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Home » General » Fraunhofer IKTS Spin-off Forefronts Offshore Pressure Vessel Monitoring Technology

Fraunhofer IKTS Spin-off Forefronts Offshore Pressure Vessel Monitoring Technology

Equinor Ventures/NO joins forces with Fraunhofer IKTS/DE and experienced spinoff management and investment company CoFounder resulting in the foundation of new deep-tech venture Nicoustic. Nicoustic provides offshore pressure vessel monitoring technology using guided ultrasonic waves. Its technology offers a non-intrusive, permanent monitoring method, that can be applied from the outside with no downtime for the operator.

Headquartered in Trondheim/NO, the new company is a spin-off from Fraunhofer IKTS and has the ambition to become a global provider of acoustic level monitoring and integrity solutions for pressure vessels, allowing operators to reduce maintenance costs, optimize production and improve safety.

“There is a need for reliable and permanent monitoring of solids and multiphase level in our offshore separators and other vessels”, said Jan Magnus Østvik, Project Manager, Technology Management at Equinor. This is because solids like sands or scale can build up in vessels which can cause costly equipment downtime and manual cleaning. This technology can have broad application across process industries. The technology is not limited to this market. “We see a huge potential also in the chemical industry as well as in renewable energy applications such as hydrogen. Besides the cooperation with Equinor and the strong team performance, these opportunities are why we decided, to take an active role in bringing Nicoustic to the market”, said Dr Christian Wunderlich, Deputy Institute Director at Fraunhofer IKTS.

The creation of the new company was supported by Fraunhofer Venture and the CoLab & AHEAD programs during the founding stage. Nicoustic will further be financially backed by Fraunhofer, CoFounder and Equinor Ventures. The first initial funding of EUR 730 000 is already secured. “We are proud of being invited by Equinor and Fraunhofer to participate in the commercialisation of the new technology. Nicoustic is a perfect example where validated customer need, worldclass technology and external management haven been matched – resulting in next level technology transfer”, said Jan Biti, Managing Partner at CoFounder and interim CEO at Nicoustic. CoFounder provides management resources and capital to early-stage technology companies in Norway; has broad experience in the commercialisation of new technologies from R&D institutes, universities and corporations. CoFounder is financially backed by KLP – the largest pension fund in Norway.


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