Drop Collaborative

12/09/2025

💧Happy Holidays from DROP Collaborative! Thank you to those who have known us since Kim started her company as KimHEC in 2016 and those we have gotten to know since then! Our rebrand in 2025 to DROP Collaborative reflects our growing team, our fresh approach to using data in new ways for Pretreatment Program management, and the importance of partnerships and collaboration with our clients, our peers, and our pretreatment community overall.

🔗 Click on the link in the comments to read our newsletter; learn the why, how, and what of working with DROP Collaborative! Pretreatment, permitting questions, PFAS, NPDES questions, or data management — we want to hear from you!

📉 Let's talk! Reach out to Kim via [email protected].

11/20/2025

🎓 What does Life After College look like for future leaders in the wastewater industry?

This week Claire Wilson, Environmental Specialist, presented with the Missouri Water Environment Association (MWEA) Emerging Leaders Committee to the Washington University in St. Louis student Water Environment Federation (WEF) chapter. The committee shared various wastewater career routes and the benefits of joining a professional organization, like MWEA!

💧 Being an active member of MWEA helps Claire in her role at DROP Collaborative by:
▪️ Gaining a Broader Understanding: Meeting other professionals across wastewater sectors.
▪️ Applying Trend Knowledge: Serving as MWEA Newsletter Chair allows Claire to stay informed with upcoming "trends" and immediately apply that knowledge to her work.
▪️ Inspiring Purpose: Staying active rejuvenates Claire’s passion for her work, and inspires her to remind others of theirs.

🔬 Interested in learning more about the MWEA Emerging Leaders Committee? Contact Claire via [email protected] to learn more!

11/12/2025

📈 Are you learning and keeping up with PFAS management? Check out what our own Katie Bruegge, Environmental Program Manager, recently learned and shared at the MWEA Fall Technical & Stormwater Conference.

🗒️ Key Takeaways from the Conference:
1️⃣ Know what you need for upcoming phosphorus limits.
2️⃣ See hope in the future of tech students.
3️⃣ It's always good, to go back to the basics!

✅ Three Tips from Katie Bruegge on PFAS Management:
1️⃣ Utility liability means communication is key.
2️⃣ Stay updated and connect with other Utilities.
3️⃣ Adapt and change with new information.

What is stressing you out about PFAS? Share in the comments below or reach out to Katie Bruegge here on LinkedIn. Ready to connect and let us take the headache out of PFAS management for you and your team? Email Katie at [email protected] and we'll help you get more from your data!

10/24/2025

💡 Finishing October and leading into November, Kim is hitting the stage to share insights on the topics critical to today's operations – and will likely have a fun game or two for those networking breaks.

She'll be deep-diving into Emerging Contaminants and practical strategies for optimizing your plant with Modern Data Management Trends (no more stagnant spreadsheets from the dark ages). Plus, catch her co-presentation with Sarah Towle, P.E. from C&C Pumps: "Preparing for Emergencies"—a must-hear session on keeping your system compliant when things go sideways.

📌 Please reach out if you want to connect at any of these events:
→10/24 CCPS Open House in Marion, IL - Modern Data Trends for the Wastewater Industry
→10/29 IRWA Northern Conference in Rockford, IL - Pollutants of Emerging Concern
→10/30 DMACC Wastewater Operator Training in Newton, IA - Permits, Data, and Excel for Operators
→11/06 Southern Illinois Wastewater Operators (SIWO) Meeting in Carterville, IA - Contingency Planning with Sara Towle, P.E.

How can DROP Collaborative help you better manage utility data and regulate nondomestic discharges? Reach out to Kim here on LinkedIn or [email protected] to find out! We can help you get more from your data!

10/20/2025

📢 Join Juju Wellemeyer in Newton, Iowa for the IAWEA Operator & Pretreatment specialty conference when she shares her expertise on data trends in wastewater: Modern Trends in Wastewater Monitoring and Operations. Juju manages our proprietary data management platform, DROP, which is a web-based application developed by the DROP Collaborative team to support our consulting services. DROP now supports more than twenty-five utilities to provide a central SQL database for managing water, wastewater, and industrial user data. Juju will talk about the importance of data management, especially in today’s times of tracking pollutants between water, wastewater, and stormwater sources.

📌 Tuesday, October 21, 2025 | 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Wednesday, October 22, 2025 | 7:30 AM to 2:25 PM
Iowa Water Environment Association - IAWEA
IAWEA Operators/Pretreatment Conference
DMACC Newton Conference Center
600 N. 2nd Ave. W., Newton, IA, 50208 US

💧 Won’t be in Newton but interested in seeing our DROP software capabilities? DROP us a line! DROP Collaborative can help take your data to a new level for your Utility including smarter data-driven decisions for your Pretreatment Program.



Image credit: https://www.mycountyparks.com/County/Jasper/Park/Mariposa-Park

10/14/2025

📢 Today! Join Kim Cole, P.E. and Sarah Towle, P.E. for Expect the Unexpected: Preparing for Water and Wastewater Emergencies. In the world of water and wastewater, emergencies rarely announce themselves in advance. Disasters don’t RSVP.

