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Tag: Cleantech

Top 5 sustainability pioneers in Europe

The events of the past year have put many things in perspective – and have served to highlight the urgency of the climate crisis. Sustainable start-ups are attracting increased interest from ethically-motivated consumers, as the world looks towards a greener post-pandemic future.

The pandemic has prompted us to reconsider many aspects of our lives, from our working habits to how and where we spend our money. It has also served to heighten our awareness of environmental issues, as we begin to think of the world we would like to see post-pandemic. According to a survey by management consultancy company Accenture, 60 percent of consumers say that they have started making more environmentally friendly, sustainable or ethical purchases since the onset of the pandemic in 2020.

In the business world, too, sustainability has become a top priority over the course of the past year, with major firms such as Unilever and Google announcing significant green pledges over the course of 2020. Even amid the COVID-19 crunch, venture capital firms have been pouring money into sustainable, purpose-driven start-ups, suggesting that eco-friendly products and services may well be a key area of growth in the post-pandemic world. With that in mind, let’s take a look at five of Europe’s top sustainability pioneers.

1 – Oatly (Sweden)
The non-dairy milk market has been booming in recent years, and is predicted to reach revenues of over $38bn by 2024. This is good news indeed for Swedish oat milk-manufacturer Oatly, which has seen its sales soar as ethically-driven consumers seek alternatives to traditional dairy products. Founded in the 1990s, the company states its aim as: “to make it easy for people to turn what they eat and drink into moments of healthy joy, without recklessly taxing the planets’ resources in the process.” Boasting partnerships with major retailers such as Starbucks, the company is undoubtedly one of the most prominent names in the plant-based industry, and is now said to be seeking a valuation of close to $10bn as it prepares to go public on the US stock exchange.

2 – EO Charging (UK)
With many of the world’s workers giving up the daily commute in order to work from home in 2020, the pandemic has encouraged a reassessment of our transport usage. While global car sales fell by around a fifth during the pandemic, sales of electric vehicles rose by a remarkable 43 percent, showing an increased appetite for eco-friendly cars. As the demand for electric vehicles grows, the need for increased EV charging infrastructure is becoming ever more apparent. Based in the UK, EO Charging is one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of electric vehicle charging ports, having sold more than 30,000 charging points in over 30 countries in the five years since its launch. Working with high-profile partners such as Uber, Sainsbury’s and Ocado to facilitate a transition to EV, EO Charging was recently named among the Financial Times’ fastest growing companies in Europe.

3 – Cellugy (Denmark)
Plastic pollution is an area that has come into sharp focus over the course of the past 12 months, with discarded single-use masks becoming an all too common sight since the start of the pandemic. Based in Aarhus, Denmark, Cellugy is a pioneering biotech start-up that is committed to helping to bring an end to plastic pollution through the creation of alternative forms of packaging. Its innovative product, called EcoFLEXY, is a durable material designed for use in the packaging industry. Made from recycled food waste, the product is all-natural, fully recyclable and biodegradable. In a recent seed round, the company raised €2.38m from the European Innovation Council Accelerator, which will allow it to scale-up production of its EcoFLEXY product.

4 – RanMarine Technology (Netherlands)
An unexpected side effect of the COVID-19 pandemic has been the unfortunate increase in marine litter pollution. Plastic gloves, single-use masks and other forms of PPE have been washing up on beaches across the globe, with this increase in plastic waste threatening the health of marine life the world over. Dutch drone technology firm RanMarine is the company behind the innovative WasteShark – a product designed to clear plastic and other waste from all manner of waterways. The device has a 10-hour ‘swimtime,’ and is able to clear 500kg of debris from the water each day – with users able to control the device remotely and monitor its progress in real time. The firm secured a Series-A investment in 2020, allowing it to scale-up its operations this year and beyond.

Read full article by World Finance article

Engineering grad takes leap of faith with drone company

Mr Sharif Shaharudeen never expected the journey towards his first job to be so arduous.

Last year, he graduated with a first-class honours degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Glasgow’s aeronautical engineering degree programme at the Singapore Institute of Technology with solid internship experience under his belt.

But the aerospace industry was negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic that slashed demand for commercial flights.

“Initially, I was in denial. Based on my performance at university, I thought I wouldn’t have a problem finding a job – even if the pay was lower than before the pandemic,” he said.

His failure to secure a job was emotionally draining, especially since his family needed him to step up and help out financially.

