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This paper presents an interactive multimedia case study in waste water management developed at the University of Surrey, UK. The case study considers waste water treatment methods used in a typical sewage treatment works (STW). The works uses a biological treatment process which depends on the provision of dissolved oxygen to the incoming waste water stream. There are several alternative ways of providing oxygen and this case study explores the technical, environmental, economic and social aspects of the various alternatives. The aim of the case study is to suggest which criteria chemical engineers should consider in order to identify more sustainable process alternatives. The case study is developed as an IT‐based interactive learning package (CD‐ROM).

States that the presence of Cryptosporidium oocysts in potable water supplies continues to be a high profile problem in the UK and the USA, causing concern among public health officials and those responsible for water treatment. Reviews the current status of knowledge about this troublesome parasite and considers water treatment options.

In Mexico, only 19.3 per cent of industrial water is treated (Green-Peace, 2014, pp. 3-4), whereas municipal treatment levels are approximately 50 per cent (CONAGUA, 2014a). This paper aims to focus on how the wastewater treatment plant policy, from a circular economy perspective, is affected by the governance context at the Presa Guadalupe sub-basin. Circular economy can contribute to water innovations that help in improving water quality. However, such benefits are not easily achieved. This case provides an example of the complexity and challenges that the implementation of a circular economy model can face.

Data are collected via semi-structured in-depth interviews with the stakeholders that are members of the Presa Guadalupe Commission. The contextual interaction theory (CIT) is the theoretical basis for this analysis (Boer de and Bressers, 2011; Bressers, 2009).

The findings show that the wastewater treatment plant policy plays an important role in a circular economy model. Some incentives towards a circular economy model are already in place; however, the hurdles of a top-down implementation perspective, low availability of resources, prioritisation of short-term results, lack of enforcement of the “polluter pays” principle and a linear model of water systems need to be overcome. If Mexico wants to move towards a circular economy model and if the government wants to enforce sustainable development principles, wastewater treatment is a challenge that must be addressed.

There are few studies in the circular economy literature that have analysed its implementation under a governance arrangement perspective.

Explains how Thomson NETg has partnered Scottish Water to provide a wide range of online courses, accessible from home, in professional and information technology skills.

Presents information from interviews with employees of Thomson NETg and Scottish Water.

Describes the range of bespoke content that has been created for Scottish Water's contact centre staff using Thomson NETg's course‐authoring tool, Lectora. Highlights the marketing campaign that helped to drive usage, so that learning time rose from 136 hours per month in December 2004 to 306 hours in March 2005.

Advances the view that the ease of access to learning means everyone has the potential to learn and increase efficiency and productivity, from office staff to those working in the treatment works, depots and field locations.

Demonstrates that the learning solution helped Scottish Water to reduce its need for tutor‐led IT courses by approximately 70 percent.

The learning outcomes are as follows: business model pivot, minimum viable product, strategic alliances, return on equity and burn-rate.

HMSolution’s (HM’s) mission is removing arsenic from drinking water. The case tells how HMS pivoted its business model between 2014 and 2015 and its challenge when faced with several growth opportunities. The first possible partner company proposed adopting HMS’s technology through either an alliance or outsourcing. The second company wanted to acquire HMS. However, Margaret – the founder and CEO – managed to find a third option in the form of an important sanitation sewage treatment company in Chile with international presence, with which she could reach a wider territory in her country of origin, as well as in other countries where that company had a presence. This case study presents Margaret’s dilemma of deciding the best course to follow and finding the best fit for her product and the needs of the market.

The instructor can adapt the requirements and depth of the topics addressed, ranging from an undergraduate audience to an executive training audience. Undergraduate courses, namely, entrepreneurship, business creation, administration and strategy. For students of business careers, administration, commercial engineering, industrial civil engineering and industrial engineering. Continuous training, namely, entrepreneurship, business creation, administration and strategy.

Teaching Notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

Notes that the most important fixed asset of any water distribution company is its pipe network. However, once installed it is difficult to manage not only because it is buried in the ground but because management of potable water networks encompasses complex activities concerned with supply. In addition, privatized UK water utilities are required to balance often conflicting demands from their shareholders, regulators and customers. Maintenance, including rehabilitation, replacement, and/or expansion of existing networks to meet current and future demands, is the major element of potable water distribution management. Introduces hydroinformatics as a way forward for water network management and maintenance in particular. Looks at elements such as geographic information systems and artificial neural networks. Outlines the scope for improvement to the new technologies for maintenance of water networks together with a wide range of possible applications.

This paper introduces hydroinformatics, a discipline that has strong ancestry in the computational sciences and artificial intelligence, as a way forward for water network management and maintenance in particular. Within hydroinformatics, geographic information systems and data mining (artificial neural networks and genetic algorithms specifically) are the new technologies with probably the widest applicability to the water industry. This paper introduces basic concepts of hydroinformatics and data mining, explains the process by which they may be applied and describes basic technologies with their advantages and disadvantages.

Discusses the factors which affect how quickly Legionella bacteria grow: water throughput, water temperature, and chemical water treatments. Examines management criteria for control of these factors – training, water quality testing, record keeping and maintenance – as well as inspection procedures for cooling systems. Concludes that control of microbiological water quality depends on knowledge of building and systems as well as clear procedures and records.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the measures taken by both the federal government of Mexico and its municipalities in relation to the country’s urban water supply and its management to improve it.

The PRISMA guidelines were chosen as the framework for this systematic review of the available literature on urban water supply in Mexico, considering the most important and relevant legal and institutional considerations. They were paired with critical qualitative review. Overall, 21 main documents, between 2000 and 2016, were acceptable for inclusion.

The review closes by proposing that the approach, at present, is excessively rigid, and that greater flexibility would permit municipalities to identify more suitable means of managing their own water supplies with minimal support from the federal government.

Several research articles have been written about the general nature of Mexico’s urban water supply and management at present. However, no attempt has been made to synthesise the evidence and arguments made in this significant body of research. Thus, the key purpose of this review is to do that with the intention of proposing a shift in the country’s approach to urban water management.