The Water Tower has announced that Carollo Engineers will be the first tenant at The Water Tower Innovation Center — a 55,000 square foot research collective on The Water Tower Global Innovation Hub Campus located in Gwinnett County, Georgia.
The campus will be an incubator for water innovation, bringing together utilities, technology providers, educational institutions and other industry partners to conduct applied research, technology innovation, workforce development and community engagement.
The Water Tower is a new breed of innovation center providing answers to a multitude of complex challenges facing the water industry through an integrated approach to applied research, technology innovation, workforce development and stakeholder engagement. The Water Tower’s mission is to build a thriving ecosystem of water innovation fueled by imagination, informed by research and powered by pioneers.
“Carollo has always been at the leading edge of water technology, and so it makes sense that they are the first tenant at the Innovation Campus,” says The Water Tower CEO Melissa Meeker. “Carollo has been advancing water and wastewater science for decades, and they will be an outstanding partner in helping The Water Tower become an international destination for water research.”
Ranked by Engineering News Record as the country’s largest water-focused engineering firm, Carollo will bring a full range of planning, design and construction management services to clients in the Atlanta Metro area. It will also facilitate knowledge and technology transfer at The Water Tower gleaned from more than 85 years in the water sector. In the last five years, Carollo has completed more than 120 applied research projects addressing PFAS, algal toxins, treatment intensification and more.
“The Water Tower is on its way to becoming an esteemed hub for innovation,” says Carollo Senior Vice President Michael J. MacPhee. “This new office marks a pivotal milestone for Carollo as we grow our team to serve current and future clients in the Southeast. We look forward to making contributions to Gwinnett County, the greater Southeast region, and the whole industry.”
The Water Tower is being built next to the F. Wayne Hill Water Resources Center near the Gwinnett Environmental and Heritage Center in Buford, Georgia. Scheduled to open in March 2022, the three-story Innovation Center facility will house office and collaboration spaces, classroom and meeting spaces, a large multi-purpose space, as well as multiple laboratories for studies, experiments and tests. A conveyance network will bring process streams from F. Wayne Hill Water Resources Center to support bench-scale, full-scale, and pilot studies.
“We are thrilled that Carollo chose The Water Tower and Gwinnett County for this expansion into the Atlanta Metro area,” says The Water Tower Board Chairman and Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Nick Masino. “The Water Tower is the ideal location for water-related businesses to participate in a growing ecosystem of water innovation, and Carollo’s presence will strengthen Gwinnett’s already robust business community.”