“I was actually extremely scared at one point and very depressed because even though I did my best as a student, I still could not secure a job to support my family,” said the eldest of three children whose father’s work in the money-changing industry was also badly affected by the pandemic.

Mr Sharif’s mother is a housewife. He has two younger sisters – one, a university student and the other, a Primary 5 pupil.

But after sending out dozens of job applications, the former Temasek Polytechnic student decided it was time to take a “leap of faith” and try to secure employment in a different – but related – industry.

Securing a position under the SGUnited Traineeship programme, Mr Sharif is now working as a systems engineer at drone company Drone Solutions.

In what seems to be a happy accident, he  has found satisfaction in an industry which he sees as being the future of aviation.

Read full article by Straits Times article

Netherland-Based Company Believes Their ASV’s Provide an Innovative Solution for the Cleanup of Ports and Harbours

Netherlands-Based RanMarine has come up with an innovative solution for the cleanup of the world’s ports and harbors. They have created a technology that uses autonomous surface vehicles ASV’s to do this demanding and time-consuming job. The company truly believes its technology is the answer to the plague of plastic that has found its way into the world’s oceans and other waterways. It offers a flexible and cost-effective option to help solve plastic pollution problems in any body of water. An overview of this company can be seen on their Facebook Page here at https://www.facebook.com/RanMarineTechnology.

Richard Hardiman, RanMarine’s Founder, offered up some staggering numbers on the impact that plastic and other debris have on the world’s bodies of water and mankind in general. It all starts with an ecosystem that is under great stress from the way that people live. He stated that much of this is because 54% of the world’s population now lives in cities that are experiencing a rise in lifestyle expectations. This brings along with it increased consumption and the exponential growth of waste and pollution in vital ecosystems such as water. It’s estimated that the world is now producing some 300 million tons of plastic per year and this number is growing every year. The company founder stated that the fallout from this is failing ecosystems, increased civic costs, and a growing economic divide. Specific threats include that to the biosphere where over 700 species are now faced with the immediate threat of extinction due to marine litter. A heavy burden has also been placed on the economy due to the $260 billion lost globally every year due to unclean fresh water. He says that in addition to this, the annual cleanup costs of ocean litter amount to over $75 billion per year. The states of California, Oregon, and Washington alone spend over $500 million annually cleaning up their shared Pacific coastline. Hardiman remarked that perhaps the most pressing concern is that 2.8 billion people live in heavily polluted trans-boundary river catchment areas. These people who rely on seafood as a primary source of protein are eating seafood where an estimated 33% of that diet contains some form of plastic in it.

Read full article by Digital Journal article

First-Of-Its Kind Partnership to Address Plastic Pollution Crisis

RanMarine Technology and The Planet Calls are pleased to announce their newly minted strategic partnership. Combining RanMarine’s award-winning technology for cleaning the world’s waters and The Planets Calls’ unwavering mission for a greener and more sustainable planet, it’s a first-of-its kind partnership that forges a new way forward.

In a referral partner agreement, the brands have come together on a unique platform to address the alarmingly compounding issue of the plastic pollution crisis.

In some form, almost all the plastic ever created still exists today. The amount of plastic produced globally in just one year is almost the same as the entire weight of humanity. And scientists predict that by 2050, there will be more tonnes of plastic in our oceans than tonnes of fish.

There is no doubt that the call to act is urgent.

Richard Hardiman, CEO of RanMarine Technology says,  ‘As a cleantech company, we are regularly introduced to people and networks who are passionate about the earth, its waters, and the need for urgent restoration; I can honestly say that few embody the same passion and vision or align with our mission so clearly as The Planet Calls; to be partnered with CEO Leslie Maliepaard and her team, to us at RanMarine, is the embodiment of what we are looking to achieve in creating stronger networks and commitments in the fight against plastic pollution.’

And in this fight against plastic pollution, RanMarine’s WasteShark drone range offers an incredibly intelligent tool for cleaning our waters.

Modelled on planet earth’s biggest fish, the whale shark, The WasteShark is the world’s first waste harvesting autonomous aqua-drone that collects marine waste, biomass, and plastic from all types of water. It can collect up to 500kg of waste per day with a zero carbon footprint.

In addition to cleaning our waters, the WasteShark can be equipped with water quality sensors to capture and report on the health of our planet’s water. RanMarine’s mission is to empower people and organisations across the planet to restore the marine environment to its natural state.

To date, Dutch-based RanMarine has introduced WasteSharks to help clean up harbour waters in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, South Africa, India, Denmark, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia.

