Suez

Suez is the name most people reach for when they mean water, waste and environmental services, not a flashy consumer business. By our assessment, that plain utility profile is also its strength: it does the unglamorous work of supplying water treatment, collection and recycling services. The downside is that this kind of company is judged by infrastructure, contracts and regulation, so it can feel remote and slow-moving compared with newer service brands. In practice, Suez is about pipes, plants, trucks and municipal or industrial systems rather than anything that shows up neatly on a shelf. It sits among the big European environmental-service groups, and the French base fits that old utility-and-infrastructure feeling. This is the sort of company people notice when the water keeps flowing and the rubbish disappears, which is usually the point.