Editorial Letter: Driving Digital Trends

Aug. 20, 2020

This editorial letter originally appeared in WWDs August 2020 issue as "Driving Digital Trends"

About the author:

Bob Crossen  |  Senior Managing Editor  |  [email protected]

Last month, we featured our 2020 Water & Wastes Digest Young Pros, and many of them noted the importance that technology will play for the future of the industry, most notably how their generation is incorporating it more and more into the daily lives of water and wastewater workers.

A couple months ago, I mentioned how smart wastewater has opportunities for those analytical types to dig into the data of a network to find new correlations between data points and build a deeper understanding of their system. We’ve run several articles on data analytics over time and also noted the increase in adoption of smart systems due to the coronavirus pandemic this year.

In this issue, we have an article showcasing how much of difference data can make for a community with a case study in Tanzania. Without proper and accurate measurements and data, choosing between fresh food and water or electricity was a literal decision to make. Read more about that story and the socioeconomic impact of the data on page 8.

I also want to note that digital isn’t just happening in the water and wastewater space as well. It is happening with myself and the WWD editorial team. We’ve placed an increased focus on our social media channels and website to bring content to you more often than these print issues. Every Tuesday night, we premiere a video interview with an industry thought leader on Facebook, which you cannot watch anywhere else for a couple days. If you’re interested in video content, please give our page a like and follow to get notified of updates!

And we’ve also recently updated some features on our website to make it more mobile friendly. This is a work in progress, but we hope it will help you better navigate the site regardless of the device you are using. 

And lastly, we have finally released our Coronavirus Market Impact Report, a digital-only product, which you can find by visiting bit.ly/wwdcovidreport.

For all these projects and more, I am seeking your feedback. Please send me an email about your experience with our Facebook page, website and the digital report so we can incorporate those into our continuous improvement plan.

Sponsored Recommendations

Blower Package Integration

March 20, 2024
See how an integrated blower package can save you time, money, and energy, in a wastewater treatment system. With package integration, you have a completely integrated blower ...

Strut Comparison Chart

March 12, 2024
Conduit support systems are an integral part of construction infrastructure. Compare steel, aluminum and fiberglass strut support systems.

Energy Efficient System Design for WWTPs

Feb. 7, 2024
System splitting with adaptive control reduces electrical, maintenance, and initial investment costs.

Blower Isentropic Efficiency Explained

Feb. 7, 2024
Learn more about isentropic efficiency and specific performance as they relate to blowers.