The eco-friendly and quietly unobtrusive drone is proving most effective at waste chokeholds like harbours, rivers, and canals where it can devour plastic pollution before it spills into our oceans.

Encouraged by the immediate impact the WasteShark can have on the health of our waters, the sustainability specialists at The Planet Calls already see the synergy and distinct value this range can offer their clients.

Read the full article by The Planet Calls article

Can autonomous water-robot technology solve the ‘pollution problem’ in water bodies?

Autonomous aerial robots have solved a number of impending problems across various industries, helping enterprises ensure completion of critical missions without any hindrance. However, the pollution problem in the water bodies has persisted and the aerial robots haven’t been able to contribute much in this regard.

They have majorly been involved in enhancing the security paradigm and ensuring asset protection across both private and government sectors. The authorities have been longing for a comprehensive solution to tackle the issue of water pollution.

This is where water-robot technology is coming up as a great innovative model to deal with the pending pollution problem in the water bodies. These autonomous vehicles are capable of removing tonnes of plastic waste from the surface of the water bodies, other than providing insights pertaining to the quality levels.The unmanned water vehicles are quite affordable and come with extended durability.

While many AI-based firms have worked extensively to develop fast-moving and heavy-duty water robots to clean up massive patches of plastic waste with great efficiency, RanMarine’s WasteShark has taken the lead to clean up as much as 200 litres of ocean waste before being emptied. It floats across the water bodies with its mouth wide-open and collects trash without affecting the marine life. While RanMarine is known for designing industrial autonomous surface vessels for ports, harbours and other marine and water environments, WasteShark is undoubtedly the best product developed by the company.

Some of the best features of WasteShark include 10-hour swim time, besides the ability to clean up over 500 kgsof waste every day. The product is already deployed in several water bodies across various countries and the results have been encouraging.

As a result, RanMarine has attracted investment from Luxembourg-based Boundary Holding, led by RajatKhare. The company is looking to utilize the funds to expand the business and set a new benchmark in the clean-tech sector.

The integration of advanced technology has opened the doors for various sectors and firms to find appropriate solutions to the new-age problems. The role of water-robots is also going to be crucial to live up to the expectations, as the pollution levels keep increasing, impacting the marine life, as well as the humans.

Read the full article by Globe Stats article

12 Netherlands-based energy startups that raised over €1M in 2020

The world is increasingly growing aware of the detrimental effects of fossil fuel and is actively seeking an alternative. According to the EEA, “The European energy system is undergoing rapid changes to set the EU economy on a low-carbon and resource-efficient path. Renewable energy is instrumental to this transformation. EU efforts to double the share of renewable energy in its consumption have paid off, having reduced significantly the amount of fossil fuels used and their associated greenhouse gas emissions.”

A number of European startups are also playing their part in helping the EU achieve a sustainable future; especially in the Netherlands. According to a report, the Netherlands is aiming for a rapid transition to a carbon-neutral economy to help its economic growth and energy security. The country has made notable progress on its transition to a carbon-neutral economy and has set targets to reduce them by 49% by 2030 and by 95% by 2050, compared with 1990 levels.

RanMarine Technology

Founder/s: Richard Hardiman
Founded year: 2016
Total funding: €1.6M

RanMarine Technology specialises in the design and development of industrial autonomous surface vessels (ASV’s) for ports, harbours, and other marine and water environments. The company specialises in remote-controlled and autonomous drones. It came up WasteShark, a drone to swim through water, gather data about the marine environment, and extract unwanted material. It is a drone that is efficient, non-threatening, unobtrusive, and long-lasting. This drone will eat plastics and litter, chemicals in the water, and extract pest and alien vegetation.

Read the full article by Silicon Canals article

Is Autonomous Technology The Solution To Fight Water Pollution?

The quantity of plastic waste is rapidly increasing in rivers, lakes and oceans across the world. Over 245 million tonnes of plastic waste is floating on the surface of oceans, while tonnes of heavy waste materials are present on the floor of these oceans. The presence of plastic waste in waterways has affected all kinds of living beings, including birds, fish, humans, etc.

One of the largest patches of floating plastic and other waste materials present on the surface of oceans is spread over 1.6 million square kilometres in the pacific. There are four similar patches present in the oceans, which are relatively smaller than the one in pacific.

Undoubtedly, it is not an easy job to clean up these patches of garbage only through manpower. However, with the help of water robots, this activity can be performed rather easily. These water robots can operate independently and clean the plastic patches faster with great accuracy.

