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WaterSense 2008 Partners of the Year

On October 9, 2008, EPA unveiled the first-ever WaterSense Partners of the Year at the inaugural WaterSmart Innovations Conference and Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada. They included:

• The Saving Water Partnership—Seattle and 17 Participating Local Water Utilities
• Kohler Co.
• Ferguson
• Timothy Malooly

2008 Promotional Partner of the Year:

The Saving Water Partnership

In 2000, Seattle Public Utilities and 17 other local utilities formed the Saving Water Partnership to promote efficient water use in Seattle and King County, Washington. In 2007, the Saving Water Partnership incorporated WaterSense labeled products and outreach into its local water-efficiency campaign through public service announcements, outreach to plumbers, and public events.

To demonstrate the flushing power of WaterSense labeled toilets, the Saving Water Partnership staged "The Great Flush-Off," where representatives from the Partnership and EPA flushed ping pong balls and potatoes. These efforts resulted in increased customer traffic and inquiries about WaterSense labeled toilets at participating retailers, as well as increased replacement of old, water-guzzling toilets through the Saving Water Partnership's multi-family residence toilet replacement program.

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2008 Manufacturer Partner of the Year:

Kohler Co.
Plumbing manufacturer Kohler has been making efficient plumbing fixtures since the late 1980s. Today, Kohler is still on the cutting edge of water-efficient technology, having earned the WaterSense label for numerous models of high-efficiency toilets.

Kohler has greatly contributed to building the WaterSense "buzz" through its active promotion of WaterSense labeled products on the trade show circuit, on its Web site, and through noteworthy publicity events, including the Charmin Holiday Restrooms in New York City's Times Square. In partnership with Procter & Gamble, Kohler provided 20 WaterSense labeled toilets in luxurious portable restrooms strategically placed for shoppers in one of Manhattan's busiest areas during the 2007 holiday season. As a result, an estimated half-million visitors in Times Square experienced firsthand the high-performing, water-efficient WaterSense labeled toilets.

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2008 Retailer/Distributor Partner of the Year:

Ferguson
Ferguson is one of the country's largest wholesale distributors of plumbing supplies, which means its potential for promoting water efficiency nationwide is enormous. In 2007, Ferguson decided partnering with WaterSense was a natural step, as it had already developed water-efficient plumbing fixtures for its private label PROFLO product line. That same year, Ferguson went on to sell thousands of WaterSense labeled toilets to contractors, plumbers, builders, and a rising number of homeowners and remodelers.

To help drive consumer traffic toward water-efficient fixtures, the company uses point of purchase displays and has made an effort to work with municipalities to stay abreast of rebate programs. With remarkable speed, Ferguson has educated its staff of 22,000 associates in 1,400 service centers located in all 50 states about the benefits of water efficiency and WaterSense labeled products. Both Ferguson's customers and the nation's water resources benefit from this water-efficiency know-how.

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2008 Irrigation Partner of the Year:

Timothy Malooly
Timothy Malooly has worked as a practitioner in the irrigation industry for 26 years and is president of two Minnesota-based irrigation firms: Irrigation Consultants & Control, Inc., an irrigation design, consulting and technology company, and Irrigation By Design, Inc., an irrigation installation and service company.

These companies have been responsible for design and/or installation of water-efficient irrigation systems for a variety of projects, including the first residential project to receive Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program, Russia's Grizzly Coast exhibit at the Minnesota Zoological Garden, and master-planned community projects such as the Spirit of Brandtjen Farm in Lakeville, Minnesota.

Malooly holds three different WaterSense labeled certifications offered by the Irrigation Association and hires and promotes professionals who obtain certification. Malooly speaks about water-efficient irrigation practices, applied technologies, and the importance of EPA WaterSense partnership at functions across the country.

This information is also available as a PDF document: WaterSense 2008 Partners of the Year (PDF) (2 pp, 837K, About PDF)