Inventing innovative services
Veolia Environnement relies upon its research and development (R&D) to improve its range of services and to perfect technologies used within its facilities every day.
+45% since 2003
Due to strong synergies between our activities and a continuously increasing budget (+45% since 2003), R&D satisfies the ambitions of the Group and is closely involved in the major changes of the 21st century.
118 M€ for the 2007 budget
Veolia Environnement's research objectives for the 2008 - 2010 period have been fixed with the four divisions.
Projects have been divided into four main categories with different timescales and programs depending on their duration and their relevance.
All these programs are defined in close cooperation with our clients and help to optimise existing processes and invent new solutions both in terms of industrial research and in improvement of proposed essential services.
Creating tomorrow's solutions
Although drinking water is still a basic theme for research, other priority areas are the treatment and recovery of waste, energy and the reduction in GHGs. Intensive work is being done on the development of renewable and alternative energy sources, in parallel to the search for solutions to optimise energy efficiency and save fossil fuels, and to provide efficient and easy to understand transportation services.
The scale to be used for sustainable development is the urban district. Although the metabolism of cities has been completely transformed, technologies used in environmental services at the present time are based on the scientific heritage from the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century.
800 experts, dont 400 chercheurs et 400 développeurs
The existing approach needs rethinking to create and deploy different technological solutions, by sharing knowledge on common areas and participating in European and international research programs.
Our research has initiated complete programs for the recovery of energy resources, raw materials, water resources, management of urban areas and optimisation of information systems, combining technical expertise and understanding of human organizations that are currently undergoing a thorough transformation.
Managing the impacts of industrial processes
Recovery of metals contained in industrial waste
Veolia Environnement's research teams are working to develop a technology for recovering metals contained in industrial waste.
The ongoing improvement to technologies used in the water, energy, environmental services and transportation fields is essential for us to adapt our services to be able to meet new requirements for quality, access and respect for the environment.
In addition to this progress approach, Veolia Environnement's R&D is developing methodologies for measuring the environmental impact of the different processes and innovations developed, using life cycle analyses (LCA) to identify areas for improvement.
From research to innovation
>100 research supervisors
The group's R&D approach is aimed at operational implementation of innovative and concrete solutions, crucial for the Group's competitiveness.
3 research centers in France and extensions in other countries
The teams at the three research centers and the international units are working towards this end, in close cooperation with the technical managements of the four divisions.
About a hundred supervisors validate and improve the reliability of tomorrow's technologies.
Veolia's R&D organization
Methodology
R&D involves various teams working together to provide innovative solutions that are crucial to the company's competitiveness.
Their work is carried out following a five-step method that ensures rapid progress is made toward reliable and efficient industrial applications, while containing the technological risk.
Regulatory, technological and competition intelligence is gathered to identify future needs, which serve as the basis for defining new research programs. Laboratory or field trials are then carried out to check feasibility.
A pilot unit is built, in the laboratory or on site, to validate and ensure the reliability of the technology being developed. Lastly, a pre-industrial unit is built and then monitored by operating personnel.
Degree of commitment of Veolia Environnement