Water is the way of life–it is the foundational principle in all living beings’ proliferation, propagation, and procreation. In its bond of two hydrogen atoms intertwined into one oxygen atom, aqua reflects the cosmic divinity and universal omnipotence of tranquil eternity flowing through the veins of our worldly reality and earthly physicality.
Water is our past, present, and future. In our increasing thirst for water, we, as a collectively progressing civilization, cannot ignore the growing water scarcity threatening our future generations’ very existence.
The Unicef Water Scarcity statistics reveal this harsh reality that due to our past ignorance, we live in a present where almost two-thirds of the world’s population, or four billion people, are facing the most severe water scarcity for at least a month annually. What is more horrific is Unicef’s prediction that as early as 2025, half of the global population might struggle to survive in the areas facing water scarcity.
According to Universal MEP Projects and Engineering Services Limited’s (UMPESL) Chief Operating Officer–COO, Dharmendra Pratap Singh, the world’s population is growing, and so is the need for water, food, and energy. “By 2030, there will be one billion more people on the planet, and global water demand could outstrip supply by 40 percent, according to the United Nations. Not only is the need for water escalating, but the water industry also faces major operational challenges daily like high energy costs, aging infrastructure, stringent treated water quality norms, a thriving circular economy, non-revenue water, and sustainable, eco-friendly solutions keeping in mind the Climate Change crisis we are undergoing,” he adds.
Ensuring an Answer
As an experienced leader, Dharmendra shares how technology is transforming the water treatment sector and the expected future advancements. He says that globally, there is a growing focus on addressing traditional and emerging threats to a nation’s water resources through innovative technology solutions, energy recovery, recycling, and reusing treated water.
There is a renewed focus on the recovery of essential nutrients like Nitrogen and Phosphorous that are the key drivers for the transformation happening in the industry. For example, the sludge generated from an STP plant is digested under anaerobic conditions to generate biogas. This biogas generates power through a gas engine, which is supplied to the electricity grid in addition to meeting the total power requirements for the operation of the plant.
Growing water stress and scarcity are mandating the need for seawater desalination to make potable water, and filtration technologies like Forward, Reverse Osmosis, Thermal desalination techniques, and other advancements are happening in the industry today.
All these futuristic solutions demand an innovative team of engineering minds who can grasp the present reality, envisage the future, astutely identify the divide and offer pragmatic solutions the way UMPESL delivers. UMPESL, a 100% subsidiary of Voltas Limited, is engaged in the B2B market, executing key infrastructure projects contributing to the…
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Dharmendra states, “We are one of the leading providers of integrated Concept to Commissioning solutions in Infrastructure like Metros, Airports, Rural electrification, Drinking Water, Supply-Waste Water Treatment-Recycle and Solar Power serving more than five decades across pan India. Our smart engineering skill sets and efficient project management capabilities enable us to judiciously implement large-scale projects focusing on safety, reliability, and sustainable solutions.”
UMPESL serves across Municipal and Industrial sectors in the water vertical, adopting contemporary technologies like SBR/ UF-RO/ZLD as a complete Turnkey solutions provider. Dharmendra informs, “We also have executed STP Projects under the Namami Ganga Mission and Rural water supply projects of Jal Jeevan Mission under central government schemes.”
Dharmendra is the driving force of UMPESL in the B2B Business, with a clear focus on the infrastructure and water projects on a complete Turnkey basis. He has rich experience and expertise in managing large EPC projects in Oil and Gas, Power, Infrastructure, MEP, and Water. He has served in various Senior Positions in large multinational companies and has international experience in executing complex projects. Dharmendra has nurtured, protected, and steered the company to its current prominent position amongst its competitors in the industry.
He was also instrumental in developing robust systems for effective monitoring and Control of all ongoing projects and initiating key strategic decisions based on facts and data collected from sites.
Multiplying Opportunities
Revealing his inspiration behind venturing into the water treatment industry, Dharmendra shares that water and wastewater management has always been a promising sector in India due to the burgeoning population, huge water stress, climate change, and sustainability issues. Opportunities are multiplying because both the Centre and State governments have realized the urgency and magnitude of the impending water crisis. Also, the big driving force is the millennium development goal of sanitation and water access for all towards the Sustainable Development Goals. “Programs like AMRUT/SMART CITY MISSION/JNNURM/JAL JEEVAN MISSION/Namami Ganga provide ample opportunities for companies like us to grow substantially while contributing to Nation building,” he says.
Highlighting the USPs that make UMPESL stand out as a leading water treatment company, Dharmendra says,
- UMPESL provides end-to-end (concept to commissioning) solutions with a customer-centric approach, with sustainability, decarbonization, automation, and efficiency being our key business drivers.
- “Our focus on the circular economy in contrast to a linear economy, promoting the efficient use of resources, technologies, energy conservation pave the way for optimum recycling of treated water,” he says.
- To provide more resilient, innovative, and cost-effective solutions, adopting innovative digital technologies like IoT/SMART SENSORS/METERS /SCADA SYSTEMS for real-time data capture.
Eco-Conscious Technovations
Further sharing the immersive benefits of the services that UMPESL provides to its clients, he says, “We are more conscious of the environmental footprint of the various technologies we adopt in our solutions and leverage new tools like IoT/VR/AR.” These support in recognizing quality throughput, monitoring, and troubleshooting a problem for faster resolution. This mainly applies to municipal water supply and operation and maintenance services to ensure uninterrupted water supply.
Stating the initial challenges after venturing into the water treatment field viz-a-viz current challenges, Dharmendra says that building up a team of people with multi-disciplinary backgrounds and experience and understanding the market and opportunities were the major ones. “Our associations with experienced players through technology tie-up for participation in large tenders was a good learning experience for the team,” he adds.
On envisioning augmenting UMPESL’s scope and offerings in the future, he accepts that scaling an innovative company into a meaningful, profitable business is a challenge in any sector. In the water sector, however, there are added layers of complexity due to competition, technology supremacy, inherent capabilities, and disruptions happening in the market. Building customer trust is part of a strong business growth strategy.
He furthers, “We are expanding our services and diversifying into the allied areas like Lift irrigation projects, Treatment of sewage treated water for industrial reuse and Common effluent treatment plants CETP and river water rejuvenation schemes.”
“We are leveraging our ecosystems to forge strategic partnerships, venturing into new markets, and expanding our customer base for scaling up our company business soon,” he concludes.
