MiRIS
Green energy, let’s not waste it anymore, let’s store it.
Green electricity – the imbalance
There is after all little sense in trying to force customers to wait until the sun is shining and the wind is blowing before turning on the lights. The upshot of all this is that 1/3 of potential green electricity production simply goes to waste. “But, store that energy, and you can then release it when you need it,” says Régis, Business Manager.
Europe’s largest industrial pilot plant
The aim: to make use of 100% of the wind and the sun. What an exciting challenge! In order to have the means to achieve this aim, John Cockerill has put together a sum of 10 million euros, 6500 photovoltaic panels and 4 different types of battery. This will help us perfect this new combination of technologies.
With MiRIS, out goes the need for scholarly calculations on when to store, directly consume or sell to the grid. The brain of the system the Energy Management System – is able to automatically optimize this choice, on an ongoing basis.
“We are preparing for green solutions that will make isolated populations and industries self-sufficient in terms of energy, but also to supplement the network when there is no wind or sun”, says an exultant François, Project Manager. “We are currently installing a first battery in Morocco, in the Noor solar park in Ouarzazate.”
HaYrport
100% green driving – why not!
A dream within our grasp
Take a volume of water, put it through an electrolyzer powered by electricity from renewable energy sources, and you get green hydrogen. After that, it’s simply a question of fitting your car with a fuel cell rather than a combustion engine. It’s goodbye to fossil fuels, as we finally get to fill up with hydrogen, with zero harmful emissions from road transport.
Multi-use hydrogen fuel station at Liège Airport
Under a partnership that was officially launched in June of 2018, John Cockerill and Liège Airport are currently working together to test this recipe on a fuel station that can recharge airport vehicles, from shuttles and buses to cars and forklifts, and be available to private individuals. Altogether, there is enough potential here to build a short localized solution comprising photovol- taic panels, and an electrolyzer or service station; passing directly from generation to consumption!
A passionately exciting project – “An innovative, environmentally-friendly solution”, says Liège Airport’s CEO. This enthusiasm is shared by Roland, Business Manager at John Cockerill: “This is a first in Wallonia. It is an excellent example of our Group’s mission. With this project, we are proud to be facing up to the needs of our time. And we will be even more proud to deploy it all over the world.”
Dubai MBR Solar Park
Thermal solar electricity 24h/24
Reaching a 75% level of renewable energy by 2050
Dubai is thinking big when it comes to reaching a 75%-level of renewable energy use by 2050, with a 5000 MW solar park, at a cost of some 12 billion euros. John Cockerill will be contributing with its molten salt solar receiver. But, in this case, photovoltaic panels are not even used. Here, the sun produces the steam that turns a turbine.
“It will be the tallest solar tower in the world,” says Eric, Business Manager. Thousands of mirrors focus the sun’s rays atop a 260-meter high tower. “That’s where our receiver for heating molten salt will be installed”.For, in this case, salt is used as a battery. By storing it, we maintain capacity for 12 hours’ generation. With this, we can generate steam throughout the night and hence, produce solar energy around the clock.
Fourth thermal solar power plant
Following the Khi Solar One receiver in South Africa in 2012, the Cerro Dominador in Chile in 2014, and then Haixi in China in 2017, the MBR Solar Park’s solar thermal receiver in Dubai is the fourth to come from John Cockerill. The R&D Solar team has made a point of honing the technology to bring more to customers: “This year, we have optimized the receiver design and developed a new paint to maximize energy absorption.”
“Thermal solar is one of the answers to the energy transition” Eric continues. “Major projects are planned, particularly in China and Morocco. Recently, we signed a technology partnership agreement with MASEN, Morocco’s leading renewable energy agency.”
Once Through Boiler
A fast and flexible response for energy production
Optimized use of fossil fuels
John Cockerill, one of the world’s leading designers of boilers, has installed more than 650 boilers in 50 different countries, with a total capacity of 140 gigawatts. These enhance the energy efficiency of gas fuel plants by around 50%! Thus reducing CO2 emissions to the same extent.
John Cockerill continued to take a high level of orders for boilers in 2018, notably in the United Arab Emirates, in Russia, in the United- States and in Africa. The After-Sales teams have also been successful, and will lead to improvements in the life and performance of any kind of existing installations.
Last generation boilers
“Just like the Middle East and Southeast Asia, sub-Saharan Africa shows great potential for optimization”, explains Pierre, Engineering Manager. “In Ghana, we will be installing the new generation of ‘Once Through’ boilers, whose rapid start-up time make it possible to provide a flexible response in terms of energy production. In this type of boiler, the water only passes through one passage to exit as superheated steam.”
MEDIX®
The end of drug residues in waste water
Protecting water – a natural resource
Our planet has enjoyed the same amount of water for 3 billion years. The same amount, sure. However, the quality of that water is ours to decide. Take pollutants like paracetamol, diclofenac and other pharmaceutical products, for example; the accumulation of micropollutants in waste water is a growing risk for health and for the environment.
