First steps of new innovation expedited by cooperation with Espoo

Latauspolku, a company from Espoo, has developed a globally unique, firesafe charging station for electric bicycle batteries. The cooperation with the City of Espoo began when the company contacted the City’s Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development and was told about an invitation to tender for new sustainable transport solutions to be tested in an EU-funded project. The company submitted its bid and was selected for the pilot alongside four other enterprises. During the pilot, the charging stations were tested in Espoo’s Otaniemi, Espoonlahti and Matinkylä in spring 2021.

The developer of the charging stations, CEO Mikko Pajamies, had previously worked with mobile phone charging stations, but started to receive inquiries about charging stations for bike batteries. The challenge was the fire risk associated with batteries, which prompted Pajamies to begin work on a solution. He joined up with a group of highly qualified experts, and as a result a firesafe charging station that is able to detect a fire and put it out was born.

According to Pajamies, the main benefits from the work carried out with the City include networking with other companies and visibility gained through the pilot. The new contacts have led to new clients. Next, these e-bike charging stations will be installed in shopping centre Lippulaiva’s bicycle parking area. Pajamies would like the collaboration with the City to continue far into the future, and the work with other companies to involve joint brainstorming and innovation to resolve some of the sustainable development challenges.

Building a carbon-neutral society requires bold thinking and new approaches. Espoo has the ability to take up this challenge. Join us in developing future solutions in Kera, Otaniemi and Kiviruukki! The Implementation Pathway for Environments that Accelerate Sustainable Growth KETO project boosts cooperation between businesses, schools and research organisations, and creates concrete development environments that promote the green transition and digitalisation. The project is run by the City of Espoo, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Aalto University and Omnia, together with several business partners. Project is funded by European Union’s REACT-EU ERDF and is part of the European Union’s response to the covid-19 pandemic.