1st. Clusters of Home Water Purifier Companies in the U.S.
The manufacturers and distributors in the U.S. home water purifier industry are primarily clustered in California and Florida. Consequently, the WQA (Water Quality Association) Convention & Exposition is mostly organised in these two states. On several occasions, the WQA Convention & Exposition has also been held in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nevada is a desert, and few people would establish factories, warehouses, or marketing presences there. The WQA Convention & Exposition in Las Vegas aims to attract exhibitors, possibly by providing an opportunity for them to gamble and do some sightseeing. The WQA organiser can also simplify matters by shortening the expo from three days to two days, with an early finish on the second day. This is perhaps the American way of being romantic.
2nd. Rise and Fall of the U.S. Water Purification Equipment Industry
The WQA Convention & Exposition, as the most representative trade show for the U.S. water treatment industry, has witnessed a drastic reduction in the number of exhibitors and visitors over recent years. This reflects the change within the industry. The expo still takes place every March, typically in a different state each year. However, the number of exhibitors and, consequently, non-buyer visitors keeps shrinking. Does this indicate:
The U.S. market for water purification equipment has matured and saturated?
U.S. manufacturers, no longer competitive against foreign competitors, have relocated their facilities to Asia?
Examples:
2.1 KX Technologies has moved most of its facilities for extruded carbon filters to Singapore and India.
2.2 Pentair still maintains its production site in Minnesota. However, most of its production capacity was moved to Suzhou, China, in 2001.
2.3 Paragon also shifted some orders to Zhongshan, Guangdong Province, China, and set up production facilities there in 2010.
2.4 Purolite has three production sites, in the U.S., Romania, and China, respectively. The company set up a resin factory in China as early as 1995.
3rd. M&A Activities in the U.S. Water Purification Equipment Industry
Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in various industries in the U.S. are globally renowned phenomena. The companies in the water purification equipment industry are also a part of this trend.
The most high-profile merger is between DuPont and Dow Chemical. Dow Chemical’s subsidiary, Filmtec, is a well-known player in reverse osmosis (RO).
The second notable instance is Pentair’s acquisitions of numerous brands, including Everpure, SHURFLO, STA-RITE, Fiberdyne, Fleck, and Structural…
In 2005, 3M acquired Cuno for US$1.35 billion.
Culligan, a U.S. company, acquired 100% of the Spanish company Hidro Water at the end of 2018.
The U.S. company Kinetico acquired 50% of Puricom Europe (a joint venture between the Spanish company Ionfilter and the Taiwanese company Puricom).
Canature North America (with the Chinese parent company Canature) acquired WaterGroup in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico in 2014 and Envirogard in Canada in 2019.
In 2018, the U.S. company Paragon sold its production facilities in Zhongshan, Guangdong, China to Culligan.
4th. Existing Production Facilities in the U.S. Water Purification Equipment Industry
There are not many U.S. companies dedicated to the manufacturing of water purification equipment and components. Understandably, companies choose the best course of action given the rising labour costs and the difficulty in recruiting factory operators in the U.S. Increasingly, brands are closing down manufacturing activities and becoming importers and distributors. This saves a lot of troubles associated with production. Below is a list of the few manufacturers still toiling away in the U.S.
4.1 Those focusing on water purification materials and technology:
1.KDF
2.Selecto Inc. – lead reduction solutions
3.Columbia River – calcite, carbonates
4.Graver Technologies – MetSorb (a heavy metal remover for arsenic, etc.)
4.2 Those focusing on RO (reverse osmosis) water purifiers:
1.Ecowater
2.Kinetico
4.3 Those focusing on water dispensers/coolers:
1.Natural Choice
2.Oasis
4.4 Those focusing on water purifiers:
Paragon
4.5 Those focusing on components:
1.Cuno, OmniPure – filters
2.KX, Multipure – extruded carbon filters
3.Aquasana, Sprite – shower filters
4.QMP – brass fittings
The content of this article is free to use, but please attribute the source.
Author: Rodger Lin, Easywell Water Systems Inc.
5 November 2020
