SOS Children's Villages saves 25 million litres of water, one million kWh of energy and 220,000 euros in operating costs per year by using a mini-turbine in the showers.
Rising energy prices pose enormous challenges for companies and private individuals alike. What is needed here is fast and unbureaucratic help that brings sustainable and cost-effective solutions. This is especially true for non-profit organisations that want to invest every cent saved directly in the well-being of their protégés. As part of a fundraising campaign, the pawnbroker Erika Martetschläger GesmbH and the Rabmer Group therefore equipped all SOS Children’s Villages in Austria with the Ecoturbino water and energy saving system. The devices have already been installed in two thirds of the facilities; the handover of the last tranche took place on 23 August in the SOS Children’s Village Altmünster.
Altenberg, 23 August 2022 Showering is increasingly becoming a luxury that puts a heavy burden on the household budget. Rising energy prices are causing the cost of hot water to skyrocket; there is currently no end in sight to the price increases. Neighbourhoods and accommodation for non-profit organisations are also suffering from the additional burden. “In order to secure a future-oriented, cost-efficient and loving home for future generations of children, a building project has been started in the SOS Children’s Village Altmünster. We can therefore put the donated Ecoturbinos to very good use. They are another valuable building block towards houses according to the latest ecological standards. What we save with them benefits the residents of our facilities,” explains Gerhard Pohl, head of SOS Children’s Villages in Upper Austria.
220,000 euros less operating costs per year
The children’s aid organisation has twelve locations in Austria. Eight of them have already been equipped with the Ecoturbinos in the course of the fundraising campaign of the pawnbroker Erika Martetschläger GesmbH together with the Rabmer Group. Now this innovative environmental technology will also be installed in the SOS Children’s Villages in Altmünster, Rechberg (both in Upper Austria), Stübing (Styria) and Seekirchen (Salzburg). “We are talking about 60 mini-turbines in Altmünster alone, which save the facility 2.3 million litres of water, 94,000 kWh of electricity and 31 tonnes of CO2 per year. That adds up to a reduction in operating costs of around 20,000 euros. Once the devices are now installed in Altmünster, Rechberg, Stübing and Seekirchen, the children’s aid organisation will use a total of 653 Ecoturbinos in the showers throughout Austria, saving 25 million litres of water, one million kWh of energy and 330 tonnes of CO2 annually. All in all, the operating costs of the SOS Children’s Villages are reduced by 220,000 euros in the same period,” calculates Ulrike Rabmer Koller, Managing Director of the Rabmer Group. The Upper Austrian company specialises in environmental technology related to water resources and renewable energy and distributes the Ecoturbinos worldwide.
The Ecoturbinos are mini-turbines that are installed between the shower fitting and the shower hose. They reduce the amount of water flowing into the hose by up to 50 percent, but allow the water to flow out with greater pressure. “The fact that almost half is saved is not noticeable in the shower. So the SOS Children’s Villages do not lose any comfort thanks to Ecoturbino,” Rabmer-Koller continues.
The handover of the 231 outstanding Ecoturbinos took place on 23 August in the SOS Children’s Village Altmünster and concludes a comprehensive fundraising campaign that started in 2021: “We are pleased that with our donation, the SOS Children’s Village facilities can drastically reduce their water consumption and operating costs – so the funds freed up each year are available for more important investments. In addition, the ECOTURBINOS enable the children’s aid organisation to sustainably save water as well as energy and reduce its pollutant emissions. Since I have committed myself to the principle of ‘helping people to help themselves’, I find this project particularly sustainable in both senses of the word,” says Karin Meier-Martetschläger.
To the press release
