If location and timing are everything in business, it’s easy to understand why Seco Sys, whose products control and reduce water use, has great momentum in California and beyond.
“Believe it or not, the drought that preceded this one is when I started this business,” says CEO Hank McCarrick. “I decided the industry needed a means by which it could truly conserve water with real-time information. And now the need for our product and platform is even greater.”
McCarrick developed a real-time water metering system to deliver rich data and instant analytics as well as remote, cloud-based shutoff capabilities. At a trade show, he met an executive with American Leak Detection, a Palm Springs–based company that leads the industry in water leak detection.
“They had an interest in our product early on as a means by which they could change a business model (to) where they weren’t just responding to leaks, they were proactive in discovering them,” he says.
That led to an introduction to the owner of the landscape company Vintage Associates and a housing development in Rancho Mirage.
“Before I knew it, we were installing our equipment in the ground,” McCarrick says. “We reduced their water consumption by 45 percent. It was so successful that the Coachella Valley Water District is giving us a rebate for our system.”
McCarrick moved part of his business from Simi Valley to the Coachella Valley iHub, a business incubator in Palm Springs operated by the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership, which is helping him take his products to market.
“The iHub helped me put together a sound business plan and taught me how to present to investors,” he says, adding that the iHub team prepped him to win a silver medal at the 2013 World’s Best Technology Innovation Marketplace in San Diego. “It was less about the technology, and more about the return on investment. With their help, I was able to secure close to a million dollars’ worth of investment from a manufacturing group in Riverside.
“We have a platform that allows utilities, water service companies, and the customer to conserve water for the first time,” he says. “The real-time aspects of our equipment are unique in the industry.”
VIDEO: Hank McCarrick, CEO, Seco Sys Water Control Technologies