One such autonomous surface vehicles or water robot, known as WasteShark can clean up to 200 litres of ocean waste before being emptied. Inspired by whale sharks,  WasteShark floats through the sea just like the former with its mouth open, collecting garbage instead of fish. Developed by RanMarine Technology,  WasteShark moves gently that prevents it from posing any danger to the ocean life. It also collects data about water quality, providing insights into how fast plastic is degrading in the seas.

Read the full article by Stats Globe article

 

New equipment for Ilfracombe’s WasteShark as new launch system nears completion

Ilfracombe Harbour staff have been presented with a custom built cage, trolley and waterproof cover for ‘Sharkie’ – the aquatic drone which is designed to clear unwanted debris such as plastics and oil from the waterway.

The items have been donated by RMB Chivenor’s Commando Logistic Regiment and the North Devon branch of the Royal Marine Association.

They will be used to transport the WasteShark from its home to the new bespoke launch system at the harbour, once complete.

The new system is being set up specifically for Ilfracombe’s tidal range by harbour staff and The Shark Ambassadors – local residents who have volunteered their time to help with the operation of Sharkie.

North Devon Councils lead member for the environment, councillor Netti Pearson, added: “’Sharkie’ is a real asset to Ilfracombe and as a resident of the town I look forward to seeing it back in action. I was at the launch last year, it is a novel way to raise awareness of the amount of plastic waste that washes up in the harbour and is a useful tool for measuring and reducing other pollutants in the water.

“The new equipment will make it easier to launch ‘Sharkie’, and house it safely, so we will be able to see it in action more often.”

Read the full article by North Devon Gazette article

Trash-Eating Drones Are Taking on Water Pollution

An autonomous water drone lumbers around Ilfracombe Harbor on the North Devon Coast in Southwest England. Called WasteShark, the 5-by-3.5-feet catamaran-shaped “aquadrone” scoops up plastic, rubbish, and debris before the tide takes it out to sea.

Inspired by whale sharks that cruise around the water with their mouths open to suck in plankton and fish, WasteShark gobbles up over 1,000 pounds of waste that crosses its path daily. “We built it on the same principals as a whale shark. It is the size of an average coffee table and operates just like a robotic vacuum cleaner that goes around your room, sweeping the dust from your floors,” says Richard Hardiman, CEO of RanMarine Technology, the Netherlands-based startup that developed WasteShark.

England is not the only location deploying water drones to prevent plastic from entering the ocean and threatening marine life. Founded in 2016, RanMarine has used WasteSharks to help clean up the harbor waters in the United States, additional areas in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, South Africa, India, Denmark, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. According to Hardiman, its customers include local and federal governments, port authorities, educational and commercial organizations.

He believes that the vessel is most effective at “waste chokeholds like harbors, rivers, and canals” because it can “enter hard-to-reach areas and easily navigate through water traffic to clean urban, rural, and industrial waterways.” Extending no deeper than a foot beneath the surface, the device glides through the water and its mouth-like opening in the front catches everything in its path. A metal-wire basket, located between its two hulls, filters out the water and collects solids that are brought back to the shore to be emptied, sorted, and recycled.

WasteShark can be steered manually via remote control or set up to swim autonomously; its collision-avoidance system employs remote-sensing technology called Lidar to spot obstacles, such as buoys and other crafts, and adjust its position accordingly.

Read the full article by Dell Technologies article

Boundary Holding makes cleantech investment, funds Netherland-based startup

European investment firm Boundary Holding has recently invested in a Netherland-based startup – RanMarine Technology. The firm specialises in the design and development of industrial autonomous surface vehicles (ASV’s) for ports, harbours, and other marine and water environments. Before the deal was finalised, the founder of Boundary Holding Rajat Khare and the founder of RanMarine Richard Hardiman met several times in Europe.

Talking about cleantech investment that Boundary Holding has made, Rajat Khare said, “Investment for a clean environment is our core focus area. I am impressed by how RanMarine has made great progress in the past years. I am enthusiastic about this new partnership of Boundary Holding and RanMarine as it is inevitable that this partnership would fetch better results.”

Founder of RanMarine Richard Hardiman, said, “Boundary Holding will extend our reach, bring us to exciting new markets, strengthen the status within the existing market, and lay the foundation for possible further expansion, all while maintaining high quality and standards.” Post investment, RanMarine is planning to utilise the funds on the R&D of upcoming products, data and customer portal, expanding the team and business development, and trade shows for market growth.

Read the full article by London Daily Post article