Lab test
John Cockerill is offering alternative bio treatment, in place of expensive UV or ozone treatments. “We’re getting bacteria to work for us” explains Project Manager, Olivier. “They consume the drug residues, our job is simply to trap them, and let the treated water go.”
Olivier and his team installed an “all-in-one” pilot project at Clinique d’Hermalle in Belgium in order to test the performance of the process at a life-size level. And they are proud of the result! Depending on the molecules, this treatment can be 80 to 100% effective.
John Cockerill already holds the solutions of tomorrow, even before micropollutant regulations have been set worldwide.
Tata India
A good example of our long-term industrial vision
Sustainably producing the steel of the future
Tata, the global steel giant, is looking to John Cockerill for help with its mega project in Orissa, in Eastern India. The Group will install two galvanizing lines and one annealing line. These will be used to deliver 1 million tons of galvanized steel to the most advanced sectors, namely, the automotive and household appliances industries.
Hi-tech steelmaking lines
Fabrice, Business Manager who took part in the negotiations, is delighted to say: “This is our largest order and one of the most technically prestigious in our history of equipment supply dedicated to the cold phase of the steelmaking of flat products.”
Industrial pride
The last 10 years have been complex ones for all global players in the processing of metals. “We are proud to have weathered the effects of this long, empty period”, says Jean-Luc Maurange, John Cockerill’s CEO. “We made a point of maintaining our skills in this specialty, even when that meant not making money.”
Today, the market is picking up, and John Cockerill is a natural preferred partner. “This is a good example of our long term industrial commitment, enabled by our status of independent private Group”, Jean-Luc Maurange proudly adds.
TATMETAL Turkey
Digitalizing the industry
Steering industry from a tablet PC
At a time when digitization has become a part of daily life, John Cockerill is occupied with integrating it into industry. Indeed the galvanizing line started at the Turkish steelmaker TATMETAL is being managed from a tablet. Teams are also currently working on computer-assisted maintenance; plans are being consulted, fluid circuits simulated, and operational methods are being pulled up on screen thanks to special goggles connected to a tablet. The know-how has been developed by Agueris in France and Transurb in Belgium, by our teams which are 100% dedicated to simulation.
Innovation is all around us
A tablet is just one of 15 novelties to be found on the TATMETAL’s line! “From low NOx recuperative burners to a patented low vibration cooling system, 2/3 of our products on offer have innovation embedded into them” explains Jean-François, Project Manager. “In the majority of cases, this is what makes the customer choose us”.
CRADA
Innovation to protect territories
New generation equipment for the US Army
In 2015, the US Army came to John Cockerill, asking that it come up with a new generation of medium-caliber weapons systems. Our prototype passed into its 6th stage of technical readiness in 2018. “This is real success for these trials” says Scott, Company Manager. “When it came to performance and accuracy, the smiles of the army representatives spoke for themselves.”
Diversify customers
“We want to diversify our customer base, and have our sights set on several programs in America, Europe or South-East Asia”, tells us Simon, Marketing Officer. “60 international military representatives attended a demonstration of our full range on offer in 2018. For 2018, it is also worth singling out the agreement signed for the assembly and maintenance of CAMO vehicles for the Belgian Army.”
Urban transport
Freeing the traffic in Central and South America
New mobility solutions
As in many other big cities, getting around in Panama City can often turn into a nightmare. How do you move 40000 passengers to wherever they wish to go, every hour, and all without a traffic jam? This is the ambitious challenge that John Cockerill is helping to meet. Laying tracks and overhead lines, implementing maintenance equipment, etc. 500 people are currently working on Line 2 of the Panama Metro, set to open in April of 2019.
“We also contributed to Line 1, put into service in 2014″, details Thomas, Company Manager. “In the Dominican Republic, 180000 users are benefitting every day from the extension of the Santo Domingo underground system inaugurated this year. And the Cuenca tram in Ecuador, a city where 70% of the population depends on public transport, should be in service next year.”
An expanded transport offering
The 2017 acquisitions, CIM and Transurb, are expanding the Group’s historic transport division. Today, John Cockerill is able to support complete projects, from equipment design to infrastructure, from commissioning to training, from operation to maintenance. A real return to our roots, since it was John Cockerill who built the first steam locomotive in mainland Europe.
Air treatment
Improving air quality
3 million m3 of air to be treated – per hour
In Morocco, John Cockerill assists its fertilizer producing client to better protect the environment. With this aim in mind, John Cockerill is helping it to control the fluorinated emissions from two of its Moroccan plants.
12 air treatment lines will be needed in order to treat the 3 million
m3/hr of gaseous emissions.
Reducing fluorinated gas emissions
“We have combined the specialty fields of several entities within the Group, in order to come up with a turnkey solution”, Hakim, Quotation Manager, tells us, “from civil engineering to gas scrubbers, via all fringe resources, including carpentry and electrical facilities.”
“Already, the installation is home to a lot of equipment, it’s a real labyrinth”, says Estelle, Process Manager. “What we are really doing is installing a plant within the plant.”
It is not surprising that this project has won the Group’s 2018 Award for commercial progress.
