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Founder / Operator·Smart Water

Marietta (Martie) Edmunds Zakas

Former President & CEO; Board Director (BlueLinx Holdings) at Mueller Water Products (Former CEO)

Atlanta, GA

M(
LinkedIn
Why they matter

Runs the leading public leak-detection / pressure-management platform. Direct comp for non-revenue-water (NRW) economics.

Background

Chief Executive Officer of Mueller Water Products (NYSE: MWA) since May 2024. Previously EVP and CFO of Mueller Water Products from 2018, and joined in 2006 directing strategic planning, corporate development, investor relations, and corporate communications. Mueller Water Products' Water Management Solutions segment includes leak detection (EchoShore), pressure management, and control products. Stepped down as President & CEO in February 2026, succeeded by Paul McAndrew. Continues as a senior advisor to the water-infrastructure sector and serves on the BlueLinx Holdings board.

Notable deals

  • 2024
    Appointed CEO of Mueller Water Products in May 2024.
  • 2023
    Mueller's EchoShore leak-detection helped customers save an estimated 1.8B gallons of water in 2023, 5.8B gallons cumulative since 2020.

Call-prep brief

Background

Mueller Water Products sits at the intersection of physical water infrastructure (valves, hydrants) and smart-water technology (EchoShore leak detection). Non-revenue water. The volume utilities lose to leaks before billing. Is the single biggest financial leak in the water sector.

What she cares about

  • Leak-detection adoption. EchoShore traction with municipal utilities.
  • Pressure-management economics. Fewer leaks via dynamic pressure control.
  • Infrastructure-fund customer pressure. Investor-owned water utilities increasingly demand efficiency tech.

Sensitivities

  • Recently appointed CEO (May 2024). Early in her tenure, narrative is still forming.
  • Public-company IR constraints apply.

Questions to ask

  1. How is non-revenue-water reduction translating into rate-case approval at municipal utilities?
  2. Which adjacent smart-water modules is Mueller most actively considering for build-or-buy?
  3. How does Mueller think about partnership with metering-side players (Sensus, Badger)?

Outreach draft

Subject
Non-revenue water and leak detection
Ms. Zakas, I lead infrastructure investing at [Firm]. Non-revenue water reduction is one of the highest-conviction smart-water theses, and Mueller's EchoShore deployment data is the most credible market signal. Would 25 minutes work for a thesis-state conversation in the next two months? Best regards, [Your name] [Your firm]

Linked companies

Sources