OLLI POHJANPALO HS. (PHOTO: JUSSI NUKARI / LEHTIKUVA)
FINNISH COMPANY ProtectPipe is trying to launch a solution to the market, that according to the company increases the lifespan of the pipeline in an exceptional way: the microbes in the solution eat waste from the inner surface of drainpipes and grease traps.
The solution, called Bioflow, is per the company’s word an environmentally friendly product, whereas other enzyme-based drain cleaners contain “toxins” and their use requires caution.
The company says they received new promising results last week about the product’s ability to break down uric scale from the inside of pipes.
The company has gathered results through pilot projects, in which the company makes a deal with e.g. a restaurant. First, the pipes are photographed, after which the microbe solution is dispensed into the pipes for a few months, and finally the pipes are photographed again. “90% of the clients for whom we have run a pilot have ended up signing an annual deal”, says the company’s Director of administration Hannu Keränen.
SO FAR ProtectPipe has targeted mostly housing co-operations and restaurants. “We have a little under 20 housing co-operation clients, but over 200 restaurant and production facility clients”, Keränen says.
For restaurants the company offers a ready-made concept. The company sells a pump for the restaurant and installs it in the drain of the dishwasher. The pump dispenses the solution in the drain and grease trap automatically at night.
Keränen says that the company is developing a corresponding system for apartment buildings, where the dispensation would be done from the roof through the ducts into the pipeline.
THE MICROBE SOLUTION is being sold through the company’s online store, and the goal is to get the solution on store shelves for households to purchase.
The company is currently trying to figure out a way to get consumers to trust the effectiveness of the product.
ProtectPipe has wondered whether the University of Helsinki could conduct a credible study about the effect of the Bioflow solution. However, Keränen says that the benefits of such a study are still unclear, which is why the study is still in the planning stages.
The pilot model, where the company goes around restaurants demonstrating the solution is slow and expensive.
“If we gained credence that this works, it would be helpful for business”, Keränen notes. “We know the solution works”, he says – but it is not enough.
“The best references we have got from water treatment facilities. Right now we have reached some great results from Siuntio waterworks.”
