On May 13-17th, IFAT 2024 took place at the Munich Exhibition Center. This year’s world leading trade fair for water, sewage, waste, and raw materials management ended with top attendance of ~142,000 visitors from nearly 170 countries and regions. International visitors and exhibitors were also at a record high coming in at more than 50% of the total 3,211 exhibitors. The event was the largest to date!

From our Empowering Team, Charli K Matthews and Vince Marino headed over to Munich to participate in the trade fair and cheer on the two teams that we sponsored to compete in the World Water Skills Competition. Our Empowering Pumps & Equipment brand sponsored the two-person team consisting of Jeremy Thompson and Rory Byrne. Our Empowering Women in Industry brand sponsored the two-person team of Lindie Aragon and Sarah Hickman. Our brand also was one of the many sponsors of the two Controlled Chaos teams that competed that consisted of USA 1 team with Troy Newton and Patrick Ross and USA 2 team of Tyler Waterhouse and Kevin Ganley.

The World Water Skills (WWS) Competition started at IFAT Munich in 2010. The goal of this competition is to raise awareness of the profession and the industry, motivate committed young professionals and attract new ones. As huge advocates and previous sponsors of The Operations Challenge that competes throughout the year in the United States and ends at WEFTEC, we were honored to be able to support some of these competitors to showcase their skills globally.

“IFAT 2024 was a fantastic event with an impressive turnout. Connecting with numerous successful pump companies was a top priority for me, but I also made sure to watch and cheer for the teams we sponsored. Seeing these men and women compete against the clock and each other was both thrilling and suspenseful. It was an excellent opportunity to gain insight into the daily challenges faced by professionals in the water and wastewater industry. Cooperation and a strong desire to assist one another were key factors in competing successfully. I’m proud to say our teams came out on top!” says Vince Marino, on behalf of Empowering Pumps & Equipment.

There are four stations of the Water Skills competition:
• Work Safety & Health Protection
• Repair & Maintenance
• Instrumentation, Control, & Operational Monitoring
• Process Control

While winning is just a bonus to the experience of being able to participate in this event, we are thrilled to share that our Empowering Pumps team placed second in the Repair & Maintenace event, our Empowering Women team placed first in the Process Control event and second in the overall Wastewater Treatment Professional category, and the Controlled Chaos USA 2 team placed third in Work Safety & Health Protection, second in Instrumentation, Control, & Operational Monitoring, and second in the overall Wastewater Treatment Professional category.

In addition to the wins and getting to celebrate with both our teams and those from around the world, it reiterates how connections are the heart of the Empowering Brands’ businesses.

“Reflecting on my business journey, our initial tagline, “Connecting the Global Pump Industry,” still holds true. This European trip reaffirmed our global presence as our sponsored teams competed against international peers and won awards. The camaraderie and celebration, including swapping jerseys and dancing, highlighted the power of global connections and the joy of shared achievements, “says Charli K Matthews, Founder and CEO of Empowering Brands.

While we continue to reminisce about IFAT, we’re looking ahead to WEFTEC 2024. We’ll see you all in the crowd cheering on the competitors!