Libsyn Directory

451 Building a Culture of Innovation and Customer Service with Frank Lecrone

Release Date: 11/21/2025

468 Born into Water Treatment: Tom Brandvold on AWT’s Origin Story and a Life in the Industry

Scaling UP! H2O

Tom Brandvold, CWT, has lived industrial water treatment from the inside out. In this conversation, he traces that path from sweeping floors and running sample bottles as a kid to leading Premier Water and Energy Technology and serving as a former president of . The result is not just a career story. It is a useful look at how credibility, collaboration, and standards are built over time in this industry. How Association of Water Technologies (AWT) was formed One of the most valuable parts of this discussion is Tom’s explanation of how Association of Water Technologies (AWT) began. The...

467 From PhD to Pump Rooms: Jake Elliott on Wastewater, Efficiency, and Saying “Yes” Wisely

Scaling UP! H2O

What happens when a water chemist leaves the lab and heads to the pump room? knows firsthand. A former PhD researcher who studied resource recovery from trade‑waste customers, Jake now manages accounts at in Melbourne, working with cooling towers, boilers, chemical dosing rigs and wastewater treatment systems. He joins host Trace Blackmore to discuss how rigorous research, regulatory compliance and process automation translate into practical field work for industrial water treatment professionals. From PhD Research to Industrial Practice Jake’s academic background informs the way he...

466 Stories, Math, and “Never Again” Moments: Inside AWT Technical Training with Dan Merritt (Part 2)

Scaling UP! H2O

AWT’s in‑person technical training is a keystone for developing competent water treaters. Yet classroom knowledge only matters when it survives the drive home and emerges later in the field. In this second conversation with —National Sales Manager at and head of AWT’s education committee—Trace Blackmore uncovers how stories, math, and memorable mistakes turn theory into intuition. Why training keeps evolving Dan explains that the rewrites courses every year. Instructors refine content, delivery and demonstrations, not for novelty’s sake, but because...

465 From Classroom to Cooling Towers: Teaching Water Treatment with Dan Merritt (Part 1)

Scaling UP! H2O

Industrial water training only works when the knowledge transfers. That means the material lands with the audience, survives the drive home, and shows up later in the field when decisions get made. , Sales Manager at , brings a rare perspective to that problem. He started as a teacher (chemistry, calculus, physics), entered industrial water treatment on February 5, 2002, and later became part of the AWT training team. This conversation follows the path from classroom instruction to boiler rooms and cooling towers, then uses that journey to examine what makes technical training...

464 Corrosion Coupons, Brand Building, and Having Fun at Trade Shows with Will Ritter

Scaling UP! H2O

"Don't be afraid to say I don’t know. - Will Ritter” Corrosion is expensive, relentless, and easy to underestimate—until a “lasagna battery” turns aluminum foil green and reminds you what electrochemistry can do in the real world. This conversation reframes corrosion coupons as what they actually are: a repeatable field test that can sharpen your decisions—if you treat the process with consistency. Respect the coupon, protect the data Trace breaks down why coupons became non-negotiable in his systems: they turn guesswork into usable...

463 Mapping the Future of Water Innovation with Paul O’Callaghan

Scaling UP! H2O

“If you say something over and over often and enough, it becomes true because perception is reality.” has built a career at the intersection of water science, wastewater realities, and the practical question every operator and executive eventually faces; what actually moves innovation from idea to adoption. As Founder and CEO of, Paul explains how his team helps decision-makers put capital to work more efficiently in water by reducing uncertainty and separating signal from noise. He describes patterns he’s watched repeat across water entrepreneurs, pilots, and...

462 From Lab Chemist to Field Mentor: Water, Culture, and Representation

Scaling UP! H2O

Industrial water work rewards people who can move between precision and practicality. brings both. She started as a lab chemist, then transitioned into field service with , where much of her work supports healthcare facilities and high-accountability programs. Lab habits that protect your tools and your data Katie describes the first surprise of field work: a central plant is “very dirty,” and the job demands good technique without chasing lab-level perfection. She shares a couple of simple practices that prevent expensive problems. Use proper lab wipes on...

