Norwegian Startup Otechos joined the Ansys Startup Program in 2020. With expert mentoring from the EDRMedeso team they have introduced High Performance Computing of Fluids and Structural performance of their pumps and compressors.
Tvedestrand based startup company Otechos support their customers make the “green shift” by developing energy efficient pumps and compressors for hydrogen, ammonia and high temperature applications.
In an area that requires high precision their development team came to a point where they needed to introduce simulation to be able to fuel their innovation and fully understand the physics of their products and unlock the potential in their design ideas.
The benefit of simulation is that they gain “X-ray vision into their products”, as Kjell Kvinnesland, Technical Manager at Otechos, explains. After running full scale testing of prototypes, they can also document that the simulation models behave in the same way as the real product, which then allows for product adjustments with significantly shorter development cycles.
““It saves us an enormous amount of time that would otherwise have to be used for testing – expensive prototypes and expensive tests. Simulation also saves us many steps in development ”
“We test physically here in our lab and we also test in our “digital lab” which is basically a huge computer. In the digital lab we run simulations: Fluid simulations (CFD) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA), of the machine. Simulations, such as CFD, give us key knowledge about the process so that we can design the process and the machine around the process correctly,” says Fredrik Thrane, who is responsible for the development of a contact and oil free compressor for hydrogen and ammonia.
“It saves us an enormous amount of time that would otherwise have to be used for testing – expensive prototypes and expensive tests. Simulation also saves us many steps in development – before, during and after design is complete,” Fredrik says.
PICTURE: The development team at Otechos – Dag Ingvaldsen, Fredrik Thrane and Kjell Kvinnesland
Otechos have received excellent backing from the Norwegian Research Council, and they are supported by trusted industrial partners.
He also emphasizes that using the most modern digital lab tools available will help them keep and attract the clever minds that they are dependent on to get the company to where they want to be in the future.
“We are also completely dependent on suppliers who are involved and understand the journey we are on. EDRMedeso is a fantastic example of that. They provide state of the art analysis tools that help the company maintain a professional and streamlined status”, says Christopher Vanay, CEO of Otechos.
The EDRMedeso Startup Program gives you full access to Ansys simulation software bundles that are built and priced to help entrepreneurs grow their business quickly and cost-effectively.
