Business View Magazine | January 2021

171 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE JANUARY 2021 In addition to building the plant, the Probst Group also secured an agreement with the facility to provide onsite operations to fully manage the wastewater treatment plant. Although initially focused on the dairy industry, today, the company has expanded to encompass the entire food and beverage industry with an emphasis on the subsectors that have high organic loading. “We are taking the technology we have developed to handle a very complicated waste stream in the dairy industry and applying it to other industries like soft drinks and protein appetizers,” says Gibson. He sees these adjacent industries as significant growth markets for the company, especially in applying advanced technologies to already established plants. “That’s an important benefit we can supply to our clients,” he says. “We’ve done it in the past with large manufacturers and food processors who invest in these new technologies. Now we’re seeing more medium to small size companies wanting to invest in the same technologies to support the two to three people running their facilities.” Another exciting area the company has seen growth in is cost reduction for clients. “Our compliance and permitting group analyzed some of our sites that produce sludge as a byproduct of the biological treatment process to see how we could reduce this cost,” says Gibson. “Sludge is a biological material left from the treatment processes and can quickly become a significant operating expense for facilities. From our analysis, we’ve been able to have several of them have their sludge approved as a fertilizer designation, as opposed to waste destined for a landfill.” The change in designation revises these facilities’ reporting requirements, shifting their sludge output away from being a significant cost center. As the economy recovers from the pandemic’s effects, The Probst Group is relying on internal YOUR PREFERRED PARTNER Staab Construction Corporation, an environmental civil contractor, has been partnering with public and private customers since 1984. Staab’s focus on environmental infrastructure is our commitment to reduce environmental impacts and enhance our community and employee well-being. Together, we will be productively SAFE , achieve EXCELLENCE through our TEAM work, and gain TRUST and RESPECT through open honest communication. THE PROBST GROUP