In its mission to connect, integrate and augment existing excellence within and outside the water sector, injecting innovation into the industry through learnings and best practices, Spring is a perfect fit with Jacobs’ mission of challenging today and reinventing tomorrow. As one of Spring’s founding bid supporters, Jacobs is pleased to collaborate with this cross-sector industry initiative and unlock creative thinking to solve challenges in a collaborative way.

“Spring aims to accelerate the UK’s water sector transformation through innovation and collaboration. This is very timely because as a water industry we want to build a diverse workforce, one that is future-ready for tomorrow’s challenges,” said Phil Higgins, Jacobs’ Head of Water for UK and Ireland. “This can only be achieved through inclusion and collaboration, not just across the water sector, but also beyond. Jacobs operates across all major industry sectors, including water, energy, environment, cities and transportation, and we can bring our global experience and local relationships to bear, and help achieve Spring’s goal of accelerating the UK water sector transformation.”

There are a number of priorities the water sector needs to meet at the moment, including an increased focus on the Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) agenda, which is ever more important to investors; a changing regulatory environment; providing resilient solutions, including decarbonising the industry; and affordability and total value outcomes, seeking wider societal and environmental benefits.

“We are seeing a significant level of change throughout the sector: there is a lot of media and public scrutiny for key stakeholders to find solutions to the climate change emergency and enable positive outcomes for all,” said Phil. “The water industry needs to play its part in driving the needed change to address these problems. Spring can foster this collaboration, and use innovation, including digital and technological developments, as an enabler for smarter solutions.”

At Jacobs, we see innovation and collaboration as key elements of our culture, driven from our leadership and our wide talent base. Our approach is working in partnership with clients, and finding the right solutions in a holistic way, embracing diverse perspectives and being innovative in our delivery. Collaboration is critical to this as we foster long-lasting relationships with key industry stakeholders, including clients, regulators, employees and wider supply chain.

“Our aspiration is to provide an integrated approach to managing our current water challenges,” added Phil. “We view all water as a valuable resource and work with clients to tackle the issues that impact communities – climate, safe reliable water, flooding and water scarcity. By looking at water through a holistic One Water lens, we move beyond traditional silos, bringing an inclusive approach to developing a sustainable and equitable water future for all.”

Jacobs’ experience and engagement in the water industry spans the whole lifecycle of solutions, from ensuring access to safe, reliable water supplies; to addressing the world’s water-energy challenge to meet energy demands, in light of decreasing freshwater sources; transporting and safeguarding water with distribution and storage systems; improving water quality and enhancing operations to protect assets and increase efficiency within water organisations.

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Phil Higgins is Jacobs’ Head of Water, UK and Ireland. For an insight into Phil’s career and what drives him, please check this Q&A.

In his role as Jacobs’ Head of Water in the U.K. & Ireland, Phil Higgins leads a team of approximately 500 people, providing a wide range of services from assurance and regulation through to engineering and delivery, asset management and operational support to multiple clients.

With a PhD in water engineering, Phil has experience across all aspects of engineering and technical leadership, as well as project and programme management within the infrastructure sector. He has worked in senior roles both as a consultant and within client organisations.

At Jacobs, Phil is focused on creating an environment where inclusive and diverse teams come together to solve clients’ challenges and create an inspiring place to work.