business Development Manager for Veolia Water Technologies (VWT) Mark Simkiss, to gain insight into his role and some of the changes that are happening across the water sector.

Can you tell us a bit about your experience?

I have been working in the water treatment industry for 16 years, gaining experience in a number of technical service and sales roles within the UK Industrial market. I have also had some time as a Key Account Manager for customers within the nuclear and pharmaceutical industries before moving to VWT UK as a Business Development Manager in early 2021. 

What does your Business Development Manager role entail?

I help new customers by providing water treatment solutions that will improve their plant performance and reduce operational costs. These customers work in a variety of different industries, including power, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, automotive, chemicals and food and beverage. As such, I get the opportunity to visit a wide range of plants and meet many different people - something I really enjoy. 

My main focus and area of expertise is water treatment for cooling systems and steam boilers. Specifically, I look to optimise the use of chemical treatment and improve plant efficiency, helping to making savings in terms of water, gas and energy consumption. I also audit competitors’ existing water treatment provision to identify areas where we can improve compliance and ensure Legionella risk is minimised. 

What are the main challenges you face in your role day to day?

Quite often, customers are content with their current provider due to a long term relationship that has been built over time. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that their current provider is delivering the best service. Overcoming reluctance to allow me to visit sites like this is one of the biggest challenges I face,  but being able to demonstrate real benefits from taking a new perspective makes it all worthwhile.

What sets VWT UK apart with its offering within the water treatment chemical sector?

VWT has one of the strongest water treatment offerings that I have experienced since being involved in the industry. Since joining I have been impressed with how the company is able to leverage its size while maintaining the flexibility and speed normally only attributed to smaller organisations. The many different arms of Veolia Water Technologies are able to collaborate and work together in order to provide an all-encompassing contract covering the end-to-end management of water treatment. 

For smaller cooling tower and boiler systems there is also a great deal of flexibility in the water treatment packages that can be provided. Customisation means we don't just rely on a one-size-fits-all package that would bring limitations and unnecessary additions. Instead, we offer a tailor made package that suits each application.

In recent years, how has VWT UK looked to enhance the sustainability of its solutions for customers?

Sustainability is an issue that VWT UK has long championed. In recent years, we have developed resources such as our Hubgrade digital monitoring system, which can drastically improve plant efficiency, and subsequently lower its environmental impact through savings in water, energy, fuels and chemicals. 

During your time in the water treatment sector, what changes have you noticed and how have these impacted water treatment chemical development?

The biggest change in my time has been automation and digitisation. Whilst there are still cooling towers and boilers that rely purely on manual checks and adjustment, these are becoming much fewer in number. I remember when I first started, I was impressed by seeing a system send an SMS with an alarm. Now there are systems capable of making adjustments to setpoints automatically, determining the next action to take and also reordering chemicals when stocks are getting low. There is also the ability for widespread benchmarking of comparable systems, which can identify where further optimisation is possible.

It is also encouraging to see current projects being worked on at Veolia Water Technologies, like artificial intelligence (AI) to predict the conditions in systems before they occur and taking action in advance of them becoming an issue. 

Fun fact? 

I love to set myself challenges, like learning to juggle or do a Rubik’s cube in less than three minutes. Recently, I have started to learn Chinese to add to the languages I can already speak; English, Spanish and French!

To learn more about how VWT’s WTC offering, contact an expert by filling in the online form here