Access to water resources is considered to be one of the main challenges of the 21st century. Scientists from the European Membrane Institute (part of the University of Montpellier, the CNRS and the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier) have just succeeded in opening the way to a new revolutionary filtration processes within their Research Institute.
Since September 2017, discussions have been going on between Veolia Water Technologies, the world leader in water treatment technologies, and the European Membrane Institute, a laboratory with an international reference in the field of membrane materials and processes. These discussions have lead to the establishment of a contractual partnership, the subject of the agreement being signed today.
This agreement covers the substantial development of materials and processes for water filtration, in particular for advanced industrial applications: ultra-pure water used in pharmaceuticals and industry, seawater desalination, filtration of pesticides such as glyphosate and metaldehyde or real-time monitoring of the physical condition of membranes in operation, etc.
Philippe Miele, Director of the European Membrane Institute, says “With this partnership, the IEM will strengthen its actions in the field of water purification, in particular by facilitating the transition from the discovery made in the Laboratory discovery, for the IEM, to the valorization and then the industrial application for Veolia Water Technologies. A win-win partnership is emerging, each partner bringing expertise from their domain. It is much more than collaboration but rather the co-construction of a new type of partnership, which should enable us to collectively invent other forms of action, whether of a scientific, technological or societal nature.”
“This agreement is the very example of what I call intelligent cooperation because it is based on the complementarity of interests and the real reciprocity of benefits. Of course, we do not have the same interests as the IEM, but our association makes it possible to build the continuum between basic research and industrialization, an essential step in the integration of new technologies in industry. We will take care to ensure that the benefits are mutual and balanced” says Jean-François Nogrette, Chief Executive Officer of Veolia Water Technologies.
The agreement includes research in the form of doctoral theses, reciprocal exchanges between researchers and also the creation of platforms for testing industrial prototypes and characterization. The two partners undertake to promote together a principle of co-construction around common objectives.
Communication Contacts
Institut Européen des Membranes (European Membrane Institute)
Johanna Bismuth
ENSCM Communication
Tel.: +33 (0) 4.67.14.43.82
[email protected]
Christelle Floutier
IEM Communication
Tel.: +33 (0) 4.67.14.91.00
[email protected]
www.iemm.univ-montp2.fr/
Veolia Water Technologies
Séverine LE BIDEAU
Communications Manager / Press Relations
Mob.: +33 (0) 6.35.21.96.58
[email protected]
Clément LEVEAUX
Communications Director
Mob.: +33 (0) 6.15.02.34.41
[email protected]