I attended the Clean Tech Open Global Forum, November 8-9. The Cleantech Open runs the world’s largest cleantech accelerator. The mission is to find, fund and foster entrepreneurs with big ideas that address today’s most urgent energy, environmental and economic challenges.
144 startup companies completed the Cleantech Open United States competition in 2012, and many hundreds more participated in the Cleantech Open Global Ideas competition in countries around the world.
The Global Forum featured regional competition winners in different categories: Green Building, Energy Efficiency, Air Water and Waste, Renewable Energy, Smart Power, Transportation, and Sustainability.
The overall winner, taking home cash and services prize worth $250,000 was won by HEVT which makes an energy efficient motor that can be used in electric cars or other motor applications. Their CEO did such a great job describing the technology and business that I had no doubt they would win. (By the way, my guess-the-winner record now stands at 2 for 2 as I also guessed correctly the winner, Indow Windows, last year).
Here are some companies whose products and technologies are interesting to homeowners:
- IrriGreen – The irrigation system controls the area of coverage of sprinkler systems to reduce water usage. Because it uses fewer sprinkler heads and less piping, it saves installation time and labor.
- Panel Shake – Roof shakes made of recycled plastic and agriculture by-product natural fibers. They look like wood shakes with affordable price. The product can last 50 years and is recyclable.
- GR Green – Roof shakes resembling cedar and slate made of recycled plastic and waste limestone. They cost less than cedar shakes and about 1/3 of real slate. The product can last 50 years and is recyclable.
- Solar-breeze – A solar powered robot pool skimmer that removes 90-95% of all debris, including leaves, pollen, dust and even suntan oils from the surface of the pool.
- Binishells – They develop new and cost effective building technologies, one of which is to combine the use of reinforced concrete and prefabricated infill panels resulting in permanent structures.
- Smarter Shade – Makes a product that electronically darken a window with the flip of a switch. It can be integrated in new windows or used to retrofit existing windows. This electronic shade requires power only when switching and serves as part of a daylighting/natural heating strategy plus privacy.
- Vine Roof – Makes a new type of greenroof that uses vines for shade and delivers power free cooling.
- SiNode – They have developed a processing technology that can be used for lithium batteries in cell phones to increase the talk time to 18 hours, reduce the charging time to 15 minutes and reduce the cost of the batteries.
