What Stichting RIONED does

Stichting RIONED is the Dutch national umbrella organization (koepelorganisatie) for urban water management, established in 1986 and headquartered in Ede. It operates as a private foundation (Stichting) under Dutch law and functions as the authoritative knowledge body for municipal water tasks, including sewage systems, rainwater management, and groundwater. Its membership (begunstigerschap) covers virtually the entire Dutch professional community: all 21 water boards, 388 of 390 Dutch municipalities, all provinces, relevant ministries, advisory firms, suppliers, and educational institutions.

The foundation's core assets are the Kennisbank Stedelijk Water, a comprehensive sector knowledge bank that includes authorized guidelines such as the Leidraad riolering, and the Gegevenswoordenboek Stedelijk Water (GWSW), which serves as the national data dictionary standard enabling standardized data exchange across municipalities and water boards. Supporting its core platform are operational tools including BGT-inlooptabel en BGT-inlooptool (national topography integration), Formatiescan (staffing assessment for municipal water tasks), RainTools (rainwater management), RadarTools (extreme precipitation analysis launched jointly with STOWA in 2022), PerceelTool (property-level water management), Morgencirculair (circular economy tool), and the Beeldenbank image library. RIONED also publishes the monthly RIONEDnieuws newsletter, runs the annual RIONEDdag conference, hosts webinars, and operates the 'Niet in het riool' public awareness campaign.

Revenue is generated primarily through tiered annual membership subscriptions — municipalities pay €0.287 per dwelling, water boards €0.00394 per inhabitant, provinces €2,874-3,782 by population, ministries €1,475 per division, advisory and supplier companies €634-6,205 by size, and educational institutions a flat €634 — supplemented by publication sales, paid event participation, and training fees. The foundation is governed by a Raad van Toezicht with reserved seats for municipalities, water boards, construction companies, and service-sector members, and is currently led by director Hilde Niezen (appointed January 1, 2022).

Name

Stichting RIONED

Legal name

Stichting RIONED

Website

https://riool.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stichting RIONED is the Dutch national umbrella foundation for urban water management, providing the GWSW data standard, sector knowledge bank, and operational tools to virtually all municipalities, all water boards, and private sector partners across the Netherlands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Water Management Knowledge Services

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Sewage Treatment Facilities (22132), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900)

akta.pro primary industry

Water Supply & Wastewater Utilities Administration (BPAIACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Stormwater Management & MS4 Compliance Services (BPALAMAL), Data Management, LIMS & Compliance Software (ELN, eDMS, reporting automation) (EUANAJAE), Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Control & Compliance (Storage, Separation, Treatment) (EUANAEAG), Water & Wastewater Compliance (NPDES/Stormwater, Pretreatment, Drinking Water/SDWA) (EUAHABAB)

Keywords

• Urban water management
• Sewerage sector coordination
• Water data standards
• Municipal drainage knowledge
• Urban hydrology research

Headquarters

HQ city

Ede

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Begunstigerschap (Membership Fees): Annual membership fees from public and private organizations active in urban water management. Fees are tiered by organization type: municipalities pay per dwelling, water boards per inhabitant, provinces by population tier, advisory companies by staff count, companies by revenue, and educational institutions at flat rate. The raad van toezicht (supervisory board) sets fees annually.
2. Publications and Products: Sale of publications, reports, and knowledge products to both members and non-members. Members receive discounts on publications and events. Prices exclude 6% or 21% VAT and include shipping within Netherlands. Payment terms are 30 days.
3. Event Participation: Revenue from the annual RIONEDdag conference and other educational events, webinars, and studiedays. Members receive discounted participation rates.
4. Training and Education: Courses and training sessions for professional development in urban water management, with member discounts available.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Stichting RIONED develops, maintains, and disseminates knowledge products, national data standards, and software tools for the Dutch urban water and sewerage sector. It operates the GWSW data dictionary standard, the Kennisbank Stedelijk Water online knowledge bank, and tools such as RainTools, RadarTools, BGT-inlooptool, Formatiescan, PerceelTool, and Morgencirculair, alongside training, publications, and events for municipalities, water boards, provinces, ministries, and partner companies.