461 Corrosion, Lead, and Algae: New Tools for Old Water Problems

Scaling UP! H2O

Corrosion rarely announces itself as a “big water problem.” It shows up as leaching at the tap, residual loss in the field, premature equipment replacement, and the slow, expensive erosion of decision-quality. (CEO) and (chemist/Chief Science Officer) of lay out a system-wide view of corrosion control—starting with what changed in Flint from a technical standpoint and moving into why many utilities still struggle to meet expectations when standards and risk assumptions shift. System-wide corrosion control starts with chemistry...

460 Building Boiler Talent: Fundamentals, Online Training, and Better Partnerships with Eric Johnson

Scaling UP! H2O

Boilers can feel intimidating the first time you step into a boiler room—the heat, the noise, the pressure gauge, and the weight of knowing that mistakes can be costly. Trace Blackmore opens with a reminder that boilers deserve respect, not fear—and that learning fundamentals is how you replace mystique with clarity. The talent gap behind the boiler room door , Founder and CEO of , explains why boiler expertise is becoming harder to replace. He points to the shrinking pipeline of boiler-trained technicians—historically strengthened by Navy steam...

459 From Wastewater to Resource: Water Reuse with Dr. Veronika Zhiteneva

Scaling UP! H2O

Industrial water professionals are increasingly pulled into conversations about scarcity, resilience, and “where the next gallon comes from.” , CEO and Co-founder of frames water reuse as an implementation challenge more than a technology gap—and explains where the practical starting points are when the scope feels overwhelming. Moving reuse forward when the technology already exists Waterloop Solutions was founded to accelerate implementation: clarifying end-use quality, identifying post-treatment needs on the back end of...

More Episodes

What happens when you build a company around one niche, listen obsessively to customers, and never stop improving?

In this episode, host Trace Blackmore finally sits down for a full-length conversation with Frank Lecrone, Founder, President, and CEO of AquaPhoenix Scientific. What started in a small 60' x 60' space in Hanover, Pennsylvania, with three employees, maxed-out credit cards, and endless Staples runs has grown into a 300+-person organization serving industrial water professionals around the world.

Frank shares how AquaPhoenix became “the booth everyone wants to be next to” at AWT, why they built their entire business around industrial water treatment instead of trying to be everything to everyone, and how a simple continuous improvement system now generates hundreds of ideas a year from frontline team members. He also pulls back the curtain on acquisitions and private equity, explaining EBITDA in plain language, how to think about “add-backs,” and what owners should understand long before they think about selling.

Whether you’re leading a growing company, running a route, or thinking about your own “second chapter,” this conversation is a masterclass in culture, courage, and caring deeply about the people you serve.

Stay engaged, keep learning, and continue scaling up your knowledge!

Timestamps

02:20 - Trace Blackmore shares a recap from the recent 2025 AWT Conference, The Hang, and a Blood Donation Story

14:02 - Water You Know with James McDonald

15:20 - Upcoming Conference for Water Professionals

18:16 – Introduction of Frank Lecrone, CEO of AquaPhoenix Scientific (eight years in the making)

24:52 – Why Hanover?

26:59 – Supporting AWT

37:38 – Color-coded caps & QR Codes

42:30 – Learning from mistakes

45:31 – Core Values

48:26 – Acquisitions and Culture

1:03:32 – Valuations and EBITDA

Quotes

“We didn’t grow by doing everything for everyone. We grew by doing exactly what one market needed and wanted—and then doing it better every year.”

“The lack of information is almost always interpreted negatively. That’s why you have to over-communicate, especially during acquisitions.”

“EBITDA equals freedom. The more EBITDA you have, the less anybody can tell you what to do with your own company.”

“We’re not perfect. We screw things up like everyone else—but we fix it, and we fix it quickly, and we make doing business with us as easy as possible.”

“I don’t want to be the smartest person in the room. I want great people around me, giving ideas and pushing things forward, so I’m not the bottleneck.”

“Business is like standing in a bathtub while the water rises. It feels fine until it reaches your mouth. The trick is noticing when it’s at your knees and fixing the bottleneck then.”

“We give a darn. We have ‘GAS’—Give a #$%@—and if we can make it right and do it better, we absolutely will.”

Connect with Frank Lecrone