Österreichischer Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaftsverband

What Österreichischer Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaftsverband does

Österreichischer Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaftsverband (ÖWAV) is an Austrian professional association (Fachverband) headquartered in Vienna that serves as the central platform for the country's water management, wastewater treatment, and waste management sectors. The organization develops and disseminates technical standards (Regelblätter), reference sheets (Merkblätter), expert papers (Expert:innenpapiere), and position papers used by regulators, municipal utilities, and operators. It also publishes a peer-reviewed professional journal (ÖWAW) and maintains a catalogue of more than 240 publications.

The association monetizes primarily through three streams: recurring annual membership fees (which provide discounted course/publication pricing and access to networking), fees for approximately 93 annual courses and seminars (covering operator certification, water/waste/procurement law, and applied technical training), and the sale of publications—both digital downloads and physical copies—with member and non-member pricing tiers. Distribution is overwhelmingly domestic and direct-to-customer via the oewav.at website and in-person events held across Austrian cities (Vienna, Linz, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Schwechat, etc.).

ÖWAV's customer base spans municipal water utilities, wastewater treatment plant operators, sewer network operators, waste management companies, landfill operators, environmental law practitioners, and federal/state authorities. It is governed by a Präsidium, Vorstand, and supported by a lean staff organized around four Bereichsleitungen (wastewater, water, waste, legal/economics), with operational functions (course management, assistants, office management) handling execution. Strategic alliances include the international IWA Austria and ISWA Austria sections, an academic partnership with BOKU (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna), and hosting of KAN (Kanal- und Kläranlagen-Nachbarschaften) and the ÖWAV-Abwasser-Benchmarking service.

Name

Österreichischer Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaftsverband

Legal name

Österreichischer Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaftsverband

Website

https://oewav.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

1909

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ÖWAV is Austria's central professional association for water, wastewater, and waste management, developing technical standards, delivering ~93 courses annually, publishing 240+ documents, and certifying industry professionals across municipal utilities, operators, and environmental law practitioners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services — Water and Waste Management

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392), Business Associations (813910), Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAJAF

EHS Management Systems & ISO Consulting (ISO 14001/45001)

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS) Consulting

SECONDARYEUAHAIAH

EMS Training & Competency Development

Energy, Utilities & Environment/Environmental Compliance, Monitoring & Consulting/Environmental Management Systems (EMS) & ISO 14001 Consulting

SECONDARYBPAHAJAK

Waste & Hazardous Materials Management (incl. HazMat)

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS) Consulting

Keywords

• Water management services
• Waste management services
• Professional training
• Industry publications
• Environmental standards

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees providing access to network platform connecting members with decision-makers, discounted seminar and course pricing, and reduced rates on ÖWAV publications.
2. Courses and Seminars: Revenue from professional development courses and seminars covering wastewater treatment, water law, waste law, procurement law, and environmental topics. Pricing varies by course with member and non-member rates.
3. Publications Sales: Sale of technical publications including Regelblätter (standards), Merkblätter (fact sheets), Expert:innenpapiere (expert papers), Positionspapiere (position papers), and Tätigkeitsberichte (annual reports). Many publications are available as free downloads; physical copies and premium downloads are sold.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ÖWAV is an Austrian professional association that delivers vocational training and certification, publishes technical standards and reference works, hosts conferences and networking events, and provides benchmarking services for the water supply, wastewater, and waste management sectors. Its member base spans municipal utilities, private operators, engineers, and legal experts, who gain access to publications, courses, and industry forums.

Product overview

Österreichischer Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaftsverband (ÖWAV) is a professional association offering a comprehensive portfolio of technical publications (including Regelblätter, Merkblätter, Expert:innenpapiere, Arbeitsbehelfe, and Positionspapiere), professional training courses and seminars, industry events, benchmarking services, and networking programs for the Austrian water, wastewater, and waste management sectors. The portfolio includes over 240 publications covering technical standards, environmental guidelines, and sector reports, along with approximately 93 annual training courses ranging from operator certifications to specialized legal seminars. ÖWAV also facilitates professional communities including youth networks, women's initiatives, and regional operator groups, providing members with networking access, discounted services, and free journal access.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Vocational certification courses (Klärwärter, Klärfacharbeiter, Kanalfacharbeiter)

