January/February 2020
Asset Management
B ULK D ISTRIBUTOR
7
Digitalisation award
winner highlights role
in chemical transport
T
he European Solvents Industry Group (ESIG) Solvents
Award ceremony took place in Brussels in November
during the General Assemblies of the Oxygenated Solvents
Producers Association (OSPA) and the Hydrocarbon Solvents
Producers Association (HSPA).
As previously reported in Bulk Distributor (September/October
2019, p18), the award went to Packwise for its digitalisation project
‘Smart IBC containers’.
Packwise, a start-up from Dresden, Germany, developed smart
IBCs with automated circuits. The company’s innovation improves
time and cost efficiency, ensures that solvents are transported safely,
helps save resources and creates a new approach to customer
relationship management.
Packwise has now signed an agreement with IoT solution provider
Diehl Connectivity Solutions to start mass production of the smart
devices.
Following the award ceremony, Packwise CEO Gesche Weger told
ESIG how the innovation was conceived and realised.
Tell us what led to the creation of Packwise
and what was the idea behind it?
“My background is in economics and I did research in the field of
global economic affairs at the Kiel Institute and worked as an
economist for one of the major Swiss banks.
“I then spent a few years on parental leave and it was towards the
end of it that one of Packwise co-founders came up with the idea of
creating this start-up. He had been working for an intermediate bulk
container manufacturer and had noticed that the processes
regarding the reuse and organisation of containers were not
sustainable.
“Therefore, the other co-founders and I decided to develop a
technology that would make industrial containers as cost- and
resource-efficient and safe as possible, in line with the concepts of
sustainability and circular economy. The start-up was created in
October 2017.”
relevant KPIs and automate processes such as automated repeat
orders.”
Why did you apply for the ESIG award and
what did it bring to your company to be
the winner?
“We applied for the ESIG Award, because it recognises contribution
to the sustainable handling and use of solvents. The packaging is
one important element when using and supplying solvents and we
felt our initiative fitted very well in this framework.
“We feel very honoured to have won the ESIG award. It has
increased our visibility in the industry. As a result, we have received a
few media requests as well as several requests from potential
customers.
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Why is the technology so innovative?
“The hardware we developed is really tailor-made for the chemical
industry. The device that tracks the filling level and the location of
the containers and several other parameters like temperature, shock,
etc, is non-intrusive. It is placed on top of the container, which
avoids the container losing its certification.
“This is very important in order to comply with industry standards.
No additional equipment is required to send or receive the data. The
device works autonomously and sends the data via the cloud
through our platform. Our software enables companies to analyse
TANKMILES HEATING SYSTEM
L-r at the ESIG Solvents ceremony: Sophia Becker, Packwise; Marco Mensink, Cefic director
general; Gesche Weger, Packwise; Cornelia Tietz, ESIG secretary general
The Packwise device is placed on top of the container which avoids losing certification