![[01] Strategy & Positioning](https://resolveagency.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Menu-card-1.strategypositioning2.webp)
![[02] Comms & Campaigns](https://resolveagency.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Menu-card-2.CommsCampaigns2.webp)
![[03] Collateral & Toolkits](https://resolveagency.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Menu-card-3.CollateralToolkits1.webp)
![[04] Bids & Tenders](https://resolveagency.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Menu-card-4.BidsTenders.webp)
![[05] Marketing Operations](https://resolveagency.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Menu-card-5.Marketing-Operations_.webp)
![[06] Systems](https://resolveagency.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Menu-card-6.Systems.webp)
Strategy & PositioningComms & CampaignsCollateral & ToolkitsSpecialist Print ServicesBids & TendersMarketing OperationsSystemsSoftware & AIM&A buy-sideM&A sell-sidePlug-in Marketing Director
The market opportunity PLEUGER wasn’t capitalising on
Water technology is one of the most compelling infrastructure investment stories of the next 30 years. Demand is projected to grow fivefold by 2050. The global market is moving from $301B to $489B between 2022 and 2029. US water infrastructure investment alone stands at $111B.
Companies positioned around water expertise and clean energy are commanding valuation multiples of up to 17x. Traditional industrial manufacturers sitting in the same market, doing similar work, are valued at a fraction of that.
PLEUGER was firmly in the second camp – not because the business lacked capability, but because nothing about the way they presented themselves told a different story.
With multi-million € revenue and operations across Germany, France, and the USA, PLEUGER’s engineering reach was genuinely broad: Agriculture, Civil Infrastructure, Desalination, Municipal Water, Offshore Wind, Geothermal, Power Generation, Oil & Gas, and Mining. The challenge wasn’t building capability. It was making the right capability visible – without alienating existing customers in Oil & Gas and Mining, and without losing the technical credibility that engineers had spent decades building.
How we worked together
RESOLVE had worked with PLEUGER once before, on a one-year engagement following their acquisition from Flowserve by Flacks Group. That project focused on brand fundamentals – positioning PLEUGER as “the reliability experts,” sharpening messaging, updating materials. It laid the groundwork for what came next.
When Anton Schneerson became CEO in late 2022, he brought us back for something deeper.
We have a clear methodology – but how we apply it always depends on what we find. With PLEUGER, that meant going deep before going broad: taking the knowledge we had of the business from before, and now spending more time time on-site in Germany with the engineering teams, learning the products – submersible motors, pumps, thrusters, rotating equipment – well enough to talk about them credibly. Mapping every product across every application and market. Analysing the sales process. Understanding how enquiries came in, how they were handled, and where value was being left on the table. Looking hard at the competition – Xylem, Grundfos, Sulzer, KSB, and others – to understand where PLEUGER could credibly stake out differentiated ground.
The framework gave us the structure. What we found gave us the strategy.
The re-positioning strategy:
“Made for water. Engineered for life.”
The positioning we developed had to do several things at once: align PLEUGER with clean energy and water infrastructure investment themes, honour the engineering heritage that gave the business its credibility, and speak to a genuinely diverse customer base without alienating anyone.
“Made for Water. Engineered for Life.” did that. It captured both the technical longevity of PLEUGER’s products and water’s role as a fundamental resource – without the greenwashing tone that engineers (rightly) distrust.
The structural shift that supported it was moving from product categories organised around industrial sectors to a framework built around Water, Energy, and Natural Resources. A subtle change on the surface. A significant one in terms of how investors, customers, and partners view the business.
Getting the stories out
One of the most consistent findings in our discovery work was how much of PLEUGER’s best work was invisible. Groundbreaking projects, complex installations, impressive engineering outcomes – all of it sitting in the heads of the projects team, never properly captured or used.
The approach to case studies shifted from dry technical descriptions to proper narrative – the kind that engages a reader while keeping the technical substance intact. These became genuine competitive tools, demonstrating PLEUGER’s water expertise across a range of applications.
We also humanised the brand. Staff photography, staff quotes, structured storytelling about the business and the people behind it. Not just to make things look warmer – but because in relationship-driven markets, people buy from people, and PLEUGER’s teams were one of its genuine differentiators.
Building the aftermarket proposition
One of the most significant commercial opportunities PLEUGER had going into the engagement was also one of the least developed: aftermarket service.
PLEUGER’s products are built to last. That longevity, which is central to the brand’s engineering identity, also creates a natural lifecycle relationship with customers – one that competitors were capitalising on far more effectively.
We worked with the team to develop and articulate a proper through-life service offering -moving from a loose set of reactive capabilities to a structured proposition that customers could understand and plan around. That meant giving shape and language to what PLEUGER already did well: installation supervision, commissioning, performance testing, system assessments, product and system upgrades, repairs and reconditioning at the Hamburg facility, OEM spare parts supply, training, and ongoing engineering consultancy.
