Green Tech Magazine May 2019 en

14 GREEN TECH MAGAZINE 15
Precise agricultural irrigation systems that
conserve water have brought the Bauer Group from
Voitsberg international success.
pro aqua systems use
boron-doped diamond electrodes
to produce clean water.
tion irrigation systems is high, above all in Europe, North
and South America, Australia, New Zealand and China.
Farms make up 90 percent of Bauer’s customers, with ten
percent of the company’s business coming from industry.
ogy is used primarily in the food industry, for instance for
washing and sterilising fruit, vegetables and meat; it’s also
used in swimming pools and drinking water treatment,“
explains pro-aqua CEO Wolfgang Staber.
Innovation bubbles up
Styrian companies businesses have extensive expertise and
provide all kinds of solutions relating to water: resource conservation,
water treatment, irrigation systems for agriculture, hydropower,
Water is a rich source of life. Styria has always had a close
affinity with water technology. And its many small power
plants, storage and other power stations are proof of this.
Styria plays a key global role in green electricity: 20 percent
of the world’s electricity from renewable sources (hydropower,
biomass and solar power plants) is generated by
Styrian technology. This means Styria helps generate 1,200
TWh of electricity in total, a quantity equivalent to the electricity
demand for the whole of India’s 1.3 billion inhabitants.
A key global player in hydropower plant construction is
ANDRITZ AG from Graz. The group supplied the Santo
Antonio hydropower plant in Brazil with 14 powerful 71.6
and cooling systems for public spaces.
MW bulb turbines, each with a diameter of 7.5 metres,
along with generators and switchgear systems.
Water for growth
The availability and efficient use of water is an increasingly
important issue for the water-intensive agriculture sector.
Modern and intelligent irrigation systems enable water to
be distributed to fields with precision. “In the context of
the increasing scarcity of water and during long dry periods,
farmers can use our systems to conserve water as
they irrigate their fields,” explains Andreas Schitter of the
Bauer Group from Voitsberg. Demand for water conserva-
Photo credits: Shutterstock, available
Water protects fruit and vegetables
Water is also of increasing importance for the food preservation
sector. Graz company A. Rauch, which has supplied
air humidifiers and open-air climate control systems
for many years, is successfully using water for cooling fruit
and vegetable racks. “Humidifier cooling is ideal for use in
the food trade – it reduces food and plastic waste by up
to 70 percent. It also preserves the vitamins, and prolongs
the shelf life of loose fresh produce many times over,” says
CEO Andreas Rauch. The prohibition on single‐use plastic
packaging means that this sustainable technology has
taken on a completely new relevance for the food trade.
Water cleaned by diamonds
Access to clean water is becoming more and more important.
Producing clean, germ-free water and processing
waste water in a gentle way is centre stage for pro aqua
in Niklasdorf. The company uses patented technology to
produce boron-doped diamond electrodes. These enable
clean water to be provided for drinking and swimming,
cleaning and disinfecting systems and surfaces, and also
enable waste water to be cleaned without the addition of
chemicals and released into the environment again. The
technology filters out cosmetic particulates, oils, micro-organisms,
pharmaceutical residue and industrial chemicals.
All that remains is very high-quality water. “Our technol-
Resource conservation
Water is the fundamental basis of life for humans. In the
context of industrial development, the construction of infrastructure
and increasing urbanisation, safeguarding this resource
requires a certain level of expertise. Safeguarding the
quantity and quality of the valuable resource that is water is
the business of JR-AquaConSol of Graz. It provides management,
surveying and safeguarding solutions in relation to water
resources. “We investigate the possible impact of infrastructure
initiatives on the water supply for customers such
as ÖBB and ASFINAG. But we are also involved with drinking
water resource analysis and development for water supply
companies. In addition, we record the availability of water,
and its potential uses, in the region,” explains Sebastian Berka
of JR-AquaConSol. They also investigate process water
and industrial water resources for mining and industrial companies.
The company is currently working with a number of
universities internationally to develop numeric models and
analytical methods. They are also collaborating on research
projects, and are part of research networks, in Europe, primarily
in Germany, Switzerland and Slovenia.
In summary: Intelligent technology from Styria is enabling
clean energy to be created from hydropower, careful
water management in agriculture, fruit and vegetables
to be kept fresh and effective water treatment.