Monitorix wins Upper Austrian craftsmanship award 2022

Topnotch businesses were awarded in four categories with the „Upper Austrian Craftsmanship Award 2022”. SIHGA and its humidity monitoring system Monitorix® was among the winners.

Twelve premier businesses were given curtain calls in four categories, „Sustainability & Ecologization”, “Innovation & Digitalization”. “Cooperation & Teamwork” and “Tradition & Modernism”, which at the same time reflect the challenges of the future.

SIHGA drew first prize in the category “Innovation & Digitalization” for their project digital humidity monitoring on building sites. The winners were chosen out of more than 100 submissions and assessed by an expert panel. The craftmanship award, an initiative of the Upper Austrian bank “Raiffeisenlandesbank” and the Upper Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, has been supported by the Upper Austrian Economic Department. Since 1990 the department also hosts the price-giving ceremony.

„Fortunately, timber structure has enjoyed more and more popularity, however, water is always a big issue.”, says SIHGA-chief executive Marc Simmer MBA. The Ohlsdorf-based company has been developing a system to monitor and immediately detect humidity in cooperation with the company Tagtron GmbH from Vöcklabruck and offers the possibility to immediately counteract in order to avoid costly reconstruction. The system consists of cellulose with a layer of graphite and makes measurement of resistor and impedance (alternating current resistance) possible. Hence, “blind spots” that result from building physical issues in timber structure, will not be blind anymore, but 100 per cent transparent when it comes to humidity. This helps to make timber structure significantly more secure and helps to increase sustainability in the building industry. The humidity monitoring has already been applied in cooperation with the Austrian Road Maintenance company ASFINAG at a wooden bridge and at the new “Team 7 World of Wood”. These projects are now monitored concerning humidity.