Today Axioma Metering, a metering device developer and manufacturer, has opened in Kaunas FEZ one of the most advanced factories in the Baltic states, in which it invested over 15 million euro. Immediately after the opening ceremony, the automated factory will start the manufacturing of smart ultrasonic water and heat metering devices. Already this year the company plans to increase the annual production amount ten times – up to 0.5 million euro.
‘We aim to produce over 2 million meters in 2021. With our competitive products, we expect to be among top five manufacturers of ultrasonic meters in the world. This is an ambitious goal. Among Lithuanian suppliers of widely used technologies, only the laser industry has achieved such leading positions’, said Andrius Janukonis, Board Chairman of ICOR which is the owner of Axioma Metering.
‘Having built the factory within schedule and made the manufacturing lines ready for operation, we are now fully focused on growing the exports of modern Lithuanian meters. We constantly hire professionals to strengthen our sales team which is responsible for presenting the products to potential clients – global utility companies that implement water and heat metering devices’, said Ignas Vosylius, CEO of Axioma Metering.
According to him, the company has been preparing for future growth in advance. ‘We have already purchased a land plot next to the new factory for the construction of a new factory which will be needed when we reach the meter production ceiling. A very interesting and intensive period awaits both for our current and future employees for whom we offer a true challenge’, Vosylius told.
Axioma Metering’s state-of-the-art factory was built on a 1.6 ha land plot in Kaunas FEZ, where an area almost equal to that of a football pitch – 7,200 sq m – has been built up. The factory controlled by automated processes has created 200 workplaces, and this number will continue to grow.
All meter production operations made of different processes are joined under a single roof. This is still not very common in the Lithuanian industry.
Axioma Metering not only manufactures the meters but also develops them, and is an inventor of metering device technologies. The latest creation of Axioma Metering, which will be manufactured in the new factory, is the Qalcosonic W1 smart water meter. This ultrasonic metering device will soon replace the still widely used mechanical meters. The modern meter will allow consumers to remotely monitor their water usage and will make it easier for utility companies to manage their infrastructure: save costs and reduce the waste of drinking water.
‘We can already say that there is a huge market potential for this innovative product. The new-generation Qalcosonic W1 meter is tested by more than 30 Western European utility companies’, stated Vosylius. The meter is certified and ready for commercial water metering within the EU.
Among the heat meters, the newest product is the new-generation ultrasonic heat meter Qalcosonic E3 which will gradually replace the existing Qalcosonic E1 type meters. All new-generation meters developed by the company are compatible with the IoT technology.
The potential prospects of Axioma Metering were also noticed by the EU funds. In January, they allocated 3.5 million euro to support the company for its continuous investments in meter development. The further development of innovative products valued at 7.2 million euro is partially funded under the EU funds measure Intelektas LT-2. Axioma Metering itself will invest 3.7 million euro. Only three Lithuanian companies received this kind of funding.
The export of metering devices makes up around 70 percent Axioma Metering’s revenue, and in the future this share will increase. The company’s main export markets are Germany, Italy, the UK, France and the USA.