Atlas Copco this week said it will increase its contribution to Water for All in order to enable clean drinking water for more people in need. From 2011, the Atlas Copco Group will give two times the sum of the voluntary employee donations. Until now, around one million people have received clean drinking water through Water for All.

Water for All was founded in Sweden in 1984 by Atlas Copco employees. The organization operates with the motto that clean drinking water is a basic human right and has over the years helped people in countries like Peru, Sudan, Afghanistan and China to get safe drinking water. Simple methods are use such as drilling or digging, or protecting natural springs.

Employees make voluntary donations to the organization, normally on a monthly basis, and can vary the size of these donations as they wish. Since the beginning the Group has matched employee donations, but starting 2011 Atlas Copco will contribute an amount of money two times the sum of what employees are giving.

A contribution of €5 per month (about U.S. $6) over the course of a year can provide sustainable drinking water to more than 100 people.

For more information, visit: www.water4all.org/.

Atlas Copco is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. It is an industrial group with leading positions in compressors, construction and mining equipment, power tools and assembly systems.