energy to change Wärtsilä

EnErgy to changE

Long-established Finnish technology group Wärtsilä is highly respected both for its impressive, innovative engines for large-scale power applications and for its ability to stay relevant in a changing energy market. Emma-Jane Batey spoke to vice-president Melle Kruisdijk to learn more.

Founded in 1834, headquartered in Helsinki and with an annual revenue of over €4.8 billion, it’s fair to say that Wärtsilä is one of Finland’s most recognised and respected companies. As the first company to create a gas fired engine, Wärtsilä has consistently been at the forefront of smart energy, even before it was considered the right thing to do.

Wärtsilä Energy Solutions vice-president Melle Kruisdijk explains that the fact the company has been at the top of its game for nearly two centuries is a clear illustration of its ability to refresh its focus when necessary. Mr Kruisdijk told Industry Europe, “We have been active for over 180 years and I can certainly confirm that we have always had our eyes open; the company has really developed over those many years and has changed quite a lot. We’ve always been looking at the market and also outside the market. Perhaps the most important element of our continual development has been our real strength when it comes to utilising our core competences for the best advantage of our customers and ourselves.”

The core competences of Wärtsilä can be identified as advanced technologies and complete life cycle solutions for the marine and energy markets. The company has long focused on sustainable innovation and total efficiency, making it an important player in the ongoing development of engines for energy and marine applications. Mr Kruisdijk explained, “Thanks to our long-term focus on looking into the future to identify the

potential trends and demands in energy generation and utilisation, we knew that gas would play an important role in energy systems. We were the first company to create a gas-fired engine when previously they were only diesel and, particularly since the early 1990s, we have played an increasingly important role in the sustainable energy environment.”

Power to the world

With over 18,000 employees and over 200 locations in more than 70 countries worldwide, Wärtsilä, which is listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki, is a global leader. Dedicated to maximising the environmental and economic performance of its customers’ vessels and power plants, Wärtsilä comprises three business divisions; marine solutions, energy solutions and services.

The marine solutions business at Wärtsilä is focused on enhancing the business of its marine and oil and gas industry customers by providing innovative and integrated solutions.

Wärtsilä’s energy solutions business sees the company as a leading global energy system integrator offering a broad range of environmentally-sound solutions. Mr Kruisdijk noted, “Our offer includes ultra-flexible engine based power plants, utility-scale solar PV power plants, energy storage and integration solutions, and LNG terminals and distribution systems. As of 2017, Wärtsilä has 63 GW of installed power plant capacity in 176 countries around the world. We know that our flexible and efficient solutions provide customers with superior value and enable the transition to a more sustainable and modern energy system.”

Total support

The services business from Wärtsilä is a thorough support provision that meets every possible demand from its global customers. The company has a network of over 11,000 professionals in 160 countries across the world – the largest network of its kind in the

CZECh PRECISON FORgE (CPF)

CZeCH PReCISoN FoRGe (CPF) is a traditional Czech company with international management with strong standing on world and domestic markets in closed-die forging and open-die forging. The roots of the CPF company stem from its past as a forge with a large range of products for global producers in power generation, marine industry, transport technology, aviation, oil industry, and other engineering sectors.

With its unique manufacturing facilities, certification, management ownership, language availability, and flexibility CPF offers to all customers its forging services in a form which is responsive to customer expectations and requirements.

melle Kruisdijk, Wärtsilä energy Solutions vice-president

industry – and is able to service and support more than 12,000 customers each year. Mr Kruisdijk added, “We have an extensive and totally flexible portfolio of services in order to ensure that we deliver whatever it may be that the customer requires – wherever and whenever they need it. So from spare parts to complete operational, maintenance and optimisation services, Wärtsilä is always next to our customers, supporting them in growing their business.”

This competence in installation and optimisation is certainly a key thread that runs through the success story that is Wärtsilä. As the company is always open minded about innovative solutions, its continued involvement in the development of opportunities in renewable energy, such as its current activities in the photovoltaic solar business, is just one example of how this long-established company is totally future-focused. Mr Kruisdijk said, “It makes economic sense as well as environmental sense to be smart and active in the renewables field; it’s important for everyone, so let’s utilise our expertise for the good of everyone. Hence, we’re working on battery storage where costs are really going down and we’ll see bigger volumes, which is good. Decarbonisation is essentially the biggest trend across our industry.” n