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ustria is a biomass boiler manufacturing powerhouse. More than a quarter of the modern biomass boilers installed in the European Union are manufactured in the country’s northern state of Upper Austria, according to the Upper Austrian Energy Association. The country also boasts some of the greatest densities of small-scale heating systems in the world. Eyeing new opportunities, several Austrian pellet boiler manufacturers are looking at the U.S. market, but face the challenge of developing a product for a different market with different policies, more than 3,500 miles away. OkoFen was the first Austrian company to enter the U.S. market with its Pellematic boiler product line and first to navigate the bureaucratic hurdles for international pellet boiler manufacturers. The first step is to get approval from UL Standards, explains Stefan Ortner, OkoFen CEO. “Four years ago, there were no standards for pellet boilers. So, we had to test to standards that were designed more for furnaces. There was a lot of discussion with the testers on what makes sense.” The biggest challenge, however, was getting certification from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Ortner says. To become certified in the Boiler and Pressure Vessel Certification Program, the ASME estimates the process takes roughly six months. OkoFen outsourced that hurdle, Ortner explains. “We decided to proactively get the pressure vessel manufactured in the United States to get in on the market faster. We found suppliers that could produce our vessel and shipped other parts from Europe to complete final assembly in Maine at Maine Energy Systems. In the long run, we think it makes sense that the products are manufactured in North America, but the volume is not enough now. It’s really the certification that forced us.” An added benefit of the units being assembled in North America is that it allows OkoFen the opportunity to converse with politicians and prove wood pellet heating is a benefit to the local economy in terms of production and manufacturing jobs, he says. “It helps quite a lot with things.”
Working The Sidelines While OkoFen is establishing itself in northern New England, Austrian pellet boiler producers Hargassner and KWB await north of the border in Canada for more favorable conditions to enter the U.S. market. To make the U.S. a more attractive market for European pellet boiler producers, the country could accept European standards and norms, explains Florian Haslinger, area sales manager for Hargassner. “This would help a lot, especially with the ASME. The pressure vessel standard is a huge topic for us, because we have all tested our pressure vessels in Europe according to the EN 303-5 standard. The [European] standard is not accepted everywhere in the U.S.” Other U.S. standards for electrical systems are an understandable concern, Haslinger says. “I do understand the electrical standards, [Canadian Standards Association] and UL standards are for pure safety concerns for electrical issues. But the pressure vessel [standard] is not clear. We developed and designed a state-of-the-art pressure vessel and now it’s just hard for us to do the ASME certification.” By having certain standards being accepted in some places, but not others, it complicates or eliminates grant funding opportunities and removes a degree of market protection, Haslinger explains. “The solution for that would be to accept the European pressure vessel standard.” Hargassner Canada East is the distribution channel for the Hargassner company that began operation last year to complete the certification process. After becoming UL certified, the company was allowed to sell within the area, Haslinger explains, adding that the distribution partner provides full service for the boilers. “He’s importing the boilers, assembling the boilers, commissioning the boilers and maintaining and servicing the boilers after sale within the distribution network,” he says. Although Canada does not accept the European standard, the solution was to allow the boilers to operate within a certain pressure, Haslinger says. “In Canada, we can run the unit at 15 psi, and this is basically fine.”