Nijhuis Saur Industries And BlueNexus Technologies Launch i-WaterHub At IFAT Munich, A Standardized, Modular And Autonomously Operated Factory For Industrial Process Water

During IFAT 2026 in Munich, Nijhuis Saur Industries (NSI), part of Saur Group, and BlueNexus Technologies (Singapore), officially launch a fully autonomous, standardized water factory to produce process water.

Across the world, water utilities and industrial operators face increasing pressure from climate variability, aging infrastructure, and tightening environmental regulations. Centralized systems remain efficient at scale but often lack the flexibility to respond quickly to changing demand or temporary disruptions.

Nijhuis Saur Industries (NSI), part of Saur Group, and BlueNexus Technologies (Singapore), two global industry leaders, are collaborating to redefine modular water treatment and reuse. i-WaterHub is industrialized and brought to market under NSI, as part of Saur Group’s broader strategy in industrial water solutions.

By combining BlueNexus Technologies’ modular water treatment platform and intelligent operation capabilities with NSI’s industrial water expertise and market leadership, i-WaterHub industrializes what was traditionally a bespoke engineering discipline. This fundamentally changes the business case for industrial water reuse by offering faster delivery, predictable performance and lower engineering, construction and operating costs.

The modular i-WaterHub enables decentralized water treatment close to the point of use. It converts effluent from secondary or tertiary wastewater treatment into high-quality process water for industrial (re)use, including production cleaning, reducing freshwater demand.

From proof of concept to industrialized solution
This represents a shift from project‑based water engineering to an industrialized, product‑driven approach. Unlike conventional engineered water plants that typically require 12–24 months of delivery and extensive project‑specific engineering, i-WaterHub is delivered as a pre‑engineered product with typical lead times of only 4–8 weeks and up to 80–90% reduction in engineering effort.

The concept has already demonstrated its technical viability and operational stability in demanding industrial environments and is now being scaled globally as a standardized solution.

By combining proven process technology with modular standard building blocks and autonomous operation, this groundbreaking solution enables industries worldwide to adopt advanced water treatment without the complexity, long lead times and cost uncertainty associated with traditional bespoke installations.

i-WaterHub is already proven in the field, with multiple references across Asia. As a fully standardized, autonomous product, it is available in modular capacities of 2,000, 5,000, or 10,000 m³/day, delivering reliable process water from a compact and repeatable design that reduces footprint by up to 80% and lowers total life‑cycle costs by approximately 50% compared to conventional plants.

The concept has already demonstrated its technical viability and operational stability in demanding industrial environments and is now being scaled globally as a standardized solution.

By combining proven process technology with modular standard building blocks and autonomous operation, this groundbreaking solution enables industries worldwide to adopt advanced water treatment without the complexity, long lead times and cost uncertainty associated with traditional bespoke installations.

i-WaterHub is already proven in the field, with multiple references across Asia. As a fully standardized, autonomous product, it is available in modular capacities of 2,000, 5,000, or 10,000 m³/day, delivering reliable process water from a compact and repeatable design that reduces footprint by up to 80% and lowers total life‑cycle costs by approximately 50% compared to conventional plants.

Fast, plug and play production of process water
Designed as a plug‑and‑play modular product, the i-WaterHub consists of prefabricated building blocks that enable rapid on‑site assembly with minimal civil works and almost no project‑specific engineering. This industrialized approach shortens construction time by up to 90% and allows customers to move from decision to operation within weeks rather than years.

Fixed hydraulic flows ensure stable and predictable water quality from day one, while reuse of different water streams reduces dependency on freshwater supply.

Autonomous operation with intelligent software
At the core of the i-WaterHub is AquaX Robot, an AI‑driven control layer that continuously optimizes performance based on incoming water quality, system load and operational trends. Autonomous operation reduces onsite manpower requirements by up to 90%, lowers operating expenditure and increases system availability through predictive monitoring and remote operations.

Water as a Service: predictable economics
Beyond technology delivery, the i-WaterHub supports Water as a Service models. Customers secure guaranteed water capacity without upfront capital investment, while operation, monitoring, maintenance and performance are managed by Bright Water Team. This results in predictable cost structures, rapid scalability and reduced operational risk for industrial customers.

“Reliability and robustness of our systems have always been our top priorities. With i-WaterHub, we can now deliver this at scale by industrializing how water treatment plants are built and operated. By manufacturing standardized systems in factories and operating them through the AquaX Robot, we ensure consistent, high-quality performance across deployments.

This approach, combining standardization, modularization and AI, has been something we strongly aligned with the NSI team since day one. Together, we share the belief that the future of water lies in decentralized, autonomous solutions deployed globally, and we are excited to take on this challenge together.” Jack Zhang, CEO, BlueNexus Technologies

“This standardized concept has already proven itself in real industrial operation in Asia. What we are launching now is the next step: transforming a proven concept into a standardized, autonomous water factory that can be deployed globally. By combining fixed process flows, intelligent software and modular design, we enable faster implementation, lower investment and operating costs and a fundamentally different approach to industrial water supply.” Wilbert Menkveld, CTO, Nijhuis Saur Industries

Designed for European standards, deployed worldwide
By combining standardized modular design, industrialized production, autonomous operation and commercial predictability, BlueNexus Technologies and NSI set a new global standard for decentralized industrial process water supply.

At IFAT Munich, the team presented the i-WaterHub, including a 3D model of the installation and in‑depth technical and commercial briefings for industrial stakeholders.

About BlueNexus Technologies
Founded in 2023, BlueNexus Technologies is a Singapore-based, technology-driven water solutions company focused on modular, scalable, and AI-powered systems.

The company aims to transform conventional water infrastructure into intelligent, highperformance solutions, particularly in water reuse and decentralized treatment. By combining advanced treatment processes with intelligent automation, BlueNexus Technologies is redefining how water systems are built and operated.

About Nijhuis Saur Industries (NSI)
Founded in 1904, Nijhuis Saur Industries provides solid and adaptive solutions for sustainable and resilient water use, energy- and resource recovery. Since the inception of Saur’s Industrial Water platform in 2020 more than 14 companies have been successfully acquired and integrated into a global operating company supporting municipal and industrial clients in over 140 countries with engineering and consultancy services, EPC / DBFOM project execution, mobile water solutions and O&M site services. With an extensive portfolio of innovative technologies and game-changing solutions, Nijhuis Saur Industries deliver local, scalable, and circular water-on-demand solutions to more than 7.000 references around the world and contributes to a more sustainable and resilient future.

Our purpose is to be an advocate for water, ensuring everyone gives water the value it deserves. With our unique Customer for Life approach, we protect water resources, contribute to the water-, energy-, waste- and food transition, and help to restore and close the water loop. We call it #MissionWater.

For more Information, visit www.nijhuissaurindustries.com