Hospitality Can Box Clever With ‘Rebel’ Eco-Hydration System
The Well Water has launched a new-style hydration dispenser which looks set to transform water packaging and dispensing with the introduction of its industry-first disruptive technology.
The award-winning system combines boxed Scottish Natural Mineral Water with next generation dispensers. This is a water cooler but not as you know it and is perfect for the hospitality sector.
The Well Water reduces the use of plastic, cuts out the hassle and cost of sanitization visits, saves storage space, reduces costs, improves hygiene and, because it is a ‘smart' system, improves administration and logistics for the user. For the on-trade, this is a clever, cost-effective, safe, modern solution to the provision of water to customers and to back-of-house colleagues when providing water.
The sustainable credentials of boxed water combined with the delicious taste profile of clear, Scottish water, make this a perfect hydration solution.
The Well Water has been launched by two water industry professionals. It is the brainchild of microbiologist Kieran McKenna who is working with CEO David Albers, who also has over 30 years' experience in the water cooler industry. Every pack comes with a tap and the new-style chiller avoids the need for sanitizing with the cost, labour and hassle that entails because the machine never touches the water, making the passage from box to cup more hygienic than traditional coolers.
Kieran McKenna explains: "We call our system ‘purity by design'. Boxed water is the most sustainable packaged water solution. It is lighter, easier to transport, and has a lower carbon footprint than water packed in plastic or glass."
As part of a multi-million-pound investment, a small-pack single-use plastic water bottling line has been decommissioned at the company's Purely Scottish production facility and replaced with a high tech ‘boxing' line, bringing the immediate benefit of massive packaging reductions.
The boxed water revolution
CEO David Albers said: "The core innovation is the move from bottles to boxes. It sounds like a small step but it's truly revolutionary. By moving away from plastic bottled water, the whole game changes. Apart from the hygiene and sustainability benefits, the cloud connectivity and built-in intelligence of the machines allow for smart distribution and demand-led delivery (as against just pre-scheduled route delivery). The net impact is a solution that is set to transform things for busy hospitality venues."
The stylish, black unit is split into two parts: the top section is the cooler; and the bottom section provides storage with the connected weighing platform. The top section can be used alone as a counter-top dispenser and this modular thinking is a good choice for premises that don't have the space available for a freestanding machine.
An illuminated front screen can be customised with a message or customer logo. It is perfect for hydrating busy front-of-house and kitchen staff and, because the water is of the highest quality, can be dispensed and sold for service too.
The Well Water dispenser has been designed to solve many of the problems of conventional water coolers, which have remained mostly unchanged over the last 20 years. Already, the design has won a 2021 Good Design Award from The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design. It was also joint winner of the small/medium business category in the 2021 Irish Business Design Challenge, organised by the Design & Crafts Council Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and Local Enterprise Offices.
