Ed VanDyne can talk with equal passion about the two loves of his professional life: “cars and building businesses.” VanDyne has found a way to combine these two interests across his professional life from his first business – rebuilding cars as a teen for profit – to his latest venture VanDyne SuperTurboChargers. The SuperTurboCharger, which VanDyne first developed when working at Woodward Governor Company, offers the “most fuel efficiency per dollar” of any energy saving device, according to VanDyne. With this proposition, VanDyne is confident he can turn what is now an impressive piece of engineering to a product that delivers in the marketplace.
The VanDyne design is able to couple the benefits of a supercharger with those of a turbocharger. For the non-car aficionados, superchargers and turbochargers both increase the flow of oxygen to the engine, generating a more efficient combustion process which in turn increases the power output of the engine. A traditional supercharger uses energy from the engine’s crankshaft to generate the increased air flow. The benefit of this approach is that the response is instantaneous, but it comes at the expense of higher fuel consumption. A turbocharger, on the other hand, uses waste exhaust heat to drive a turbine to power the improved air flow. While this approach improves fuel efficiency, it does not kick in for several seconds as no waste heat is available until the engine heats up. The VanDyne SuperTurboCharger offers the benefits of both devices because it can be powered either by the engine’s crankshaft or by waste heat. Through its unique design, the VanDyne creation uses energy from the crankshaft for the first three to five seconds, but switches over to using waste heat to power a turbine after the engine heats up. In so doing, the device is able to provide an instant throttle response while at the same time enhancing fuel efficiency.
While many potential applications exist, VanDyne has identified two target markets for early entry: large truck fleets and motorsports. For trucks, the economic argument provides a strong incentive for adoption. The SuperTurboCharger can be retrofitted to existing trucks and offer 7% fuel efficiency gains, meaning a payback period of nine months for the retrofit kit priced at $4000. Along with the favorable economics, the truck market also affords a clear sales strategy. The company will focus on “the top ten fleets” (e.g. FedEx, UPS, WalMart) who “own their own service centers” which could retrofit trucks when they come in for maintenance. This approach will enable a large number of installs while only needing to train a limited number of mechanics.
The motor sports market represents another potential early entry point. In racing series such as Formula 1 and Le Mans, teams could use the SuperTurboCharger to either make their engines 10% more powerful or to achieve 10% better fuel economy, enabling fewer pit stops. A key to entry in this arena “is making sure the SuperTurboCharger is allowed in the rules.” While race cars may offer some early revenue, VanDyne sees more value in “demonstrating feasibility and establishing credibility” along with “marketing to the public” as VanDyne moves towards the broader automotive market.
Given the relatively long development cycles, the automotive market will represent a later point of entry for VanDyne. In this market, however, the device will be able to deliver 25-30% efficiency gains. On top of approximately 10% efficiency gains delivered by capturing waste exhaust, efficiencies will be realized through allowing a downsizing of the engine while still delivering the same power to the wheels. For example, a car currently using a 2 Liter/ 4 cylinder engine would be able to offer the same performance using a 1 Liter / 3 or 4 cylinder engine once the VanDyne SuperTurboCharger is incorporated into the design. The SuperTurbo for cars, which will cost about $350, will deliver about $400 in annual fuel savings. Extensive testing is required to make changes to “anything critical like the power train” which will require VanDyne to deliver “increasingly durable” prototypes each year. The company has a contract with a major car manufacturer to deliver two prototypes this year which are made to withstand 50 hours of durability testing. VanDyne hopes that if all goes well the company could see, after subsequent rounds of testing, a purchase order in 2012 which would put them inside cars in 2013.
Although the company has laid out a multiyear plan for its technology, the team simultaneously maintains focus on several nearer term milestones. Top on the priority list are delivering prototypes – two to the previously mentioned car manufacturer, one to a truck maker, and one to an industrial equipment company. Along with delivering these initial test units, the company is simultaneously working to refine the engineering so it can deliver the enhanced durability expected in the next round of prototypes. The company will also be conducting testing on its own at the CSU Engines Laboratory. VanDyne is also working to finalize the spinout of VanDyne SuperTurboChargers from the Woodward Governor Company where some of the initial IP was developed (Woodward Governor will maintain rights to develop the technology in very large engines over 17L). Once the spinout is official, VanDyne will be able to close its initial round of angel financing. The company, based in Fort Collins, Colorado, will be looking for additional financing as it gets closer to larger scale manufacturing.
