The gradual unveiling – or “start-up tease” – of the participants to the PortXL 2020 Rotterdam Selection Days is reaching its final stages. Remember that the event will take place at RDM Congres Centrum due to construction works at our usual location – apologies for the inconvenience! Previous episodes one, two, three & four are here for your viewing pleasure.
Each article will feature 7 of these innovative start-ups & scale-ups and what solutions are they bringing to the table. The companies are arranged in no particular order. Will the industry experts and our corporate partners select them? We will all find out on February 12th – stay tuned!
From the eastern geographical edge of Europe comes a Russian start-up with a mission. In Yekaterinburg, by the Ural mountain range they have developed a microgel that capsulates and separates any oil from water. This works with oil spills, wastewater treatment and any industrial oil or grease cleaning. What horrible chemicals is this microgel made of? Apple waste. Yes, really. A microgel a day keeps the oil spill away!
Optimiz has been part of various accelerators across Germany, France & the UK. The latest one being Lloyd’s Lab in London, where they were part of an elite selected dozen, out of 230 candidates. They believe that enhanced claims handling experience and optimized claims handling costs are two faces of the same coin; which is providing lasting value to all involved stakeholders in the claims process. Will they manage to enter another start-up program?
From Norway comes a modern software-as-a-service (SaaS) for the ship maintenance and repair industry, with a specific focus on dry-docking projects. It offers your team a full set of tools that will help you towards a successful dry-docking completion. In short, with Maindeck, you won’t be left out to dry when you dock.
On the topic of a smarter port, the Latvians from Marine Digital System focus on the bulk terminals. Their goal is to make ports more technological and to expedite the era of mass port automation processes. To reach this goal, they have developed warehouse management system for bulk terminals. Their program helps to automate stevedore employees activities and to diagnose online mistakes made during cargo acceptance and handing.
FishFlow Innovations develops and builds innovative fish migration facilities and protection systems. Their mission is to contribute to solve migration barriers for fish and prevent damage to fish through their tailor-made products. As part of their vision, the Dutchmen have developed a fish-friendly turbine for vessels that requires lower power to operate. This aspect has turned heads in the maritime industry and already got them a spot at the 2019 PortXL Selection Days. At the time they were not selected, but an encouraging year of progress has them making the final selection rounds again, perhaps to a different outcome on this occasion.
34 – Water Powered Technologies
This British scale-up is the leading designer of zero energy pumping technologies. Not only do their range of systems require no fossil fuel or electric power, they also offer solutions for previously unsolvable challenges created by extreme climatic events such as flooding and drought. They can help companies, regions and communities reduce the cost of transporting clean water and mitigate the damaging effects of climate change. In short, their “Papa Pump” (yes, that is the actual name) is here to chew bubblegum and pump water at zero energy cost. And they’re all out of gum.
We end this episode on the same note as it started, with a total solution to clean up oil spills. Foru’s total solution includes booms, bladders, power packs and a mechanical down-draft system; designed for near shore, harbor, river, lake and offshore conditions. Their down-draft systems can be deployed and stored without assembly. Either FORU system can be easily placed into the pocket of dynamic sweeping systems. Will they sweep the floor and achieve a place in the program?
Let’s find out together at Selection Days on February 12th!
That is almost all of the participants, only one more episode to go, coming up this Thursday. Stay tuned!
