Abstract

The case “Can Watergen’s ‘Water from Air’ Technology Solve Global Water Scarcity?” discusses the capability of Israel-based Watergen Ltd. (Watergen) to address the global water scarcity crisis through its innovative atmospheric water generation (AWG) devices. The case begins by taking a brief look at the motivation that drove the development of Watergen’s AWG devices. Watergen created AWG devices targeted at the commercial, residential, and industrial sectors, apart from providing solutions for water generation during humanitarian crises and natural disasters. Gradually, Watergen became the global leader in the AWG market. Despite the Watergen brand having a layer of social responsibility due to its offering of sustainable solutions for water scarcity, the company still had a long way to go in gaining wide scale market adoption. The case provides details about the challenges plaguing the company that were proving to be detrimental to its growth, market adoption, and overall success. Michael Mirilashvili (Mirilashvili), President and CEO of Watergen, was faced with the challenge of getting people to move away from traditional water sources and also realizing the value of AWG devices. What can he do?

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Analyze the reasons behind the R&D for new products
• Investigate how companies can fulfill UN SDG Goals by developing new products
• Examine the various ways to grow the market for new products with social impact
• Identify the adoption barriers for new products
• Outline the various strategies to promote new products that had sustainability at their core

Keywords

New Product Development; Research & Development; Innovation; Sustainable Products; Diffusion of Innovation; Buyer Decision Process; Promotion of New Products; DVF Framework (Desirability, Viability, Feasibility); Social Responsibility; UN SDG Goals; Value Engineering for Social Impact; Pricing Strategies; Collaborations & Partnerships; Co-Branding