e-SENS
Reimagining Water Testing: The Digital Leap Forward

Traditional water testing still relies on manual reagent mixing, timed reactions, and color matching, repeated for each parameter. With experienced technicians retiring and fewer recruits trained in these complex procedures, the process is becoming harder to sustain. In the field, where time and resources are limited, this outdated routine is no longer practical.

e-SENS is rethinking this analog ritual with a new generation of handheld instruments designed for accuracy, speed, and, most of all, simplicity. Its ROAM device delivers lab-grade precision without requiring users to handle chemicals or execute complex workflows, capturing multiple parameters in about fifteen minutes, all at the push of a button. Paired with a mobile app for real-time data logging and compliance reporting, ROAM makes water testing smarter, faster, and effortlessly scalable.

“You no longer need a trained chemist to run reliable water tests. ROAM was built to be intuitive – anyone can use it,” says Richard B. Brown, CEO.

Lab-Grade Water Testing in the Palm of Your Hand

ROAM transforms a small water sample of about 15 ml into a powerful snapshot of as many as 23 critical quality parameters. It operates using a recyclable microfluidic cartridge preloaded with buffers and calibration solutions and capable of supporting up to 100 tests. Internally, the sample is routed through precision-engineered microchannels across a silicon sensor array engineered to detect specific analytes.

Other efforts to modernize water quality testing employ macro-size probes and one-time-use consumable devices that require more manual processing steps and generate considerable plastic waste. They also lack the ability to upload data in real time, or to include test data from other sources in the record. The e-SENS ROAM supports both app-based analytics and a full-featured database that enables system-wide visualization and data-driven management.

Despite its technical efficiency, ROAM is remarkably small at just 25 cm long and weighing only about a kilogram. With each test, it automatically calibrates results, time-stamps, geotags, and securely transmits encrypted data to the cloud. The device flags anomalies in real time, while built-in analytics let users visualize trends and set threshold alerts for critical parameters such as residual disinfectants or corrosion indices. Through its paired mobile app, users can log compliance data, integrate third-party information, and monitor historical trends.

This data ecosystem does not stop at the app. A dedicated API makes it easy to integrate ROAM with existing digital monitoring systems, streamlining workflows and reinforcing regulatory compliance. The app is not only the simplest data collection tool around, it is scalable for any water parameter that needs testing. The e-SENS software can generate reports, track routes, and maintain a level of compliance in real-time that few other tools have the ability to do.

Compact. Accurate. Compliance-Ready.

This level of efficiency is critical now more than ever, as utilities face a growing talent shortage while the pressure to maintain water quality continues to mount. With ROAM, operators simply collect a single water sample in the vial, insert it into the instrument, initiate the test sequence, and achieve expert-level results. Within minutes, the device captures a full water quality profile, including key indicators such as chlorine residuals, hardness, alkalinity, corrosion risk, and more.

Its portability and ease of use make it ideal for testing in distribution systems, where water needs to be monitored after it leaves the treatment plant. This helps ensure that disinfectant levels remain safe through the whole system for all consumers. Its ability to provide comprehensive results from a single sample of water allows teams to conduct many tests each day, making it an excellent tool for field-based water quality checks.

To meet diverse operational needs, utilities can tailor ROAM’s performance through interchangeable cartridges. Disinfection-focused teams can choose an 8-parameter cartridge for a chlorine-disinfected system or a 13-parameter cartridge for a monochloramine-disinfected system, while users who also want to know hardnesses, alkalinity and corrosion indeces opt for a 23-parameter set. This modular approach helps balance cost per test with specific utility priorities. e-SENS offers flexible subscription plans that match cartridge delivery with usage cycles, allowing organizations to receive refills based on their particular testing schedules.

The ROAM instrument is especially well-suited to environments where regulatory agencies require daily calibration, as it calibrates itself every day with no human involvement and again before each test. Some customers now use ROAM solely to validate online sensor systems that require a regular handheld EPA-approved calibration.

“There’s no human intervention needed to calibrate these systems, as ROAM calibrates itself, tests the water sample, and communicates the calibration information directly to the inline system. That improves calibration accuracy and saves a huge amount of effort,” says Brown.

Moreover, as vigilance around corrosion rises in water treatment facilities, where etched pipes can leach lead into drinking water and excessive mineral buildup can restrict flow, ROAM offers a smarter solution. It delivers real-time readings for Langelier Saturation Index (LSI), Ryznar Stability Index (RSI), and Dissolved Inorganic Carbon, cutting testing time from hours to just 15 minutes.

In ROAM, e-SENS has built a testing tool along with a decision-making platform that is compact, connected, and calibrated for the challenges ahead.

Built by Experts, Trusted by Utilities

The credibility behind e-SENS lies in the depth of its founding team. CEO Brown is a seasoned electrical engineer and expert in solid-state chemical sensors. After earning his PhD in the field, he spent nearly two decades as a faculty member at the University of Michigan, conducting research and launching multiple startups focused on sensor and microprocessor technologies, and then served for 20 years as Dean of Engineering at the University of Utah, where e-SENS was founded, building on intellectual property developed during his academic tenure.

Joining him is President and COO Brian Cummings, who brings commercialization expertise, having previously transformed the University of Utah’s research-to-startup pipeline into one of the most productive in the country. The broader leadership team brings deep operational and technical experience. Rob Nelson, National Sales Director, has more than a decade of experience in medical device sales, which is an asset given the similarities between ROAM and diagnostic-grade instruments. Rob Judd, VP of Manufacturing, offers executive operations and manufacturing experience from companies such as Maersk and US Synthetic.

On the technical side, e-SENS is supported by top engineering and chemistry talent from the University of Utah, including Jason Castillo (Director of R&D), Nick Halverson (Director of Chemistry) and others. Together, this multidisciplinary team combines research rigor with real-world execution, enabling e-SENS to continuously innovate in a rapidly evolving water technology landscape.

Redefining the Future of Water Testing

Looking ahead, e-SENS is preparing to launch a new lead and copper rapid test in response to the EPA’s revised Lead and Copper Rule, which mandates widespread testing at individual homes, schools, and businesses. Unlike traditional lab-based lead tests, which require large samples and can take weeks for results, the new sensor delivers accurate readings, including for particulate lead, in just five minutes. In third-party testing, it was shown to be more consistent than the gold standard, ICP-MS.

The product has already undergone data validation and is awaiting EPA approval, with commercialization efforts underway. Once approved, it promises to drastically reduce turnaround times and enable point-of-use testing at scale, a major leap forward for public health and compliance efforts.
e-SENS continues to expand its reach through strategic partnerships. Additional distribution networks are in place, and discussions are ongoing to integrate e-SENS technology into third-party platforms, expanding its impact across the smart water ecosystem.

The e-SENS mission is both ambitious and grounded. It is about democratizing data, equipping more people with better tools, and removing the friction from a process that affects billions. The company is turning test tubes and guesswork into buttons and breakthroughs. By putting real-time, lab-grade insight in the palm of a hand, e-SENS is setting a new standard for water quality management.