The unveiling of Danfoss’ Sustainability Technology Centre, the first in Asia Pacific, is set to facilitate the introduction of global decarbonisation solutions and bolster the region’s sustainability efforts.
The Singapore Green Plan 2030 (Green Plan) seeks to galvanise a nationwide movement and advance the country’s national agenda on sustainable development.
Charting ambitious and concrete targets over the next 10 years, the Green Plan strengthens Singapore’s commitments under the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Paris Agreement, and positions the city-state to achieve its long-term net zero emissions aspiration by 2050.
To reach its Green Plan goals, as well as the country’s COP28 sustainability commitments, Danfoss’ Sustainability Technology Centre (STC) will showcase technologies to decarbonise cities and improve energy efficiency.
With a specialisation in buildings, food and beverage, land and marine electrification, and industrial green technologies, these solutions aim to play a pivotal role in Singapore’s sustainability roadmap.
Located at the International Business Park in Singapore, STC was recently unveiled by Danfoss at the end of January 2024, marking another significant milestone for the company.
The centre will serve as a gateway to introducing world-class decarbonisation solutions and training programmes to businesses in Asia Pacific, accelerating the adoption of green technologies in the region and bolstering sustainability efforts through technological development and strategic partnerships.
Live demonstrations of Danfoss’ global decarbonisation solutions will be showcased at STC, giving visitors the unique opportunity to witness groundbreaking technologies that underpin some of the key sustainability projects in Singapore.
This includes the Electric Dream Ferry and Keppel Bay Tower, Singapore’s first BCA Green Mark Platinum Zero Energy commercial building.
Aside from showcasing Danfoss’ novel marine electrification solutions, STC will double up as a training, pre-testing, and commissioning ground for future adopters.
DRIVING DECARBONISATION
Singapore’s sustainability initiatives and infrastructure make it a prime location to drive decarbonisation efforts across the region and beyond.
Situated in the centre of Asia Pacific, Singapore is also easily accessible to various customers in the region.
STC is therefore geographically strategic in order to support the various sustainability goals of countries across Asia Pacific.
Additionally, STC is an expansion from the previous Green Building Training Centre that was launched in 2020 and the Marine Electrification Application Development Centre (ADC), which was previously housed in Danfoss’ Singapore office.
With a bigger space, the company is now capable of showcasing more energy-efficient innovations for various megatrends.
Its proprietary district cooling method, for example, saves up to 50 percent of energy alone in comparison to conventional cooling systems.
Danfoss’ past projects in Singapore, such as the retrofitted Keppel Bay Tower that validates energy savings of over 45 percent, and its first plug-in parallel hybrid-electric fast launch vessel powered by Danfoss Editron, which saves between 10 to 20 percent in emissions compared to traditional vessels, will also be spotlighted at STC.
In addition, Danfoss’ advanced heat exchangers, sensors, and direct current (DC) charging panel technologies that serve as the foundation of Shell’s electric dream ferry design, Singapore’s first fully electric ferry service, will be live on display.
SAFEGUARDING FOOD SECURITY
In line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Singapore’s 30-by-30 goal, which features in the Green Plan, Danfoss looks to safeguard food security and minimise energy consumption across regional food and beverage partners with the introduction of its vertical farming and CO2 cold room technologies.
Leveraging the thermo-physical properties of CO2 and expansion energy ejectors, these technologies help refrigerants scale at greater temperatures while increasing overall system efficiency.
STC will also foster the collaborative development of innovative, sustainable solutions for traditional industries such as mining, palm oil, and construction.
Specialised training to harness the application of technologies will form the bedrock of STC, as it works together with local partners and industries that are moving towards an environmentally conscious future.
PROJECTZERO
Danfoss is also taking active steps to support Singapore Polytechnic (SP) in its efforts to make the entire educational campus CO2 neutral by 2030, as Singapore gears towards having at least one in five educational institutions reach carbon neutrality by the end of the decade.
The blueprint for SP comes from the ProjectZero model based on the Danish town of Sønderborg, which is on track to be CO2-neutral in its energy system by 2029.
Danfoss is joining ProjectZero in assisting the polytechnic with knowledge, concepts, implementation models, and cost-effective solutions for decarbonising the campus.
As Singapore’s first and oldest polytechnic in 2023 to achieve campus-wide carbon neutrality, more than 12,800 SP students have set out to contribute to the goal.
Housed in STC, the ProjectZero model was also recognised by the World Economic Forum and UN Habitat as a replicable, adaptable, and scalable decarbonisation model for cities worldwide, effectively reducing the costs of the green transition by up to 50 percent.
The partnership between the institution and Danfoss marks the beginning of a long-term commitment towards developing state-of-the-art technologies that will accelerate Singapore’s efforts for energy efficiency and carbon neutrality.
Working towards its mission to help the world build a better future, STC aims to bring greater value and transformation to partners across the Asia Pacific region through the most relevant technological application portfolios.
By empowering changemakers with the knowledge and capabilities necessary for navigating and implementing sustainable practices effectively, Danfoss looks to enable a greener tomorrow for all.
Jack Salter is an in-house writer for APAC Outlook Magazine, where he is responsible for interviewing corporate executives and crafting original features for the magazine, corporate brochures, and the digital platform.
