You can't just replace a noisy and smelly pump on a construction site with an electric one, because it requires a heavy power connection. Unless you electrify much smarter than has been customary until now. The new CityPumpE can make do with a 230V connection.
The CityPumpE is so electrically efficient that a simple 230V connection is all it needs, so it can be plugged into a wall socket. Normally, that's far too little for a pump with any flow. You definitely need a 32 amp connection for that. But this new pump has a battery pack of 30 to 50 kWh on board and makes smart use of the available energy.
Same as high voltage
'When a pump is running at full speed, you run into a power demand that you can't meet with 3.6 kW. Then the battery steps in,' explains inventor Daniel Geerling. But his system is more than a pump with a battery. The system continuously monitors the need for water displacement on the construction site, allowing it to handle peaks.
'In construction and infra, pumps are dimensioned for peak load, while that peak is only achieved occasionally. The rest of the time such a pump runs well below its highest capacity. At those times we turn down the power, and trickle charge the battery. That way you can do the same with 230V that you would otherwise need power current for.'
Socket or charging station
'We're focusing on inner-city with this pump for now, because we can't go completely off grid,' Geerling continues. 'We need an outlet, but we can also use a charging station.' The latter is not entirely obvious, by the way, but it is a conscious design choice.
'Right now, legally speaking, public charging stations are still primarily intended for vehicles, but that is changing. With the Clean and Emission-Free Building Covenant in hand, municipalities like Maastricht are already expanding their charging infrastructure for construction equipment. We are already ready for that. Our pump requires only 3.6 kW continuously, so we fit within any charging profile, even if the pole temporarily reduces power during peak hours. The battery captures that and so the pump keeps running no matter what.'
Standard product for water management
The CityPumpE is not currently in production, but that will change this year, assures Geerling. 'We are now building the pre-production type and at the end of May we will start the test phase. That will continue until July. Then we want to put the first 20 sets into production this year.'
Working with the pump should above all be very natural, Geerling believes. 'In terms of water management, a pump is a very standard product, it is not a core business for construction and infrastructure. So on the construction site, you shouldn't have to be difficult with it. It's just take one unit out, and our unit on, plug it in and you're done. It's also typically a rental product.'
Concept in your head
Geerling came up with the concept on a customer's farm. There were many solar panels on the roofs, while in the fields the sprinkler pumps were sizzling on diesel. The farmer had solar energy to spare, while at the same time he was spending a fortune on diesel. Geerling came up with a concept involving mobile batteries. "That farmer drove the tractor to the field every day anyway, so he could take a battery with him at the same time.
But the calculations showed that such a battery quickly had to be 600 kWh to meet the continuous power demand of the pumps. 'Then it dawned on us that it was never going to work that way. We had to take a fundamentally different approach. We needed to pump more efficiently instead of adding larger batteries.'
On top of that, batteries were still very expensive at the time, so the whole project fell through. 'But I did have the concept in my head,' says Geerling. 'And I live in Amsterdam. There, there are pumps everywhere on construction sites, both diesel pumps and electric pumps with diesel generators next to them. They make a lot of noise and they stink. In those places, a mobile and efficient electric pump would be ideal.'
Traditional electrification does not work
Pumps are often incorrectly electrified in a very traditional way, Geerling believes. 'That means that the diesel engine is taken off and a power motor is put on. But then you're soon stuck with a 32 amp connection.'
In addition, on construction sites you see more and more electrification happening, he continues. 'These are sometimes very large construction sites with lots of electrical machines. I recently visited a project on the Westerkade in Rotterdam, where an old quay wall is being replaced completely emission-free. That is of course a great achievement, but you certainly need a connection that can supply 20 to 30 households with electricity. And you don't just get those these days. So normal electrification is out of the question, unless you go back to using diesel generators, but that defeats the purpose. That confirmed for us what we already thought: electrification has to be as efficient as possible, otherwise you get stuck with the grid.
Collaboration
Geerling is developing the new pump together with Altop, a company in the Liemers region of Gelderland. 'They do innovation in the field of water management and heating. Together we are working on the development of the CityPumpE. My company Machined4you does the business development and seeks out the market, and Altop does the engineering and production.'
