Endress+Hauser extends reach into new instrumentation applications

Among Endress+Hauser's key guiding principles is advancing the sustainability of the process industries through its instrumentation offering. And at the company's 2026 Global Forum, held the week of April 13 in Basel, Switzerland, that principle was shown to apply to a growing range of new and emerging applications­--­including some that are well beyond traditional process industry sectors.

The company often works from the beginning with the developers of new processes, matching its instruments to new processes from the start. One of those start-ups that participated in a media showcase at the Forum is Purecontrol, which uses data and AI to optimize the water industry's most energy intensive processes.

Optimized aeration for water treatment

"60% of the energy required to treat wastewater is in aeration," explained Pauline Lorin, Purecontrol chief marketing officer. "Purecontrol AI blends extensive data sets to empower users with dynamic, multi-parametric process control, saving 12% on energy costs by using minute by minute optimization."

The AI model's digital twin data inputs include instrumentation data aggregated via Endress+Hauser's Netilion Water platform along with fluctuating energy rates (which change every 15 minutes in Europe), weather information and carbon footprint data, all of which feed an interactive dashboard. "These insights are used to create dynamic, real-time control commands to optimize self-consumption, stabilize processes, prevent over-quality and off-peak operations," explained Gautier Avril, Purecontrol founder and CTO.

So far, Purecontrol AI is used in 600 facilities across Europe to the benefit of 11 million people. These facilities have reported a 15% average reduction in operational expenses and improved regulatory compliance. “Purecontrol makes our operators’ jobs easier, saves them time, and provides better operational control," added Lorin. "This translates into energy savings, optimized management of chemical inputs, and more consistent effluent quality.”

Agriculture yields to cell culture

Given the high price of cocoa in recent years, the chocolate precursor was understandably high on Food Brewer's list of agricultural products to grow not on a farm but brew in a fermenter. The Swiss start-up has developed a way to produce cocoa that more closely resembles brewing beer, said Klaus Kienle, chief technology officer, Food Brewer.

"We partnered with Krones for the fermentation technology; they had a brewing orientation rather than life sciences, and were then introduced to Endress+Hauser," said Kienle. "We select the best cells from the cocoa bean, place them in a liquid culture and then harvest raw cocoa at the other end." The fermenter output is decanted then dried and can be harvested every five to seven days to provide a non-stop supply.

Endress+Hauser partners with start-ups like Food Brewer to understand where food production is headed, to learn early before technologies scale globally, and co-develop measurement and automation for new processes, added Michael Sinz, director of strategic business for Endress+Hauser. "Food Brewer is scaling a real bioindustrial process," Sinz said. "They're using familiar, brew-scale fermenters to tackle real market pressures, such as cocoa, coffee, climate and ESG."

Food Brewer brings new processes and speed, while Endress+Hauser brings process insight, reliability and scale, Sinz added. "Together, we're moving from pilot to industrial reality."

The hydrogen value chain

Endress+Hauser is also well positioned to capitalize on the upward slope of maturity and adoption in the hydrogen value chain, said Moritz Siegfried, product management lead, Endress+Hauser SICK. “We are big in fiscal metering for natural gas, and we aim to do the same for hydrogen," he added. "The only question is when.”

And when it comes to fiscal metering of hydrogen there are two essential challenges: flow measurement and quality analysis.

For hydrogen production applications, Coriolis meters are a proven option, given the typically high operating pressures and fully welded meter construction. But pipelines call for an ultrasonic meter specifically adapted for the smaller, lighter hydrogen molecule. "We're currently moving to field trials with the new FLOWSIC 610 ultrasonic meter and are an active partner in the hydrogen ecosystem," Siegfired said. "It's the first hydrogen custody transfer meter with uncertainty below the 0.1% threshold."

Hydrogen quality is critical to ensure both safety and environmental benefits, according to Stefano Santarpia, new energies industry manager, Endress+Hauser Optical Analysis. Critical impurities for electrolysis outputs include both water and oxygen. Early detection at the electrolyzer output, together with real-time feedback, prevents downstream issues, he said.

After underground storage, hydrogen often contains water, oxygen and hydrogen sulfide, Santarpia said. "Storage conditions are not neutral. Quality monitoring is essential after withdrawal and processing," he said. "Optical analysis fits hydrogen well – our J22 tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) analyzer detects water, the JT33 TDLAS detects hydrogen sulfide, and the OXY5500 quenched fluorescence analyzer is for oxygen analysis."

Data center demands

A final example of Endress+Hauser process instrumentation in an unusual space is in the booming demand for data centers and the electric power generation units that often accompany them.

The high-performance chips required for AI models, which operate by the thousands in hyperscalers’ data centers, consume enormous amounts of electricity and require extremely powerful cooling systems. Beyond the industrial-grade pressure, temperature, flow and level sensors that are helping to increase both energy efficiency and improve sustainability, another Endress+Hauser data center niche is in the detection of organic contaminants in the data center's cooling water. And while the detection of biological activity is not yet done online in real-time, at line sampling and analysis takes only minutes.

"We provide the suitable measurement technology for data centers and can deliver it quickly and flexibly," said Peter Selders, Endress+Hauser CEO. "They were a major factor in our success in the U.S. last year."