It’s EU Green Week! Every year, a celebration of green initiatives takes place during a week-long event throughout the European Union (EU). Combining discussions on green policy and real world applications, this year’s theme – "Applying environmental legislation" – is particularly relevant for businesses and industry.
Applying environmental legislation
From low energy factories to conscious packaging, Europe’s small business are often the early-adopters of environmental laws. Their lean businesses models and applied solutions help place them at the forefront of environmental innovation.
Here are five small businesses helping to green Europe, one innovative idea at a time:
1. Clean energy in public transport
Heliox developed a super-fast charging system for electric buses. With the help of EU innovation funding, this small company from Eindhoven (The Netherlands) has conquered the British market and will soon be piloting their system in London’s public transport.
2. Drought-resistant seeds
PEWAS is a Slovak company specialising in applied chemistry. Their seed technology increases germination by 60% with up to 50% less water intake. Vital business support helped PEWAS turn lab research into a game-changing commercial product for agricultural purposes. A great solution to boost resource efficiency!
3. Fuel efficient ships
Norsepower is a small business with a big solution to lower CO2 emissions worldwide. It built the world’s first technology to capture wind energy on moving ships: a rotary sail. Essentially a spinning cylinder that harnesses wind energy to propel a ship, it allows for up to 20% fuel savings. The technology is already being used in ferry boats travelling between Finland and Sweden.
4. Eco cleaning products
Meeting consumer needs with trustworthy products is the strength Eco Clean Nordic. This Danish company has successfully internationalised their brand of health and environment-friendly household cleaning products. Today they sell them in 14 countries worldwide.
5. Connected wind energy
Smartive developed digital platforms to control, monitor and diagnose wind turbines. The technology tracks the performance of wind turbines to detect flaws and make their maintenance more efficient. Native to Spain, Smartive’s technology is used in wind farms in Italy, Bulgaria, Denmark and Uruguay.
Get in touch
Dedicated business advisers from the Enterprise Europe Network helped these companies along the way, with advice or help in finding the right business partners.
Are you looking for support to grow your business? Get in touch with your local Enterprise Europe Network contact point.