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8 min read

5 examples of how KSB products are helping us to master megatrends

 

Global changes present a challenge

Megatrends are changing our world fundamentally. They present huge challenges for societies, economies and cultures – but also open up opportunities for sustainable innovation. As part of its corporate foresight activities, KSB analyses trends intensively in order to continue satisfying the needs of its customers in the best way possible. From the supply of water for megacities to battery production for electric cars or for the cooling of data centres, here are five examples of how KSB products are playing a key role in shaping our future.

1. Electrification: Growing demand for batteries

The aim of electrification is to reduce carbon emissions. Technologies and processes that use fossil fuels are being replaced by electrically powered equivalents such as electric vehicles or electric heating systems that run on renewable energy. This trend is leading to a sharp rise in demand for lithium-ion batteries which can power electric vehicles and temporarily store electricity from solar and wind power plants. According to estimates by McKinsey , demand could grow from the current 750 gigawatt hours to 4700 gigawatt hours by 2040. Lithium-ion battery production is complex and spread across the globe – and pumps and valves play a key role in almost every step of the value chain. For example, the mining of raw materials such as lithium requires pumps that are resistant to abrasive and corrosive substances, for example like the LCC-M. When it comes to refining lithium, chemical-resistant pumps are used which are ideal for handling hot, corrosive or harmful liquids, for instance Magnochem from KSB.

2. Urbanisation: Megacities face waste water problems

According to data from the World Bank 57 percent of all people on the planet lived in cities in 2023. And urbanisation is expanding: according to UN estimates, it will be 68 percent by 2050 and the number of megacities with over 10 million inhabitants will increase to 40. This puts pressure on urban infrastructure, as an urban life goes hand in hand with high water consumption. The huge volumes of waste water are already overwhelming sewer systems that have developed over the course of history. In addition, the sealing of large areas and the increase in heavy rainfall due to climate change are increasing the risk of floods, the number of which more than doubled between 1980 and 2019. One solution to these challenges is “deep tunnels”. Rainwater and waste water are collected deep below the city in tunnels measuring several metres in diameter. It is then conveyed to pumping stations where it is pumped back to the surface and processed in waste water treatment plants. KSB contributes its decades of expertise in developing durable and efficient waste water pumps to projects in this area. With comprehensive expertise in hydrodynamics and pump technology, KSB has already helped to ensure the success of deep tunnel projects in LondonMexico City and Auckland.

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3. Water shortages: Agriculture plays a key role

The world's population is growing, living standards are rising in emerging economies and eating habits are changing. This will lead to a sharp increase in demand for food – 70 percent by 2050 according to the FAO. As a result, we are depleting natural water resources such as aquifers faster than they can be replenished. This is not surprising given that 70 percent of the world’s groundwater is used to irrigate fields. Between 2000 and 2018, renewable water resources per capita already decreased by 20 percent worldwide, particularly affecting arid regions such as North Africa, the Middle East and parts of Europe and the USA. In order to conserve these resources, arid countries need more sustainable irrigation methods, for example through drip irrigation and/or the use of treated waste water. As these sustainable irrigation systems will only become established if their total cost of ownership is attractive, we are channelling our decades of expertise into developing our products for such applications. Efficiency is a key objective of pumps such as our Amarex KRTEtanormMultitec or Omega and one of the reasons why we have been able to rapidly expand our market share in the irrigation industry over the last 10 years. 

4. Circular economy: Rethinking how we use raw materials

According to the Circularity Gap Report, global material consumption has almost quadrupled in the last 50 years and amounted to 101.4 billion tonnes in 2021, of which only 7.2 percent was recycled. This waste not only negatively impacts the environment but also the economy through raw material shortages and supply chain problems. An important step towards a solution is the circular economy, which minimises the use of resources and reuses materials. KSB shows how this can be implemented in practice in the further development of the EtaLine Pro pump, which uses more than 60 % of raw materials from recycled sources. Thanks to a new type of motor with a concentrated copper winding, its weight was able to be drastically reduced, resulting in savings of 73 percent in copper and 49 percent in grey cast iron. Smart tuning options – called “tune to process” – make the pump easy to adjust. This prevents waste because the pump does not need to be replaced if the operating conditions change. In addition, the number of assemblies was able to be reduced from 40 to 15, which simplifies logistics and saves resources. Combined with offsetting of unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions, these measures have reduced the pump’s carbon footprint to practically zero.

5. Artificial intelligence: Rising demand for data centres

Artificial intelligence (AI) enables computers and machines to imitate human learning, problem-solving and decision-making. The debate on artificial intelligence often focuses on the impact on productivity and employment. However, one aspect that is often overlooked is the enormous energy consumption of artificial intelligence. By 2026, the electricity consumption of data centres and AI could reach up to 1050 terawatt hours worldwide, equating to around 2 percent of global demand. In order to meet the requirements of artificial intelligence, data centres need to concentrate a growing amount of power in their servers. Water is therefore becoming increasingly important as a coolant, as it can absorb four times more energy than air. Technologies such as rear-door cooling and direct liquid cooling reduce energy consumption by cooling the processors directly with liquid. KSB's Etanorm pump provides a proven solution for water and water-glycol circuits in data centres. Its optimised impellers ensure maximum efficiency, while the IE5 motor achieves peak performance values even at low power. These technologies ensure reliable and sustainable cooling for the requirements of the future.

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