Under the terms, 3M’s Purification division will be the preferred filter supplier to Cover Group offering expert technical and product support to its 18 members serving the vending, coffee and water cooler equipment markets throughout the UK and Ireland. “3M has a long standing cooperation with Cover Group having supplied water filters to individual members for a number of years, and we have held numerous technical meetings and trials at 3M premises for the group,” said Marcus Whiteley, Account Manager, Water Group, 3M’s Purification division. ”We are delighted to expand our working partnership so that our filters can be fitted in customer equipment as standard, wherever possible and practical. We have the expertise to understand machine and water type requirements and can help members with product selection, application advice and troubleshooting to address the specific needs of customers.”Water is a key ingredient for creating a great-tasting beverage, yet water quality varies from place to place so the type of filter required greatly depends on where the customer is based and the water hardness or softness level. Water can impact the taste and appearance of a beverage and can block up machines with limescale. Going down the one-filter-fits-all approach can lead to disruptive equipment downtime and increased maintenance costs in the long term, whilst threatening customer satisfaction and profit margins. By specifying 3M filters and filtration systems optimised for different water types, Cover Group’s 18 members can save customers valuable time and money by ensuring that their machines are kept up and running, and the beverages flowing.Products covered by the agreement include the AP2 Water Filters from 3M for mains-fed water coolers, the ScaleGard Pro Water Filter Range from 3M for hard water areas and the HF Brew Water Filters from 3M for soft water areas.