Industrial Water Forum 2026

Industrial Water Forum

HG Ventures · Private Event

Where corporate operators, innovators, and investors convene to tackle the biggest challenges in industrial water.

Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026

Location: The Center · Indianapolis, IN

Program Hours: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM

Co-hosted by

About the Forum

Turning big challenges into bigger opportunities.

A focused, invitation-only day bringing together the operators who face industrial water’s toughest challenges, the entrepreneurs building solutions, and the investors funding the transition.

Operator Reality First

The agenda is anchored in what’s actually happening inside industrial facilities — not aspirational case studies. Corporate leaders share real pressures and where they’re actively looking for help.

Capital Meets Innovation

With the operator challenges fresh in the room, the afternoon maps where smart money is moving — which technologies are attracting capital and what trends will shape industrial water over the next decade.

Closed-Loop & Circular Models

Can wastewater become a revenue stream? Panels explore moving from linear water use to circular systems — the technology, the economics, and the organizational hurdles of actually getting there.

Resilient Infrastructure

Aging systems, emerging contaminants, predictive digital tools — the afternoon panel dives into what it takes to build water infrastructure that can handle today’s industrial demands.

Agenda

Thursday, April 30

Morning

8:30 AM

Registration & Breakfast

Arrival

9:30 AM

Welcome & Opening Remarks

Amy Schumacher, The Heritage Group

9:45 AM

Opening Keynote: Why Water, Why Now? ▼ Details

Antoine Walter · (Don’t) Waste Water Podcast

Keynote

Drawing on 250+ conversations with water executives, Antoine challenges conventional thinking and highlights the key questions the industry should be asking as industrial demand, new technologies, and investment in water continue to accelerate. His remarks will surface what the (Don’t) Waste Water podcast community is actually worried about — and what gives them reason for optimism.

Antoine Walter — Global Water Innovation Expert; Host, (Don’t) Waste Water Podcast

10:35 AM

Corporate Operator Reality Panel ▼ Details

3M · Conagra · PepsiCo · Colgate-Palmolive | Mod: Kristen Siemen

Panel

What keeps a plant manager up at night? The opening panel grounds the room in operator reality. Senior leaders from global manufacturers share what’s actually happening inside their facilities, where the real pressures are — from aging infrastructure and water scarcity to regulatory complexity — and where they are actively looking for help.

Panelists: Gayle Schueller (3M) · Christine Daugherty (Conagra) · Michael Waitek (PepsiCo) · Vance Merolla (Colgate-Palmolive)

Moderator: Kristen Siemen — Sustainability Advisor, The Heritage Group; Former CSO, General Motors

11:30 AM

Lunch

Break

Afternoon

12:30 PM

Water Innovation Landscape ▼ Details

Tom Ferguson · Burnt Island Ventures

Keynote

With the morning’s operator challenges fresh in mind, where is the smart money going? Tom maps the current innovation landscape — which emerging technologies are attracting capital, where the biggest gaps remain between corporate need and startup capability, and what investment trends will shape industrial water management over the next decade.

Tom Ferguson — Managing Director, Burnt Island Ventures; Lead VC investor, early-stage water technology

1:10 PM

Resource Recovery & Closed-Loop Systems Panel ▼ Details

Nestlé · ElectraMet · ZwitterCo | Mod: Walt Kozlowski, Xylem

Panel

Can wastewater become a revenue stream? This panel explores how organizations are closing the loop — the technologies, the economics, and the organizational hurdles of moving from linear water use to circular systems. Corporate operators and the startup founders building these solutions share what’s working and what’s not.

Panelists: Rachelle Malin (Nestlé) · Cameron Lippert (ElectraMet) · Myron Van Ert (ZwitterCo)

Moderator: Walt Kozlowski — Sr. Director of Industrial Sustainability, Xylem

2:00 PM

Break

2:25 PM

Resilient Water Infrastructure Panel ▼ Details

Cummins · Arcwood · Puraffinity · Waterly | Mod: Daniel Benitez, Veralto

Panel

What does it take to build water systems that last? The afternoon panel dives into aging systems that weren’t built for today’s demands, emerging contaminants, predictive digital tools, and where investment capital should flow to build real resilience. The panel brings together a large corporate operator, infrastructure strategists, and deep-tech founders.

Panelists: Patrick Schultz (Arcwood) · Nichole Morris (Cummins) · Vincent Caillaud (Puraffinity) · Chris Sosnowski (Waterly)

Moderator: Daniel Benitez — VP Innovation, Veralto

3:15 PM

Lightning Round — Startup Introductions

Startups

Evening

3:30–
5:00 PM

Networking & Cocktail Reception

Informal gathering for candid conversation across corporates, investors, and innovators

Reception

Expert Voices