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Abtech Industries Expands Production Capacity Through Strategic Partnership with Arizona MEP’s Supplier Scouting Program
With the help of: Arizona Manufacturing Extension Partnership (Arizona MEP)
About
Abtech Industries, a Phoenix-based environmental technology company specializing in water filtration media, is boosting its production capacity to meet increasing demand through connections established with the Arizona Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Supplier Scouting program. Founded in 1997, Abtech initially focused on stormwater treatment but has since expanded to address more complex industrial water issues, including applications in mining and PFAS remediation.
Abtech produces a proprietary filtration media made from sustainable materials, including byproducts from deforestation and agricultural waste. These raw feedstocks are converted into active treatment ingredients, which are then attached to polymer substrates. This provides Abtech’s filters with higher precision and safety compared to traditional loose media, which can break apart and pose environmental risks. “Our goal is to revolutionize water treatment through science and sustainability,” said Narghis Sarwari, Chief Scientist at Abtech. “We take a problem—like agricultural waste—and turn it into a solution that extends the life of water.
The Challenge
Abtech's expanding industrial filtration business faced a new challenge: the increased volumes of filtration media required for these filters needed more production capacity than it currently had. It needed to find a highly specialized supplier capable of producing large quantities of its proprietary media while maintaining strict quality control standards.
The process isn’t simple—it involves a multi-step curing and metal coating process. This supplier was incredibly rare in that they already had the equipment, knowledge, and quality mindset to make it work. We gave them our recipe, and they were up and running quickly. This supplier relationship gives us both flexibility and scalability. Thanks to Arizona MEP, we’re ready to grow without compromising on quality or sustainability.
MEP's Role
Through a referral chain starting with the Small Business Administration's Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program, Sarwari connected with Arizona MEP and submitted a Supplier Scouting request. Within a week, Jim Harrison, Arizona MEP’s Director of Supply Chain Optimization, helped identify a supplier whose capabilities closely matched Abtech’s production needs.
Over the next six months, Abtech worked with the supplier to audit its quality process and train the supplier on its testing protocols before fully integrating them into Abtech's quality assurance process. The result is a substantial increase in production capacity by approximately eight to ten times, reflecting a significant scale-up in operations. This additional capacity enables Abtech to serve more industrial customers and grow its market share.