🚨 From power failures to pandemics, every utility faces the challenge of responding quickly and effectively when things go wrong. This session will explore real-world examples and the lessons learned. Participants will learn practical strategies for emergency preparedness, response, and recovery. These tools and insights will strengthen your organization's resilience and ensure you're ready for whatever comes next.

🚨🦺 How do you prepare and begin to think about responding in an emergency? How does that look if you are a wastewater operator, utility, government municipality, private industry, university, or other? How do you work together? Join Kim Cole, P.E. and Sarah Towle, P.E. as they help you think about "Expecting the Unexpected” and lead you through a discussion of how to prepare, report, and respond to emergencies for utilities.

📌 Tuesday, October 14
Illinois Association of Water Pollution Control Operators (IAWPCO)
Southern Conference
Environmental Resources Training Center
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
5618 New Poag Rd.
Edwardsville, IL 62025

💧 Going to miss it? Email [email protected] or [email protected] to discuss opportunities to train your team to be prepared. Checkout candcpumps.com for more information regarding 24-hour emergency repair, new pump sales and installation, lift station repair, pump repairs, and much more. Need help tackling pretreatment issues, learn more at www.dropcollab.com.



Photo Credit: SIUE Entry Sign, Tyler Warren

10/10/2025

🚨🦺 How do you prepare and begin to think about responding in an emergency? How does that look if you are a wastewater operator, utility, government municipality, private industry, university, or other? How do you work together? Join Kim Cole, P.E. and Sarah Towle, P.E. as they help you think about "Expecting the Unexpected” and lead you through a discussion of how to prepare, report, and respond to emergencies for utilities.

📌 Tuesday, October 14
Illinois Association of Water Pollution Control Operators (IAWPCO)
Southern Conference
Environmental Resources Training Center
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
5618 New Poag Rd.
Edwardsville, IL 62025

💧 Going to miss it? Email [email protected] or [email protected] to discuss opportunities to train your team to be prepared. Checkout candcpumps.com for more information regarding 24-hour emergency repair, new pump sales and installation, lift station repair, pump repairs, and much more. Need help tackling pretreatment issues, learn more at www.dropcollab.com.



Photo Credit: SIUE Entry Sign, Tyler Warren

09/24/2025

🎉 DROP Collaborative is excited to welcome Etaf Abdallah to our team! Etaf joins us as an Intern while pursuing her Undergraduate in Cyber Security from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She is excited to grow her career in technology while contributing to DROP Collaboratives' mission of combining data and environmental solutions. Please join us in giving her a warm welcome by commenting below!

To learn more about DROP Collaborative or future job openings, visit www.dropcollab.com, or reach out to us at [email protected].

09/22/2025

🎉 DROP Collaborative is excited to welcome Jacob Schwoerer to our team! Jacob joins us with a full stack of environmental experience. He started his journey with a Bachelor of Science with a Major in Water Resources and Minor in Soil Science from the UW-Stevens Point (University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point). He then went on to pursue his Master of Science from Mizzou (University of Missouri-Columbia) with a Major in Natural Resources Management. He is also an APWA Public Works Institute Graduate.

With his Missouri Wastewater Operator – Class A License, Jacob understands first-hand what our water operators see and face as challenges in the water industry each day. Please join us in giving him a warm welcome by commenting below!

To learn more about DROP Collaborative or future job openings, visit www.dropcollab.com, or reach out to us at [email protected].

09/10/2025

💡 Wondering how to tackle contaminants of emerging concern in your water and wastewater systems? Join Kim Cole, P.E. at IPWSOA in Springfield, IL as she dives into the sources of these pollutants and implications for the One Water concept of interconnected water systems. She'll discuss the regulatory trajectory in drinking water and wastewater as well as tools for identifying and mitigating sources of these emerging pollutants in your community.

💧 You can also catch Kim at Booth #64, and learn about the latest on DROP 2.0 and more of what the DROP Collaborative team has been focused on to improve the world of pretreatment.

Going to miss it? Drop us a line at [email protected] then visit our website www.dropcollab.com, to learn more about how we help cities and industries tackle pretreatment issues.

IPWSOA is the Illinois Potable Water Supply Operators Association Conference, led by the Illinois Rural Water Association.

08/28/2025

🏙️ Did you catch Katie Bruegge and Juju Wellemeyer at our booth this week at the Kansas Water Environment Association - KWEA Annual Joint Water and Wastewater Conference? Maybe you ran into Katie at one of the Hot Topics discussions?

💧 Whether we got to chat in person, or we missed you at this event, we'd like to keep the conversation going! Comment below or contact us at [email protected]. Then, visit our website www.dropcollab.com to learn more about how we help cities and industries tackle pretreatment challenges.

08/20/2025

🏙️ Kim Cole, P.E. is headed back to her home state of Indiana along with Shayma Abdallah to represent the DROP Collaborative team for the first time at the Indiana Water Environment Association Annual Conference! Join Kim and Shayma on Thursday, 8/21 at 3:45pm EST as they discuss addressing PFAS & Industrial Discharges in wastewater management. Any Purdue University alums going?! Drop us a line!

Can't make it? Contact us at [email protected] and visit our website www.dropcollab.com, to learn more about how we help cities and industries tackle pretreatment challenges.