The awards ceremony took place on 2 April 2019 at HANNOVER MESSE's Digital Energy Forum . There were four winners in all, comprising an SME and a large corporation in each of the award's two categories, Energy Industry and Industrial Manufacturing. "Efficient energy use is a matter of importance for all industries, but it is especially important for the industrial manufacturing and energy industries," said Basilios Triantafillos, Global Director Energy at Deutsche Messe. "We are therefore delighted to be able to honor leading innovators of energy efficiency with this new award. The HANNOVER MESSE Industrial Energy Efficiency Award gives energy efficiency the platform that its importance merits."

The winners are:

ContiTech: Conti® Thermo Protect

One of the big challenges of minimizing heat loss in industrial production processes is installing appropriate thermal insulation in places with problematic geometries or poor access. The winner in the corporate section of the Industrial Manufacturing category has developed a special silicon-rubber compound that solves this challenge. Conti® Thermo Protect, developed by ContiTech Elastomer-Beschichtungen GmbH , Germany, received an emphatic thumbs-up from the expert jury of the Industrial Energy Efficiency Award 2019.

Eaton: Wadeville Microgrid

Eaton , a global industrial company based in Ireland, has won the Industrial Energy Efficiency Award 2019 in the corporate section of the Energy Industry category for its Wadeville Microgrid project in South Africa. The microgrid in Wadesville includes the first-ever deployment of Eaton's xStorage energy storage system in Africa. This innovative solution strengthens the energy supply for Eaton's Wadeville site, thereby reducing demand on the national grid and on regional infrastructure.

Gerotor: Active energy management with intelligent energy storage

Gerotor GmbH , Germany, has been awarded this year's Industrial Energy Efficiency Award in the SME section of the Industrial Manufacturing category for its Gerotor HPS solution – a high-performance electricity-storage system based on state-of-the-art flywheel technology. The Gerotor energy storage system reduces energy consumption by manufacturing plant and machinery, thus also enabling the use of lower-rated grid connections.

MWK Bionik: bioSol – Increased PV efficiency with eco-friendly cleaning and bioactive protective coating

MWK Bionik GmbH , Germany, has taken out the Industrial Energy Efficiency Award in the SME section of the Energy Industry category. The award is for bioSol® Clean, a biodegradable cleaning liquid, and bioSol® Protect, a protective microbiological coating. Together, the two products clean and protect photovoltaic panels, thereby increasing their efficiency.

"From a business perspective, energy efficiency combines social and environmental responsibility with commercial endeavor," commented Markus A.W. Hoehner, founder and CEO of EuPD Research, which handled the organizational aspects of this year's award on behalf of HANNOVER MESSE.

Deutsche Messe, the owner and organizer of HANNOVER MESSE, the world's leading trade fair for industrial technology, has a special interest in energy efficiency in industry. Its objective in offering its newly developed Industrial Energy Efficiency Award is to identify and give recognition to outstanding industrial energy efficiency processes and applications based on them.