Straits Times 18 Jul 09;
New Zealand recently earmarked clean technology as a new area of economic growth. Liaw Wy-Cin visited several companies there to see how the industry is being built up.
DRIED sewage can be used to produce electricity, but the cost of drying this waste is high because the process uses up a lot of energy.
One company in New Zealand, Flo-Dry, has found a way to remove some water from sewer sludge, so it can reduce the cost of the drying process by 20 per cent to 30 per cent, said the company's managing director, Mr Tissa Fernando.
Explained Flo-Dry senior chemical engineer Praveen Bhagat: 'We electro-shock the sludge. We charge the particles in the sludge, so the water is pushed out of the sludge.'
After three years of researching this technology, Flo-Dry engineers have been able to increase the amount of solids in the sludge to between 20 per cent and 50 per cent.
The company is in talks with Singapore's national water agency, PUB, about testing one of Flo-Dry's units at a used water reclamation plant here, said Mr Fernando.
Singapore currently reclaims waste water for use, and burns the resulting sludge.
Flo-Dry is one of some 220 companies in New Zealand which have made a business out of clean technology in areas such as waste reclamation, solar technology and more energy-efficient buses and light bulbs.
Like Singapore, the New Zealand government has identified clean technology as a pillar of the economy that it wants to grow for the future.
Some 70 per cent of New Zealand's electricity is already powered by clean energy - hydropower. The nation, however, wants to increase this to 90 per cent by 2025 and is exploring ways to tap the heat coming out of its volcanoes to generate electricity. Some of New Zealand's clean tech companies are also looking to Singapore to help drive their business.
Flotech, which makes gas compressors and treats waste gas generated by industrial processes for use as fuel, for example, builds its gas compressors and biogas towers in Singapore.
The company's sales director, Mr Steve Rowntree, said: 'As our customers are mainly in Europe, Singapore is a more central location. We also get a lot of the steel from Singapore, so it makes no sense to ship the raw material all the way down here, and then have to ship the complete product all the way up to Europe again.
'We can save 11/2 to two months on a project by building our products in Singapore.'
New Zealand bus company Designline International, which makes hybrid and electric buses, is also in talks with parties in Singapore about testing some of its buses here, said the company's commercial manager, Mr Wes Jones Jr.
And the country's business incubator for start-up companies, The Icehouse, has teamed up with the commercial arm of Singapore's Agency for Science, Technology and Research - Exploit Technologies - to push the technologies to market.
One start-up to benefit from this partnership is solar water heater developer Spud. The company is talking to manufacturers in Singapore about making the product, said its director, Mr Richard Gourley.
The advantage of manufacturing in Singapore, said Mr Gourley, is the country's skills and experience in mass production for big markets.
'It's very important to be dealing with somebody who has integrity with many markets, because you don't know what is going to happen to your product if you leave it with someone with less skill and experience,' he said.
But it is not just manufacturing that Singapore and New Zealand are interested in. Both want to develop high-value research and development in the clean-tech sector as well.
Singapore earmarked the sector as a new economic pillar in 2006. It aims to create 18,000 jobs in this sector by 2015. The figure so far is more than 3,000.
Technologies for an energy-saving society
Straits Times 18 Jul 09;
THERE are more than 220 clean technology companies in New Zealand. Here are some of these companies and the technologies they have developed:
# SOLAR HEATED OUTDOOR SHOWER
A company, Spud, short for Special Projects Under Development, has designed a solar heated shower - Sunshower - made up of a fence of corrugated plexiglass bent into a series of folds.
The many folds reflect the sunlight within the glass panel, which retains the heat. Pipes running across the glass warm up the water running through them.
Water can be connected to this 'radiator fence' through a garden hose, and the heated water comes out at the top of the 'fence'.
The hot water can also be stored in an insulated container, which keeps its heat for later use.
The Sunshower can be used to heat water in outdoor pools or as an outdoor shower in resorts in the region, for example, said one of its company's directors, Ms Janice Gourley.
# ENERGY USAGE SOFTWARE
Technology company Energy Intellect has developed a program that can measure energy consumption.
The company has linked up with meter manufacturer Stream. It offers industrial users the option to predesignate a power usage limit for the month, for example. If the usage exceeds this limit, certain appliances will automatically be switched off.
# DOMESTIC HEAT-CUM-ELECTRICITY GENERATOR
Thirteen years of research and development have led to technology company Whisper Tech's mini-power station for the home.
The WhisperGen (right) uses natural gas to heat water and, in the process, produce electricity as a by-product.
The company is targeting Europe as a market, where natural gas is four times cheaper than electricity. Its mini-power station will let home users generate their own electricity in their homes.
# REDUCING POWER CONSUMPTION
Energy-saving bulbs developer Energy Mad has tied up with local power companies in New Zealand to offer discount vouchers to consumers who buy its bulbs at supermarkets.
The bulbs consume less electricity, which means power companies can save on the massive investments needed to lay new power lines and build new power stations, said the company's co-founder, Mr Tom Mackenzie.
He said the company is talking to town councils in Singapore to replace some street lights with its Ecobulbs.
# ELECTRIC AND HYBRID BUSES
Designline International builds electric and hybrid buses (above). The buses are currently being used in Australia and New Zealand and are on trial in Mexico, the United States and South Korea.
# ENERGY-SAVING VALVES
Emech Control designs valves for industrial use, in meat processing, for example, which have cut energy and water use by 15 per cent to 20 per cent.
# GETTING FUEL FROM ALGAE
Former Christchurch mayor Vicki Buck is working on harvesting fuel from algae, something scientists have increasingly taken an interest in.