Product overview

Stichting RIONED offers a portfolio of interconnected tools and services for Dutch urban water management. The core offering includes the Kennisbank Stedelijk Water (Knowledge Bank), a comprehensive repository of technical standards and guidelines, and the Gegevenswoordenboek Stedelijk Water (GWSW), a standardized data dictionary enabling uniform data exchange. Supporting tools include BGT-inlooptool for topography integration, Formatiescan for staffing assessments, RainTools for rainwater management, and RadarTools for extreme precipitation analysis. The organization also provides public information services including the 'Niet in het riool' awareness campaign, RIONEDnieuws newsletter, and organizes the annual RIONEDdag conference.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Niet in het riool: National campaign for proper sewer use, addressing disposal of wipes, fat, paint, and medications
• RIONEDnieuws
• RIONEDinnovatieprijs

Products and services

• GWSW (Gegevenswoordenboek Stedelijk Water) National standard data dictionary for the Dutch urban water and sewerage sector that defines a common vocabulary and data structure for exchanging and registering sewer and urban water information between municipalities, water boards, provinces, and their service providers.
• Kennisbank Stedelijk Water Online knowledge bank for the Dutch urban water sector offering articles, publications, factsheets, and curated knowledge for municipalities, water boards, and partner organizations.
• RainTools Software tool for rainfall and runoff analysis in urban areas, used by municipalities and engineering firms to evaluate stormwater behaviour and drainage performance.
• RadarTools Software tool for radar-based rainfall analysis, enabling detailed high-resolution rainfall input for urban water modelling and climate adaptation analysis.
• BGT-inlooptabel en BGT-inlooptool Conversion table and tool that supports municipalities in aligning their urban water and sewerage data with the national Basisregistratie Grootschalige Topografie (BGT) base registry.
• Formatiescan gemeentelijke watertaken Tool that enables Dutch municipalities to assess the staffing and organizational capacity required to carry out their statutory municipal water tasks.
• PerceelTool Software tool for parcel-level analysis of sewer and urban water data, supporting municipalities in linking parcel-level information to sewer assets.
• Morgencirculair-tool Tool supporting analysis of early-morning sewer discharge patterns, developed in cooperation with STOWA and other sector partners to inform urban water management practice.
• Beeldenbank Online image library providing visual resources, illustrations, and photographs for use in publications, presentations, and communications about urban water management.
• RIONEDdag Annual sector conference organized by Stichting RIONED that brings together Dutch urban water professionals for knowledge exchange, networking, and presentations of sector developments.
• RIONEDnieuws Regular email newsletter providing the Dutch urban water sector with news items, publication updates, and information on events and tools.
• Niet in het riool campaign Public awareness campaign providing communication materials, logos, and messages to municipalities and partners to prevent improper disposal of waste into the sewer system.

