BIP selected for Northumbrian Water Group ‘Festive Follow-up Event’
BIP has been invited to a ‘booster event’ hosted by the Northumbrian Water Group. Only ten consultancies will be hosting a topic, making BIP one of only a few firms asked to give developments on its work in the sector since the earlier summer festival.
Northumbrian Water is a water company in Britain, providing mains water and sewerage services in the English counties of Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Durham and parts of North Yorkshire, while also supplying water as Essex and Suffolk Water. Each year, the group hosts an Innovation Festival, where it looks at a range of challenges currently facing its business, as well as broader environmental issues impacting the wider water industry and the communities its customers reside in.
With water companies across the country come under fire for their heightened prices and ecological impact, the 2025 festival saw consultants from the UK wing of BIP hosting ‘ChemDo: Harnessing GenAI for Smarter Wastewater Treatment’, a hands-on Sprint focused on one of the sector’s most complex and pressing issues. BIP collaborated with experts from across the sector to explore how generative AI can be applied to improve operational efficiency, reduce environmental impact, and empower frontline teams.
Now, BIP has been invited back to take part in Northumbrian Water Group’s IF25 ‘Festive Follow-Up Event: ‘Tis the Season for Regeneration’, taking place at the Discovery Museum in Newcastle. As the year draws to a conclusion, this event provides an important platform for BIP to demonstrate the progress achieved since July, and to reaffirm its commitment to driving meaningful, practical innovation within the wastewater sector.
The invitation to this booster event follows the strong engagement and progress demonstrated during NWG’s Innovation Festival in July, where more than 50 companies collaborated on a range of technical and operational challenges. Only ten innovation topics have been selected to be presented on the day, making BIP UK’s inclusion a clear recognition of the expertise, industry leadership, and commitment shown by its Energy Practice.
Steven Gowland, UK head of technology delivery and advisory at BIP, commented, “We are proud of the progress made since the Innovation Festival in July, and of the dedication shown by everyone involved. The wastewater co-pilot is moving from concept to reality, and we believe it can deliver a significant step forward in how wastewater operations are managed.”
At the event, BIP will update attendees on the development of its wastewater operator assistant, an AI-powered co-pilot designed to support operational teams in managing complex wastewater treatment processes. The concept, which emerged from BIP’s sponsorship of the MermAId sprint at the summer festival, combines various data types, artificial intelligence and operator guidance to optimise waste water processes, reduce risk and support long-term sustainability across NWG’s wastewater network. The firm will be represented by Gowland, Gabriele Oliva, head of data analytics and AI, and Sheraz Riaz, senior director.
