PERMASCAND
THE CATALYST FOR GREEN ENERGY
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PERMASCAND
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PROFILE
THE CATALYST
FOR GREEN Having recently celebrated its 50th birthday, Permascand continues to innovate and grow, with new developments in its production capabilities and exciting inroads into hydrogen production. CEO Peter Lundström, CTO Fredrik Herlitz and Viktoria Lindstrand, Permascand’s CCO, sat down with Richard Hagan.
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ermascand, based in Sweden, is a global independent provider of electrochemical solutions. It’s one of the top producers of catalytic coatings in the world, and it also produces a variety of electrodes and electrochemical cells and solutions utilised in a variety of industries across the planet. Its manufacturing infrastructure has always been an important priority and it continues to be so, according to company CEO Peter Lundström. “In the last few years, we’ve invested a lot in the company, both in terms of our soft and hard values,” he said. “But now we’ve really focused on increasing the automation and robotisation of our production line. It’s taken lots of time and money, but it’s all now up and running.” The company’s recent public listing has given it the headroom to forge ahead with investments into a technology centre that is expected to significantly improve its research and development capabilities. 2
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“The phase we’re in now is building up the R&D of our products and our manufacturing solutions,” confirmed CTO Fredrik Herlitz. “We’re investing heavily into the concept. Inside, we’re installing the next generation of equipment for catalytic coating materials of the future. We believe that the innovations there will reduce both raw material consumption and the overall environmental impact.” The equipment Fredrik Herlitz referred to is a testbed measuring 15m x 3m in size: small in comparison to the final, industrial-scale equipment that it emulates, but perfect for its mission. The company envisions that mission as being not only an R&D facility but also as a marketing vehicle of sorts. “While it’s a demonstration of something that will be beneficial to us as a company, it’s also beneficial for our customers and for the environment,” said CCO Viktoria Lindstrand. “We want to use the work we’ll be doing here to ensure that our customers
are kept happy with our solutions. And it’ll show the industry that we’re delivering great products and investing into the future with renewables, including green hydrogen and power transmission.”
Powering into green hydrogen The company expects green hydrogen to be a huge opportunity for both it, and the industry, for the foreseeable future. “This is going to be a major growth driver in the next five to ten years,” Peter Lundström noted. “There’s a lot of electrochemical equipment that needs to be produced. In the long term, this is the biggest growth segment in the market not only for Permascand but for the whole industry.” It soon became clear from the team’s comments, however, that that growth path won’t be easy and there are many challenges that will have to be overcome. The sheer volume of product that has to be manufactured to meet the world’s needs for hydrogen is the first challenge.
“The issue relates to electrochemical technology and the industry’s production capacity for that technology,” Viktoria Lindstrand explained. “Hydrogen factories will be on a very large scale, requiring many square metres of catalytic materials as well as a lot of electrodes and electrochemical cells. “As a manufacturer, we know that manufacturing large-scale electrochemical cells with good performance and a long lifespan is not that simple,” she continued. “It’s really difficult, no matter how you design it. And we’re concerned that nobody is really talking about this problem and what needs to happen in order to solve it.”
Precious few metals Company CTO, Fredrik Herlitz, highlighted raw material needs as a particular concern: “Raw material supply and sustainability of the usage of those materials is a key factor,” he revealed. “To build the
big hydrogen plants that will be required in 20 to 30 years to come will require a huge change in society. You need good catalyst materials in competition with everything else in society.” Here, Fredrik Herlitz is referring to the industry’s growing need for precious metals, in direct competition with the increasing need for those same metals in other industries, including automotive – for electric vehicles – and consumer electronics, for things like mobile phones and computers. “There’s a worry around iridium,” Peter Lundström added. “A recent report in the market made it clear that industry, in general, has to be more efficient and use less iridium going forward. Today, demand for iridium is manageable but in future, we expect to see very high prices and insufficient supply.” “Reducing the level of iridium in the manufacturing process whilst also keeping electricity consumption down is a huge Inside Marine
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PERMASCAND
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PROFILE
challenge that needs to be solved,” he continued. “They’re talking about having to lower iridium consumption by 90%. It’s going to be very tough.”
Sustainable is smart A major strategic goal at Permascand is improving its operational efficiencies to constantly improve its sustainability. Its efforts are directed at three main areas; energy consumption, waste management and social responsibility. “Every decision we make is tempered around minimising our impact on the environment,” Peter explained. “Internally, thanks to a number of upgrades and other investments, we’re now using less energy whilst producing twice as much as before.” “We’re also recycling and cycling back everything. Any material that goes into the waste is recycled,” he added. “But we’re actively trying to reduce our waste through improving our sourcing. And finally, we’re constantly improving our products so that we use fewer materials in their construction.” 8
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Social responsibility is an important theme at Permascand and it is actively involved in supporting and caring for the surrounding community, as Peter Lundström highlighted: “We are the biggest employer in the community, so one of our first priorities is ensuring that Permascand remains profitable and stays in business to support our employees.”
Back to school “We’re cautious about how we award sponsorships,” Viktoria Lindstrand continued. “We support local schools and there are a couple of small programs that we’re involved with, but it’s always local, including when giving to sports teams. Its sponsorship efforts extend beyond school activities and into the community itself: “We recently sponsored a fishing contest in the village. We do it because we love the community and because we can.” School pupils are invited to participate in the company’s apprenticeship and training programs as well. These activities promote the career opportunities at Permascand and
Peter Lundström, CEO
Viktoria Lindstrand
inform the students of the various roles that they can look forward to should they choose to pursue employment there. Scholarships are also made available to the school, and are awarded to the best students in its industrial program.
Closing thoughts Permascand has a clear, confident strategy and vision for its future. “We never see challenges, only opportunities,” Peter Lundström remarked. “We want to be an independent, global leader in the supply of electro-chemical solutions. We have to overcome every obstacle.” Concluding, he said: “We’ve been through the pandemic and for two years we’ve dealt with high material prices, longer lead times and crazy transportation issues. We’re a stronger company today than two years ago. There will always be challenges. We manage our hurdles and get over them. That’s the culture we’re building.” n
Fredrik Herlitz, CTO
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