Water shortages now rank as high as cyber-attacks and supply chain disruption for industrial business continuity in Europe, yet almost 60 percent of business leaders admit to not installing technology they know could cut water risk, according to a new survey report from global energy major Schneider Electric.
The Schneider Electric “The Water Crunch Report” is new research revealing that water is now one of the biggest risks to industrial business continuity across the UK and Europe, ranking as highly as cyber-attacks and supply chain disruption.
According to Schneider Electric, this echoes last year’s US-focused research from the company, where over half (56 percent) of business leaders said water-related risks will grow faster than other infrastructure risks in the coming years.
Commissioned by Schneider Electric, conducted by Censuswide, and with survey questions designed in collaboration with independent water industry journalist and analyst Tom Freyberg, Founder of Atlantean Media, the report explores how industrial leaders and water system decision-makers across the UK and Europe are experiencing water stress today
Water stress a barrier
The Water Crunch Report surveyed senior leaders at industrial companies and decision-makers at water utilities and municipalities across Europe. In the past two years, industrial leaders say water stress has already pushed up their operating costs (44 percent), strained infrastructure and maintenance budgets (38 percent), and disrupted supply chains (30 percent).
If a serious water supply disruption hits tomorrow, 44 percent of surveyed businesses believe their operations would start to suffer within 24 hours.
On average, over half (52 percent) of industrial leaders expect water quality or availability to become a serious barrier to their organization’s growth within the next five years, by 2031, and 1 in 7 (14 percent) say it already is a barrier to their operations or growth today.
The findings land against the backdrop of Europe’s most severe drought conditions in decades, with the knock-on effects on the freight, energy and agriculture sectors providing a stark reminder that these pressures are no longer hypothetical.
Europe cannot afford to treat water as an environmental issue alone. It is now a competitiveness issue. Just as the energy transition reshaped industrial strategy over the past decade, water efficiency will shape the next one. AI-powered industrial intelligence gives companies unprecedented visibility into how water is used, wasted and recycled. The challenge is no longer understanding the problem, but acting at the pace required to secure Europe’s industrial future, said Gwenaelle Huet, EVP, Industrial Automation, Schneider Electric.
Awareness versus adoption
While smart water technology is widely recognized as a solution to water management, implementation is not keeping up with awareness. The gap isn’t down to skepticism.
Belief in these tools is close to universal: 86 percent of industrial leaders and 98 percent of water utilities say smart water technology can cut operating costs, and over 80 percent say it protects business continuity and strengthens sustainability performance.
Despite this, industrial leaders show particularly high awareness of technologies they haven’t yet deployed: 58 percent are aware of digital twins or network modelling tools but have not installed them, while 57 percent of water utilities say the same of predictive analytics or AI-enabled water management.
It’s easy to write off this summer’s droughts and its impact on industry as a one-off, but this is now a structural feature of operating in Europe. Right now, around half of the EU and UK are under some level of drought, according to the EU’s European Drought Observatory. Reusing water can reduce our dependence on rivers and reservoirs already under strain, yet only 2.4 percent of treated urban wastewater is reused across the EU today. The organizations investing in smart water technology are turning water efficiency into a competitive advantage, said Sophie Borgne, Water & Environment Segment President of Schneider Electric.
Shape future decisions
The encouraging news is that industry isn’t waiting for the problem to worsen, as nearly all organizations surveyed (100 percent of water utilities and 98 percent of industrial leaders) say water availability or quality has already shaped major decisions, from increased investment in water efficiency (47 percent) to formal board-level reviews of water risk (43 percent).
More than half of industrial leaders surveyed have installed automated controls (56 percent) and smart meters (55 percent); smart meter adoption climbs even higher among water utilities, to 76 percent.
Cybersecurity is climbing up the agenda too, with over half of both industrial leaders and water utilities naming it among the top risks to manage as water systems become more connected and digital.
The survey report finds clear headroom for growth: many leaders are aware of technologies designed to optimize operations but have yet to install them, meaning the biggest gains may still be ahead.
For European business leaders, the takeaway is straightforward: water risk now needs the same active management as energy or cybersecurity. Closing this gap is likely to matter most for the industries already feeling the cost of water stress.
For nearly two decades, water has been overlooked in the climate conversation, attracting a fraction of the investment given to energy or carbon. With Europe warming more than twice as fast as the rest of the world, pressure on water supply is intensifying, and The Water Crunch report confirms the mindset is shifting: 47 percent of industry leaders have already increased investment in water efficiency, and 43 percent have taken water risk to board level. Water security is finally being treated as a business priority, not an afterthought, said Tom Freyberg, independent water and environment expert.
