120Water
Transforming the Water Industry While Protecting Public Health

Megan Casey Glover, CoFounder & CEO

At the center of this revolution lies 120Water—a trusted advisor for water programs across the U.S. on a mission to modernize the water industry through its digital water platform. The end-to-end solution is comprised of modern software, sample kits, and professional services that public sectors (Government agencies, Facilities, Public Water Systems, and Engineering firms) use to manage water programs, ensure compliance and protect public health. 120Water is backed by water industry experts and software veterans who deeply understand the problems facing the water industry and guide their customers to use modern technology to solve them. They also have a Partner Ecosystem, which includes best-in-class companies delivering technology solutions, hardware and devices, professional consulting, and laboratory services. The ecosystem helps government officials and water professionals more easily implement and maintain water initiatives without adding costly in-house resources or piecing together various solutions.

“Our objective is to guide the public sector on how modern technology can be applied to improve processes and automate manual tasks,” said Megan Casey Glover, Co-founder & CEO of 120Water. For example, a field tech would traditionally drive around 30,000 miles on their truck annually to deliver sample kits to local residents. “Why not use the logistics of the US Postal Service, Amazon, or FedEx to dropship that sample directly to the location,” suggested Glover.

Our objective is to guide the public sector on how modern technology can be applied to improve processes and automate manual tasks

Protecting Public Health

So how does the 120Water solution work?

The client engagement process starts with data management and data aggregation with the support of the 120Water team. Often, the data coming from clients are primarily from siloed systems so getting the data under one roof and analyzing it thoroughly is essential. The company’s solution empowers users to compile data from multiple sources and provides clear steps for completing tasks. The mobile-compatible software allows field workers to enter data on the go as they sample fixtures around a facility. Collected data is then analyzed to develop actionable insights.

The second piece involves establishing workflows needed to run successful water programs: “It can be as simple as setting the sampling parameters, setting the locations they need to be sampled from, what communications need to exist with that program and so on,” explained Glover. Overall, 120Water manages tedious, manual data work and processes for water systems, allowing them to focus on public safety. To achieve this, the company uses EPA-Approved, scalable sample kits, including fulfillment, tracking, testing, analysis, and reporting to collect kits faster and at a lower cost. Embedded with automated tracking, the kits are pre-packed with simple, effective instructions and have a pre-addressed label, which allows samples to be delivered to a verified lab for testing. “Once the sample is collected, it is taken to a certified water testing lab. We have established relationships with labs across the United States to ensure consistent Service Level Agreement standards, pre-negotiated sample rates, and data integrity,” expounded Glover.

After an in-depth analysis at the lab, results are automatically loaded into the 120Water platform for customers to view. Clients also receive stickers with custom QR or text codes for all tested taps to show results. The final step is communication. “We communicate before, during, and after the programs to make sure the right messages are going to the right people. We also use our consumer notifications or Public Transparency Dashboard to build trust within a clients’ community or population,” emphasized Glover.

Since its inception in 2016, 120Water has grown by leaps and bounds with customers all across the public sector from state-level down to municipalities. Most states and municipalities approach 120Water with issues such as implementing net new programs or sampling programs for schools and daycares. It is an enormous undertaking for state regulators to be handed, as executing large-scale programs is logistically difficult and costly.

"120Water is all about providing solutions that help our customers modernize how they think about compliance and meeting these new regulatory demands"

120Water supports them by aggregating clients’ samples from facilities. Schools and daycares are informed of their enrollment in sampling programs by the 120Water’s services team and the date for sampling is scheduled accordingly. Collecting samples requires thorough planning and complicated testing and remediation processes that add strain to clients’ resources. 120Water’s services team and comprehensive solution take the burden off their shoulders. The services team has a proven track record of successfully running facility programs and advises on effective strategies that meet regulatory requirements. They provide a straightforward USPS label to send samples back to the lab. “States and municipalities do not need to worry about setting up a lab network because that already exists with us. We can provide a turnkey solution for executing these programs, which is a huge value add to them as they’d be having to do it one-off and throwing a lot of bodies at these programs,” explains Megan. In other words, 120Water provides scale and repeatability while executing water testing and wastewater management programs at both the state and local level.

Creating a Digital Future

120Water’s mission is to protect public health by supporting government agencies and municipalities as they implement and manage water quality programs, especially when it comes to lead management programs. In Q4 of last year, 120Water released its wastewater monitoring solution to protect public health now and in the future. Currently, the 120Water platform is deployed in over 28 states, including nine statewide contracts and over 250 water systems. Talking about growth plans, Glover stated, “What we intend to do is ensure we’re continuously expanding our capabilities as a company to help our customers run as many programs as they need through the 120Water platform. We are also looking to expand into all 50 states over the next 36 months.” For the road ahead, the company is working toward developing capabilities to go beyond lead and wastewater monitoring into other areas, particularly around emerging contaminants and existing compliance.