Agrilink International Pty Ltd. Becomes AquaSpy

What's in a name? Not enough for Agrilink International's board of directors, which decided that the company's name was too strongly linked to agriculture and didn't reflect other products and services. This includes a turf and golf course business that is tapping a large and receptive market. The company's technology is also proving quite suitable for irrigation management of entire communities. For example, a small city in Australia is currently using its "whole of community" irrigation system. A retail launch of this product is on the horizon. Given these much broader market opportunities, Adelaide, Australia-based Agrilink changed its name to AquaSpy Group Pty Ltd.

AquaSpy is currently negotiating several potentially significant agreements for the international distribution of its products, including select verticals in the United States. Australia remains important, but a persistent drought throughout the country has hurt the agricultural sector and, as a result, the service providers operating in that market. The U.S. golf course market is a different story. AquaSpy, through its subsidiary GolfLinx, has installations at six high-end U.S. golf courses. The company's technology helps these courses achieve substantial water savings while improving the quality of greens.

In November, AquaSpy won two prestigious Australian awards, both reflecting the company's product excellence. The Electronics Industry Award Legend is for outstanding achievements in developing a viable technology business, while the Electronics Industry Award Gold Cup recognizes AquaSpy for excellence in innovation. The team achieved this recognition, like previous awards, because of its ability to "think outside the box" and, just as important, execute on its ideas. (Visit: www.aquaspy.com)

EnOcean GmbH Gains More Recognition

This German company, located near Munich in the small Bavarian town of Oberhaching, has won yet another award. Building Design magazine handed EnOcean GmbH the "Best Building Product Innovation Award 2007" at the world-famous 100% Design fair last September in London. It's just one of many innovation and product awards collected by EnOcean chief executive Markus Brehler - and probably not his last.

The prestigious contest, judged by architects, was presented in front of hundreds of international designers, specifiers and architects. EnOcean's wireless, battery-free switch beat out nine other products in the running. The company's recent string of awards isn't surprising, given the global trend toward building automation and the ability of EnOcean's products to limit - if not eliminate - unnecessary energy use. Its sensors and switches, which power themselves by harvesting energy from their surrounding environment, make it easy and cost-effective to collect vital data related to a building's operations and energy consumption. This allows for the precise control of where and when energy is used.

Take temperature control in rooms. EnOcean's easy-to-install wireless control technology monitors a room's surroundings and can adjust temperature based on time of day, number of occupants, or the personal settings of someone who has entered the room. It can also sense if the room has been empty for some time and respond by lowering the temperature. The technology is affordable, and its use can lead to energy savings of between 20% and 30%.

When applied to windows, savings approach 40%. EnOcean's contact sensors know when a window has been opened and respond accordingly by lowering or increasing the temperature in the room. In the past, installing such sensors without wireless technology was a complex and costly job because of the extensive cabling required. Using small power-independent wireless sensors get around this without breaking the bank.

Then there's lighting, which on average consumes about a third of any building's energy. The typical operation of lights in a building is simple: turn them on first thing in the morning and off when the last person leaves at night. In some areas lights are on all the time. EnOcean's motion and brightness sensors, combined with dimmable fluorescent ballasts, can cut lighting costs by up to 70%, and because the sensors are wireless they can be placed in tough-to-reach spots.

Other applications include regulated window shutters, radio-controlled heat cost allocation and hot water management. A more detailed description of EnOcean's products and their specific energy savings can be found in the October 2007 issue of the company's magazine, Perpetuum. (Visit: www.enocean.com for link to magazine)

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