Today we’d like to introduce you to Clay Melugin.
Clay, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
In mid-2015 at San Diego Startup Week, Sarp Sekeroglu was presenting an idea on how to improve automated water metering for utilities. After his presentation, we met and discussed the problems with today’s approach to meter reading, after a couple hours discussing we were in the parking lot looking at a water meter when a significant new approach to automate water meter reading was created that would enable a low-cost solution that was very easy to install. Water Pigeon was hatched in 2016 and entered the EvoNexus incubator after 9 months of hacking on the idea and filing patents. EvoNexus helped us build up our approach to forming the company and raising critical funding to push the concept into reality. Pillsbury Law made a critical connection to San Diego County Water Authority and Gary Eaton, the Chief Innovation Officer who took one look at the concept and adopted Water Pigeon as a clear innovation that needed to be tested. Water Pigeon soon had pilot test projects with multiple San Diego utilities and a path towards success.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Our progress was almost as planned we proved that optical meter reading was a viable technology, and we pushed to upgrade our technology to the next level of performance. The development was an exciting time in the new team formed from local consultants and contractors to bring to life a system that met the next step forward showing the utilities that we can deliver a reliable and capable system that they can put to use quickly. We hit a few speed bumps along the way but a dedicated team worked until we reached a stable and reliable system, with a long list of things still to be done to bring the system up to our standards. The continued fundraising necessary to keep progress on track proved to be a larger effort than planned and caused a few scary moments where we pulled together and move the ball forward towards our goal of changing the water metering industry to bring automation in reach of all water utilities. New products iterate quickly, so with a never-ending list of things to do, we’ve reached a functional system with a clear path to market and customers asking to buy today’s version of the product.
Please tell us about Water Pigeon Inc.
Water Pigeon is a fast and simple way for water utilities to Automate Water Metering and gain access to valuable data analytics that helps utilities operate efficiently and provides consumers with useful information about their water usage. To bring utilities an affordable and easy to install solution was the goal of Water Pigeon from the start. Now, we are focusing on making that solution available in production and creating analytics that brings valuable information for both utilities and consumers. Consumers that have experienced Water Pigeon install at their homes have found the data to be enlightening and useful, especially when we find leaks at 10-15% of all properties. Most people have no idea how much water they use per day, but knowing this simple fact reduces water usage by 15% as data enables consumers to take action. Water Pigeon is the solution to getting data from existing water meters without replacing meters or building wireless networks, bring affordable automated water metering in reach of all utilities.
What’s your favorite memory from childhood?
Catching my first fish and exploring the woods with my childhood friends. Plus, the first time I built a working electronics product and launching my first model rocket. I was hooked on technology and exploring from those days forward.
Contact Info:
- Address: Water Pigeon Inc 4250 Executive Square Suite 200 La Jolla, CA 92037
- Website: waterpigeon.com
- Phone: 858-764-4443
- Email: clay@waterpigeon.com
- Twitter: @water_pigeon
Image Credit:
Angela Melugin
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