Tamturbo selected among inspiring circular economy solutions by The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra

Picture: Sitra

Tamturbo has been selected among 39 inspiring circular economy solutions by The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. Proud to be a member of this list of 39 inspirational and diverse solutions!

The article was originally published by The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra.

Compressed air as-a-service for industrial facilities

Industrial facilities often have old compressed air technology which requires oil and service and breaks easily. Tamturbo offers compressed air as-a-service that is completely oil-free and low maintenance.

Tamturbo’s compressed air as-a-service is the cheapest solution on the market in terms of lifecycle costs. The solution is an example of re-designing old technology with circular economy principles to create a product for a market where innovation has slowed.

The solution is technically complex, but all the technologies it uses have been around for decades. The founders had the vision of an oil-free and touch-free air compressor already in the 90s. They knew it could be done, but it took eight years of R&D to crack it.

Problem

A tenth of industrial electricity consumption is used for compressed air, which is five per cent of total global electricity consumption. Traditional screw compressors have many parts and rely on oil, which has adverse environmental and health impacts. A huge proportion of the traditional manufacturers’ business is from the market for spare parts, which drives unsustainable design and is costly to the client.

Solution

Tamturbo offers compressed air as-a-service. The technology is nearly service- and maintenance-free because it minimises wear and tear, and it has fully remote monitoring and control capability. Thus, Tamturbo can keep the ownership of the technology at low risk. Clients save energy and reach their environmental targets, have a safer working environment due to the absence of oil, minimise the risk of failure of the device and save money at the same time.

With Tamturbo’s technology and service model, industrial companies do not have to own their air compressor technology anymore or take care of its upkeep and maintenance. This can open up these companies to circular thinking and the service economy even more and foster change in industrial production practices. The compressor itself has been designed with circular economy principles of longevity and energy efficiency; for example, it does not have any touching parts which prevents wear and tear.

Environmental impact

The solution reduces the GHG emissions of industrial operations by reducing the primary energy use of air compressors and avoiding the use of oil. It also eliminates the risk of oil-contamination. As the technology is smaller in size than the traditional solution, almost maintenance-free and designed for refurbishing, it also has positive impact on materials use and reduces waste sent to landfills or incinerators

Social impact

Oil used in traditional air compressor technology poses a significant risk to employee health and wellbeing, as some oil always leaks out. Therefore, Tamturbo’s solution has a positive impact on the health of industrial workers.