The reconditioning centre in Hamburg lacked was a clear market-facing story. We gave it one – positioning it as an extension of PLEUGER’s manufacturing expertise rather than a back-office repair function, and connecting it to the wider message around total cost of ownership and lifecycle value that resonated with the infrastructure and clean energy customers PLEUGER was now speaking to.
The result was a service business that could stand alongside the product business with its own identity, its own proposition, and its own pipeline. The aftermarket transformation was already underway when we engaged – but the repositioning, the clearer proposition, and the new digital infrastructure all accelerated it significantly. Aftermarket revenue grew by over 1,300%.
The digital work
The centrepiece was a full website rebuild. PLEUGER’s existing digital presence wasn’t fit for the repositioning. The new site was designed and built from the ground up to support the water technology positioning, house the new content architecture, and perform properly for the technical buyers and investors the business needed to reach.
3D rendering
We introduced high-quality 3D video rendering with technical wireframe overlays – a way of showing how PLEUGER’s products work that was both technically rigorous and genuinely engaging. Complex pump technology is hard to explain in words and flat photography. Rendered cutaways that show the engineering as it actually functions are much more effective, particularly for technical buyers evaluating complex products.
Infrastructure and performance
We upgraded hosting environments, implemented server caching and comprehensive performance optimisation. For a business selling to technical customers who take digital presence as a proxy for operational quality, this mattered – both for user experience and for SEO and AI indexing.
Other digital capabilities built during the engagement
- AI-powered translation workflows for multiple languages
- Scroll-triggered video controllers
- Optimised sales enquiry routing
- Aftermarket proposition development
- PR databases, copywriting templates, and social media frameworks for new product launches
Two new products launched as separate projects during the engagement. The infrastructure and content systems we’d built meant PLEUGER’s team could manage these largely independently.
When key stakeholders leave
As we approached launch, the CEO Anton left the business for personal reasons. He’d been our primary champion. In a conventional agency-client relationship, that would have been a serious problem.
Because we’d worked across the entire business – engineers, sales, operations, mid-management – we had the organisational knowledge and relationships to keep things moving. When we presented the new brand and strategy to the full company after the CEO’s departure, only minimal changes were needed. The work reflected the business because it had been built with the business, not handed down to it.
We launched on schedule. The resilience wasn’t accidental – it’s what genuine partnership produces.
The results
Aftermarket revenue: 1,300% increase
Website performance: 16% traffic increase, 8% new user growth
Valuation potential: 17x business value multiplier through clean energy positioning
Delivery: Completed one month ahead of schedule
Coverage: Worldwide trade press coverage for new product launches
Operationally: Daily enquiries flowing consistently for new products and services – replacing a previous situation where technical failures had interrupted lead flow
Why it worked
A few things made this engagement successful that are worth highlighting.
We learned the products properly. You cannot credibly reposition an engineering business if you don’t understand what it actually makes and why it matters. Spending time on-site, with the engineers, wasn’t a box-ticking exercise – it’s what made the strategy credible rather than cosmetic.
We worked across the organisation, not just at the top. That’s what let the project survive. It’s also what made the cultural shift real – people who’d been consulted and listened to were much more likely to carry the new approach forward.
We scaled flexibly. Two unexpected product launches landed during the engagement. Because we’d built the right infrastructure and content systems, we could absorb them without losing momentum on the main programme.
And we used the tools that were actually available. AI-powered translation, 3D rendering, modern digital infrastructure – not deployed for novelty, but because they solved real problems and made PLEUGER’s work look as good as it actually was.
PLEUGER’s story is one we’re proud of – not just because the numbers are good, but because the change stuck.
My collaboration with Philip spans nearly six years, from early 2019 through the beginning of 2025, during which we worked closely on reshaping the identity and direction of Pleuger Industries – a legacy engineering company Flacks Group acquired from Flowserve.
The first phase began six months post-acquisition, when I was leading corporate development. The business was highly traditional, and I needed someone to quickly prioritise and modernise our brand and materials – brochures, messaging, and foundational identity work. RESOLVE came in on a one-year contract and helped bring structure, clarity, and a forward-looking tone that laid the groundwork for what came next.
In late 2022, when I stepped in as CEO, I brought Philip back to support a full strategic transformation. This second phase was deep and hands-on. He worked not just with me, but with our entire leadership and mid-management teams. He spent time on-site in Germany, learning our technical products – submersible motors, pumps, and rotating equipment – inside out.
He engaged with engineers, sales teams, and operations, and supported finalisation of a comprehensive brand and strategy blueprint grounded in both technical insight and real-world execution.
Philip’s contribution went far beyond branding – he was involved in shaping the direction of the renewable side of the company and helped shift the culture too. His deep understanding of the rotating equipment industry, combined with his ability to translate complexity into clarity, made him an invaluable partner throughout our transformation.
I can confidently say the company’s face today wouldn’t be what it is without Philip’s insight and strategic input. I highly recommend him.
Anton Schneerson
Former CEO,
Pleuger Industries