Quantifiable outcome

• ERFA Deponie 2026 attracted 165 participants for professional dialogue on landfill sector developments

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

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

• Universität für Bodenkultur Wien (BOKU)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 July 2025ÖWAV co-hosted the specialist seminar 'Boden im Spannungsfeld – Bedarf, Verbrauch, Verfügbarkeit' with BOKU, focusing on land use conflicts and the limited resource of soil.
• KAN (Kanal- und Kläranlagen-Nachbarschaften)coreOthersKAN operates as a related organization for canal and treatment plant neighbor groups. ÖWAV hosts the KAN portal at kanal-nachbarschaften.at as part of its service offerings.
• ISWA AustriacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational Solid Waste Association Austrian section. ÖWAV maintains international connections through ISWA Austria, connecting Austrian professionals with global waste management expertise.
• IWA AustriacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational Water Association Austrian section. ÖWAV maintains international connections through IWA Austria, connecting Austrian professionals with global water management expertise.
• Verein zur Förderung des Instituts für Umweltrecht der JKUmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the 30th Austrian Environmental Law Days (Österreichische Umweltrechtstage), a major annual conference on environmental law developments.
• Fachverband der SeilbahnenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint organizer of the Snow Master Course (Schneimeister:innenkurs), combining water management and snow-making expertise.
• ÖWAV-Abwasser-BenchmarkingcoreOthersBenchmarking service for wastewater treatment plants operated by ÖWAV, providing performance comparison and optimization opportunities for member facilities.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Water UK: Water UK is the UK water industry trade association. It is comparable as a national water industry body providing standards development, training, and policy representation, though it serves the UK market rather than Austria and operates with a different regulatory framework.
• SVGW (Schweizerischer Verband der Gas- und Wasserindustrie): SVGW is the Swiss industry association for gas and water. It is directly comparable to ÖWAV as a German-language professional association focused on water sector standards, training, and member services, but it primarily serves Switzerland rather than Austria.
• BDE (Bundesverband der Deutschen Entsorgungswirtschaft): BDE is the German federal association of the waste management industry. It is comparable to ÖWAV's Abfallwirtschaft division as a national trade association providing advocacy, training, standards, and networking for the waste sector, though it primarily serves Germany.

Others

• KWR Water Research Institute: KWR is a Dutch water research institute. It is comparable to ÖWAV's research-oriented publication arm (Arbeitsbehelfe, Expert:innenpapiere) in producing applied water research and technical reports, though KWR is structured as a research foundation rather than a member association.
• UBA (Umweltbundesamt): Umweltbundesamt is Austria's federal environment agency. It is closely related to ÖWAV as the country's primary environmental regulator and knowledge body that references ÖWAV's standards, but it is a government agency rather than a member-based association.

Broad incumbents

• IWA (International Water Association): IWA is the global network of water professionals. ÖWAV participates via its IWA Austria chapter, and IWA offers similar programming (events, publications, working groups, policy advocacy) at a global scale, serving as the international umbrella body above national associations like ÖWAV.
• VDI (Verein Deutscher Ingenieure): VDI is Germany's largest engineering association. It is comparable to ÖWAV as a broad engineering professional association offering member services, technical publications, continuing education, and events, though VDI is not water/waste specific and operates at significantly larger scale in Germany.
• ISWA (International Solid Waste Association): ISWA is the international organization for waste management professionals. ÖWAV maintains ISWA Austria as a national chapter, and ISWA delivers comparable international events, working groups, and policy advocacy for the waste sector that ÖWAV serves at the national level.

Direct peers

• European Water Association (EWA): EWA is a European association for water sector professionals. It is comparable to ÖWAV as a peer water industry body providing events, publications, and policy advocacy, though EWA operates across multiple European countries rather than focusing on a single national market.
• DWA (Deutsche Vereinigung für Wasserwirtschaft, Abwasser und Abfall): DWA is Germany's largest national association for water, wastewater, and waste management. It is ÖWAV's closest German-language counterpart, offering the same combination of technical standards, training/certification, sector events, and member services for the DACH-region water and waste sector.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCKDhF5NVV9xAMSbqAigqZog
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/%C3%B6sterreichischer-wasser-und-abfallwirtschaftsverband/?originalSubdomain=at

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Österreichischer Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaftsverband