EVHA member company Dry Ice Finland has introducing a new robotic cleaning system – the Dry Ice Crawler 1.0 – designed for ventilation duct cleaning, including demanding applications such as restaurant grease ducts.

Dear partners,

As you may already know, we have spent the past four and a half years developing a next-generation duct cleaning robot that utilizes dry ice blasting technology.

While dry ice cleaning in duct systems has been validated previously by other robotic suppliers, our goal was to take the technology further — and to prove that even the most challenging applications, such as restaurant grease ducts, can be cleaned effectively, safely, and consistently using the Crawler robot.

Until now, these types of installations have lacked a truly efficient and reliable cleaning method.

Naturally Crawler can clean any other ducts also, but grease ducts were seen as most challenging ones

Project Objectives

From the beginning, our development work focused on six key goals:

1. To demonstrate reliable cleaning performance, particularly in the most demanding applications such as grease-laden restaurant ducts.

2. To create a robot that is technically more advanced than any comparable solution currently available.

3. To ensure superior versatility across multiple duct cleaning and inspection applications.

4. To achieve significantly easier and more intuitive operation than competing robotic systems.

5. To provide high-quality real-time monitoring that enables clear verification of cleaning results.

6. To establish a pricing level that allows customers to achieve a clear and attractive return on investment.
   We are pleased to confirm that these objectives have now been successfully achieved. We therefore believe the Crawler represents a unique solution with strong market potential and clear commercial value.

Proven in Real Customer Environments

During the past 18 months, Dry Ice Finland — together with partners — has conducted extensive testing and development using prototype units in real customer environments.

To date, more than 20 restaurant grease duct systems have been cleaned using the Crawler technology.
This work has enabled us to develop a new comprehensive service concept:
Full fire load removal from the kitchen hood, through the duct system, and up to the rooftop exhaust fan.

This approach ensures:
• complete cleaning of the entire ventilation line
• restored operational efficiency of the exhaust system
• improved fire safety compliance
Despite the challenging nature of grease duct systems, our experience has been consistently positive, and customer feedback has been highly satisfactory.

Exceptional Versatility

The Crawler can be operated either fully automatically or semi-automatically, depending on the application.
In addition, we have demonstrated that the Crawler platform can be used to convert conventional HVAC brush machines into fully robotic brush systems capable of navigating long distances and complex duct geometries, and also monitoring the duct with camera.

This significantly expands both operational flexibility and revenue potential for service providers.
The concept has been successfully tested using a LifaAir brush system, as shown in the accompanying video.

Furthermore, the Crawler can be used for duct inspection, providing:
• high-quality video or still image documentation
• clear evidence for customer reporting
• additional service revenue opportunities

Market Readiness

We have now reached a stage where the first technically and commercially ready version of the Crawler 1.0 is prepared for market introduction.
Final documentation and sales materials are currently under work to be completed and are expected to be finalized within the coming months.

Demonstration Video

Below is a short demonstration video partly recorded in our test facility partly at customer site. It illustrates:
• the Crawler in different size of ducts and self-directing operation in round ducts, even in bends (no need for steering by operator)
• the platform converted into a robotic brush system
• real customer footage, including cleaning of a 16-meter-high rectangular grease duct
(Some sections in the video were intentionally left uncleaned to demonstrate contrast. We apologize the quality of “home video”)

Crawler Video Link

Customer case

Invitation to Visit Our Test Facility

This information can only provide a brief overview of the Crawler robot and its capabilities.
The best way to fully understand its performance, usability, and commercial potential is to see it in operation.
We therefore warmly invite interested partners to visit our dedicated test facility in Kouvola, Finland, where we can demonstrate the system in detail.

We will also grant a special discount for EVHA members.

Please feel free to contact me directly with any questions or to discuss arrangements for a visit.

Lauri Soratie | Managing Director

+358 50 5127447 | lauri.soratie@dryice.fi

Dry Ice Finland | www.dryice.fi