How one battery-based power supplier leads on energy ethics

German battery storage manufacturer Instagrid is using consumer electronics tech to make battery storage solutions for construction equipment rental smaller and more portable.

As if that weren’t a tall enough order, the 13th fastest-growing company in Europe is also working on meeting the stringent ethical standards set by B Lab, and is now a Certified B Corporation.

Functioning as a global barometer and something of a North Star for ethical companies, B Lab has demanding standards - for which Instagrid employed its “signature scientific approach” to meet, the company reports, adding it will continue its impact journey in a data-based, transparent way to continually meet the rigorous requirements set by B Lab.

“When we founded the company six years ago, it was clear that we wanted to build it to the highest possible ESG standards,” says Andreas Sedlmayr, co-CEO and co-founder of Instagrid. “Our recognition as a B Corp is testament to our measurable impact and our strong ongoing commitment to creating innovative energy solutions for mobile workforces worldwide, and supporting our customers in their efforts to decarbonize and provide healthier and more sustainable workspaces.”

Thinking small for big results

Sedlmayr studied materials science at Kahlsruher Institute of Technology before working for tookmaker Bosch where he manufactured small hand-held battery devices. It was in this capacity that he started thinking about filling a gap in the market for power packs for tradespeople. In 2018, he founded Instagrid.

The Instagrid One has a rated energy capacity of 2.1 kWh – enough to power a 230V welding machine for a full day’s work - with a weight of 20kg. (Photo: Instagrid)

“We were making small batteries, but we saw that when it gets larger, you either have to use a combustion engine or you have a plug that goes into the mains,” he says. “We looked at the power packs currently available, and there are 40-50 out there but they are designed for leisure and camping and not professionals.

“So, our first machine is a third of the weight of comparable packs and it can turn any large machinery that runs from a single phase.”

To do this, Sedlmayr says, Instagrid produced a lithium-ion battery which, instead of incorporating a separate battery pack and converter, uses sophisticated software to merge the two.

“Having been responsible for small hand-held battery devices before, we decided to fundamentally build a different battery,” Sedlmayr says. “We have almost half a million lines of software code running the battery and making sure it has the specification it has.

“So really, the hardware is really easy and less complicated than what other people are doing but the software is really complex. What the customer sees is a small package that’s really powerful with a socket.”

So far, the company says, it has sold and shipped more than 30,000 of its smaller Instagrid One units to rental companies at a price of €3,450 a pop. Major European rental firms already stocking the product include Kiloutou, Loxam, Ramirent, Skanska Rental, Borchers & Speer and Brandon Hire Station.

The key difference, Sedlmayr says, between the battery storage solutions his company is manufacturing and those available elsewhere is size: Instagrid’s first product, the Instagrid One has a rated energy capacity of 2.1 kWh – enough to power a 230V welding machine for a full day’s work - with a weight of 20kg.

Its largest unit, the Instagrid Move 200, which is currently still in development phase, has a rated energy capacity of 398 kWh and can power three 60kVA cranes and weighs 4,700kg.

What it means to ‘B’ real

B Lab is working to “transform the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet,” according to its website.

A leader in economic systems change, the global network creates standards, policies, tools, and programs for business, and we certify companies - known as B Corps - who are leading the way. To date, 8,000 B

Andreas Sedlmayr, Instagrid co-founder and joint CEO. (Photo: Instagrid)

Corps across 96 countries and 162 industries employ over 750,000 workers, and more than 280,000 companies manage their impact with the B Impact Assessment and the SDG Action Manager.

For a list of the world’s most ethical construction companies, click here.

B Lab reports it has created and led efforts to pass over 50 corporate statutes globally that enable stakeholder governance.

B Corp Certification closely follows the publication of Instagrid’s latest Impact Report, which contains achievements alongside statements of intent on climate and people-linked actions and plans.

To date, Instagrid reports it has removed 48 t of NOx emissions and 18.6 kt of CO emissions – exhaust emissions equal to taking 70,000 cars off the road. The company has also reduced 104 kt of CO2e emissions (enough to power 29 wind turbines for a whole year) all the while delivering 7.4 GWH of clean energy to over 44,000 users worldwide.

“At Instagrid, we believe that battery technology can revolutionize mobile power supply and are committed to proving it,” says Sebastian Berning, co-CEO and co-founder. “But the problem we’re solving is global and enormously big, so the road ahead requires collective action.”

Instagrid has laid out a defined roadmap to push the clean energy transition forward, setting what it says is a standard for the industry in leading the clean mobile power movement.

By 2030, the company says it will reduce 100 mt of CO2e emissions and eliminate 15,000 t of local air pollutants, in the process retiring millions of small combustion engines emitting carbon-based pollutants.

Instagrid says its products are built for longevity. “They’re modular and conscious of resources - 91% of each product can be recycled,” according to the company, which was recognized last year as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer, which includes scope to contribute to the WEF’s work as well as attendance of WEF activities and events.

“In comparison with a combustion engine of a comparable power output, the carbon footprint of using an Instagrid unit is lower by as much as 97%.”

Berning says, “We urge businesses, governments, and NGOs to unite with us in the clean mobile power movement and retire millions of small combustion engines polluting our planet today.”