At the Innovation Day, organized by the Chamber of Commerce of Slovenia and held yesterday in the Congress Center Brdo pri Kranju, national awards for innovation were granted. Two teams of Hidria's innovators were among the innovators who received the highest awards for innovation this year.

The golden award for the development of the electrical connection of the exhaust gas system was received by a team of innovators, in which Bojan Meklav, Tadej Muznik, Nejc Eržen and Vasja Tuta participated.

The electrical connection of the exhaust gas system for operation with demanding characteristics enables the transfer of a large amount of electricity to heat up the catalyst network in a very short time, which drastically reduces harmful emissions during a cold engine start. It must provide a high degree of insulation for currents up to 150A@48V DC, prevent the leakage of exhaust gases through the connection and ensure mechanical robustness in the temperature range from -40° to +1,000°C. The product can be used for gasoline, diesel and hybrid engines and exceeds the requirements of the currently most advanced Euro7 standard, which comes into effect in mid-2025. Hidria has successfully obtained an EU patent for the product, and an international patent is also in progress.

The silver award for the development of a high-temperature exhaust gas sensor for heavy vehicles was awarded to a team of innovators in which Dr. Boštjan Berginc, Dr. Jani Kenda, Dr. Miha Kenda, Uroš Milost, Jani Čebokli, Aleksander Tapaj, Jernej Rejc, Ana Lipušček, Urban Bric and Aljaž Podobnik participated.

In the class of trucks and heavy machinery, due to the low energy density of batteries, electrification will proceed slower than in the class of passenger vehicles. Also for such machines it will be necessary to significantly reduce emissions and one of solutions are advanced sensors. Hidria's exhaust gas temperature sensor enables fast and accurate measurements that enable efficient operation of the vehicle's exhaust system. Hidria's breakthrough innovation is protected by two important patents. Product was in development by Hidria's innovators for five years and it involved participation of many engineers from various fields of expertise. The start of production is planned for 2025.

We sincerely congratulate Hidria's innovators on receiving the highest national awards for innovation!