Heat network gets digital twin: smarter control with data
During the Maintenance Next trade fair in April, industrial software company Gradyent received the Innovation Award. This is a recognition that highlights both the technological maturity of the solutions developed by the company and the impact of their digital twin platform.
Although originally developed to optimize district heating, Gradyent's system is now also finding its way into heating networks in the chemical and refining industries. The jury praised the company's ability to achieve measurable efficiency gains without requiring capital investment from customers. The jury also recognized the solid technical basis in physical modeling and the broad applicability in various industries.
What sets Gradyent apart is its approach to complex thermal energy systems, particularly steam networks. These are generally known to be difficult to monitor and optimize. In sectors where up to 50% of energy consumption goes to steam, even small improvements can yield significant cost savings and CO₂ reductions. It was precisely this potential that caught the jury's attention.
The name Gradyent refers to a fundamental principle behind the technology. The system uses a gradual color gradient to visualize how flows move through a pipe,“ explains Marco Landwehr, Business Development Associate. ”It shows how energy propagates from hot to less hot, revealing how the energy dynamics develop in a pipe."
Complex systems
The company was founded in 2019 with the mission of contributing to the energy transition, starting with district heating. These are large-scale networks of pipes and installations that supply heat to thousands of households.
A key challenge in district heating is ensuring that even the last consumer in the network receives sufficient heat. Without a good understanding of these often enormous and complex systems, sometimes with thousands of kilometers of pipes, excess heat is often produced “just to be on the safe side.”
“The underlying idea is that this ensures that everyone within the network receives sufficient heat,” says Landwehr. “But that leads to waste. Our digital solution provides insight beyond what sensors can measure, allowing you to reduce heat production without compromising comfort.” Lower fuel consumption means fewer emissions and significant cost savings.
This optimization is more relevant today than ever, because heat exchange can play an important role in sustainability. Industries such as the data center sector are now investigating how they can feed their residual heat back into existing heating systems. “Data centers produce an enormous amount of heat,” says Landwehr. “If you can use that heat for district heating or industrial processes, there is a huge opportunity there.”
Digital twin
The technology behind Gradyent's platform is often described as a ‘digital twin’. This involves a digital replica of physical heating network systems, such as pipes, pumps, valves, and heat exchangers. Gradyent's linked cloud platform collects data from the system. Based on this data, combined with its own physical models, Gradyent advises customers on the optimal operation of their systems. The company can also validate design plans before construction begins.
“Last year, we visited a company that specializes in steam systems,” explains Landwehr. "There, the expert had a physical miniature version of such a system, where you could turn a tap and see the effect elsewhere. An analog twin, really. What we developed is basically the digital version of that. But the advantage of digital is that you can simulate and optimize much more complex behavior with computing power. You can adjust something at one point and immediately see the effect elsewhere."
Gradyent positions itself as an industrial software supplier with a SaaS solution that is tailor-made for each network. “We are not a standard IT company,” explains Landwehr. “In addition to IT specialists, our team consists mainly of people with practical experience in the systems we optimize. Think of process engineers and chemical technologists. That domain knowledge really makes the difference in practice.”
Gradyent is the only provider of a single integrated solution. This means that the company delivers a single solution for the entire heating network, from source to customer.
The company is now in the scale-up phase and recently raised €28 million in an oversubscribed investment round. However, the market is volatile, Landwehr makes clear. "Everyone is aware of the challenges facing European industry. Some companies are ready to invest in solutions like ours, which require no Capex and offer a quick return. Other companies simply say that now is not the right time."
Maintenance solution
Nevertheless, there is a lot of interest, also because of the solution's applicability when it comes to system maintenance. That is why the company is present at Maintenance Next.
Although the company is not a maintenance company, the physics-based simulation offers important advantages. “Because we model the entire system, we can detect deviations almost immediately, usually within a minute. This is extremely valuable for maintenance teams,” says Landwehr. "We don't do predictive maintenance, but we can report where in the pipe the problem is located. What's more, the system is a powerful training tool; employees can practice with a lifelike representation of their own steam network."
Although physics is at its core, Gradyent also uses artificial intelligence (AI), especially for forecasting. “Some companies use AI purely to detect trends, but without understanding what lies behind them,” says Landwehr. “We start with physical models, but use machine learning to predict steam demand on an hourly, daily or even longer basis. Hyperlocal weather forecasts are also taken into account. This is crucial when predicting heat transfer over distances.”
The technology is now being applied more widely. “We are very good at modeling energy flows in networks with multiple producers and consumers. This applies not only to water and steam, but also to emerging sectors such as hydrogen, ammonia, and CO₂ storage. In the Middle East, we are even looking at ‘district cooling.’ There is still a lot of profit to be made there.”
Solid European foundation
The ambition for the next five to ten years is clear: to establish a solid foundation in Europe and expand into regions where energy-intensive industries are located. “The largest refineries and chemical sites are not in Europe. So we will need to increase our presence there. And by then, we will certainly be working with multiple energy carriers, not just steam.”
Growth has been rapid. “When I started in March last year, we had 70 employees,” Landwehr recalls. “We now have around 140 people and, thanks to the recent round of investment, we will be able to grow further.”
The Innovation Award at Maintenance Next was recognition of that progress, thanks to the appreciation for the company's solution. Its broad applicability also stood out. Although Gradyent started out in district heating, the technology is now being used in a wide range of contexts, from factories to university campuses and from steam to water.
“What we're good at is modeling energy flows in networks—you can apply that in many sectors.” Looking ahead, it's clear that digital infrastructure will play a key role in setting up and managing critical energy infrastructure.
As pressure to reduce emissions increases and energy prices fluctuate, the need for data-driven, integrated solutions is growing.
Gradyent's technology is now being used in increasingly complex networks. Landwehr: “We are strong in modeling energy flows in systems with multiple producers, consumers, and storage components.”
The playing field is changing rapidly. Whereas traditional networks were often one-dimensional, energy systems are increasingly becoming hybrid, distributed, and weather-dependent.
This also increases the need for solutions that not only respond to data but also proactively steer based on simulation and scenarios. “The energy transition requires more than just making generation more sustainable,” concludes Landwehr. “It's about intelligently balancing energy flows within increasingly complex systems. That's exactly where we add value.”
This article was originally published in the Europoort Kringen magazine.