Quantifiable outcome

• 72% of Dutch citizens believe waterlogging will only worsen in the future
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• STOWA (Stichting Toegepast Onderzoek Water)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSTOWA is a key knowledge partner for research and knowledge development in urban water management. RIONED and STOWA collaborate on research projects, with STOWA supporting the Morgencirculair tool. STOWA also partners on RadarTools development and the PerceelTool.
• CROWcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKnowledge partner for urban water management research and knowledge development, collaborating on various research initiatives.
• Universities (Academic Partners)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with universities for research and knowledge development in urban water management, including expertise in hydrology, environmental science, and engineering.
• Wateropleidingen (Water Training)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in 'Operatie Sterk Water' (Operation Strong Water) - an initiative addressing personnel challenges in the sector. Also partnered with KNW (Koninklijk Nederlands Waternetwerk) to launch an labor market agenda.
• KNW - Koninklijk Nederlands WaternetwerkmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in 'Operatie Sterk Water' addressing personnel challenges in the urban water sector. Jointly launching the labor market agenda for new recruitment into the field.
• DeltarescoreTechnology or IntegrationCollaborated on FATracker innovation (2022 RIONEDinnovatieprijs winner) - machine learning tool for monitoring fat layer formation in sewage pumping stations.
• Vereniging Afvalbedrijven (Waste Companies Association)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMembers of the Rioleringsbeheer (Sewerage Management) division of Vereniging Afvalbedrijven can participate in RIONED events at member rates and access the closed website section.
• Techniek NederlandmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMembers of Techniek Nederland who pay the minimum membership fee can participate in RIONED events at member rates and access the closed website section.
• Drukkerij ModernminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrinting partner for campaign materials 'Niet in het riool'. Handles printing and delivery of flyers, stickers, and posters.
• DUO Research (Onderzoeksbureau)minorOthersIndependent research bureau that conducts the RIONEDpanel surveys approximately 4 times per year to gather feedback from sector professionals.
• Gemeenten (Municipalities)coreOthersNearly all Dutch municipalities are begunstigers (members) of RIONED, participating in research projects like the Monitor Gemeentelijke Watertaken and providing feedback through RIONEDpanel.
• Waterschappen (Water Boards)coreOthersAll Dutch water boards are begunstigers (members) of RIONED, participating in the foundation's activities and governance through representation in the Raad van Toezicht.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wateropleidingen: Dutch water-sector training and education organization. Wateropleidingen partners with RIONED on Operatie Sterk Water and provides complementary professional development for the same member audience, making it a directly comparable Dutch water-sector knowledge/training body.
• CROW: Dutch knowledge organization for infrastructure, transport, and public space. CROW is a strategic RIONED partner and serves a comparable role as a national standards and knowledge body for adjacent infrastructure domains (roads, public space), making it directly comparable as a sector knowledge authority.
• VEWIN (Vereniging van waterbedrijven in Nederland): Dutch association of drinking water companies, the umbrella organization for Dutch drinking water utilities. VEWIN is structurally analogous to RIONED as a sector-wide membership-based knowledge and advocacy body, but focused on drinking water supply rather than municipal sewerage/urban water management.
• STOWA (Stichting Toegepast Onderzoek Water): Dutch foundation for applied water research, RIONED's closest peer and core partner. STOWA and RIONED jointly develop tools (RadarTools, PerceelTool, Morgencirculair) and serve overlapping Dutch water-sector audiences, but STOWA focuses on applied research while RIONED focuses on municipal urban water knowledge and standards.
• KNW (Koninklijk Nederlands Waternetwerk): Royal Dutch Water Network, a broad water-sector networking and knowledge organization. KNW partners with RIONED on the Operatie Sterk Water labor initiative and addresses water-sector personnel challenges, making it a directly comparable Dutch water-sector umbrella.

Regional players

• DWA (Deutsche Vereinigung für Wasserwirtschaft, Abwasser und Abfall): German water, wastewater, and waste association. DWA serves an analogous sector-umbrella role for German municipal water management, making it a comparable German-language regional peer to RIONED's Dutch national knowledge-platform role.
• Aquafin: Belgian Flemish-region wastewater treatment authority. Aquafin operates as a regional peer to the Dutch municipal water sector that RIONED serves, with comparable wastewater infrastructure responsibilities but in a different national/regulatory context (Flanders vs. Netherlands).
• Water UK: UK water industry trade association representing major water companies and serving as a sector-wide knowledge and policy body. Water UK is a regional peer operating a comparable umbrella/membership model for a national water sector, but focused on England/Wales water utilities.

Broad incumbents

• Deltares: Dutch applied research institute for water, subsurface, and infrastructure. Deltares is a much larger, established player that collaborates with RIONED on innovations (FATracker 2022 winner) and provides scientific underpinning across the wider Dutch water domain, overlapping with RIONED on urban water topics.

Emerging players

• Nelen & Schuurmans: Dutch water-software firm that builds GWSW-compatible data platforms and water-management tools for municipalities. As a commercial vendor building on RIONED's GWSW standard, it is an emerging player in the same urban water software category with partial overlap on data standards and tools.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stichting-rioned

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Stichting RIONED