NOAQ Flood Protection AB has reported another record year as sales for the company in 2024 doubled compared to 2023. To put this into perspective, last year NOAQ delivered 51 km of its NOAQ Boxwall mobile flood barrier system compared with 28 km the previous year.

Demand and interest for NOAQ’s innovative mobile flood barrier system increased dramatically in response to the severe floods in Europe last year. These flood events helped drive sales growth in some of the company’s most established European markets as well as stimulated emerging new ones that now demand attention.

“Despite the tragic events in Europe, we are happy that our innovative solutions have really helped people and communities to protect themselves and their most valuable assets” – says Douglas Hellström, NOAQ CEO.

NOAQ’s export share is over 95% to more than 40 countries around the world. Historically Asia has been the largest region for sales, but now Europe has taken the top spot as sales have rapidly grown during the past couple of years, especially in Germany and bordering countries. Sweden and Denmark have also seen significant growth this past year as the need for mobile flood protection is now a fact.

“The time is right for the investment we are planning to make as an organization. We have an ambitious goal going forward where we want to fivefold turnover by 2030, and now it is about building an organization that can grow. It is an exciting time for us” – concludes Douglas Hellström.

You can download the official press release here.

Photo: NOAQ Boxwall BW102-system viewed from the damming (wet) side

Credit: NOAQ Flood Protection AB

As we step into the new year, NOAQ’s CEO, Douglas Hellström, takes a moment to reflect on the year that has just gone and looks ahead to 2025.

“2024 has been an incredible year for NOAQ with significant growth and impact. Thanks to the collective efforts of our fantastic team, valued partners and growing network of trusted, dedicated, and knowledgeable distributors and resellers, we’ve delivered more linear meters of mobile flood protection to more places and helped more people fight floods than ever before” – says Douglas Hellström, NOAQ CEO.

“These achievements are more than just sales – they represent homes safeguarded, businesses kept operational, and critical infrastructure and public spaces protected from devastation. Each NOAQ solution delivered and deployed brings us closer to our vision to create a more flood-resilient society globally. And with new initiatives and innovations on the horizon and exploring new ways to make the NOAQ Flood Fighting System more accessible, sustainable and value added for our customers, 2025 is set to be another milestone year for the company. We are changing the game of flood-fighting!” – concludes Douglas.

Photo: Douglas Hellström, NOAQ CEO

Credit: NOAQ Flood Protection AB

As of the 1^st of December 2024, Douglas Hellström has been appointed as the new CEO for NOAQ. Douglas, who joined NOAQ in 2022 as Sales Manager, will take over the role from Sigurd Melin, the company’s founder.

“It is an incredible honor to take over as CEO of a company that has been built up over three decades with so much commitment, passion, and hard work” – says Douglas Hellström. “I have enormous respect for the work Sigurd has put in to take the company where it is today, and it is an honor to build on the strong foundation he has created.”

“It is our fantastic team who are the engine at the company, and their daily efforts are what drives the business forward. With their competence and commitment together with our strong partners, both in Sweden and around the world, I feel confident about NOAQ’s future and fulfilling our vision to create a more flood-resilient society globally.”

Sigurd Melin will continue to work in NOAQ, together with Douglas, but focus more on product development and other business development issues related to his role as Chairman of the Board.

“This project started in 1993, when I had an idea for a mobile flood barrier that could be anchored by only the floodwater itself” – says Sigurd Melin. “From the beginning the plan was to sell the idea to a company in the flood industry. However, when it turned out that there was no such industry, I had to step out of the role of inventor and start my own company. It took time to establish the business, but now it is going very well.”

“But after more than 30 years at the helm, it felt most reasonable to have a generational change. And when I saw that one of our employees had exactly the qualities that you look for when looking for a new CEO, it was just a matter of timing. This meant that we could promote from within, rather than hire externally. So, with Douglas as CEO, I feel that I can safely hand over the operational responsibilities to someone who is probably better in that role than myself.”

Download press release in pdf.

Photo: Sigurd Melin and Douglas Hellström outside NOAQ’s headquarters in Näsviken, Sweden.

Photo credit: NOAQ Flood Protection AB

During May and June, southern Germany was hit by extensive flooding and the local rescue services in many cases had to work around the clock to fight against the masses of water. But after major floods in the country in 2021, preparedness has been increased and today NOAQ’s mobile flood barriers are on hand in many areas of Germany. One area is the small village of Unterroth in the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria, where NOAQ Boxwall was successfully deployed to stop the water.

Photo: The Red Cross assists in evacuating villagers from the flooded areas.

Photo credit: kfv-nu.de / wasserwacht-illertissen.de

NOAQ Flood Protection AB will participate in a four-year research project at the University of Gävle in Sweden, with the aim of developing more effective methods for flood protection. The project has been awarded 2.6 million SEK from the KK Foundation (Knowledge Foundation) and will run from 2025 – 2028. The total funding budget for the project is 5.5 million SEK.

“We want to reduce the global impact caused by floods and help create a more flood resilient society. We see this project as a great opportunity to not only develop our own products, but also investigate how the products can influence the planning of flood mitigation measures across all sectors” – says Sigurd Melin, CEO at NOAQ.

Read more about the research project in the University’s press release here.

Photo: Faaborg Rögeri Cafe in Denmark protected against storm Babet using NOAQ Boxwall BW102

Photo Credit: Dansk Fugtstop

By utilizing the bookend principle, the NOAQ Boxwall is ballasted by the weight of the flood water itself. There is no need for additional fixings or anchoring methods. However, in the situation where Boxwall has been deployed during a storm and before floodwaters can anchor the boxes, there is a risk that they could be lifted and blown away if strong enough winds hit them from the back (dry side). A few sandbags strategically placed on the horizontal base section of the boxes could help weigh them down, but this is not an ideal long-term solution. Therefore, the challenge has been could we develop a storm protection device that is simple, easy-to-use, and sustainable – just like the Boxwall!

Now we have developed a solution that again uses water to ballast. With the winter snow gone, we’ve finally been able to test our latest storm protection device prototype outdoors. The idea was to build a BW52 and BW102 Boxwall with the prototype attached and use a helicopter to create the necessary storm winds (ca 25m per second). And now we have done just that. The outcome… the boxes stood firm – a success!

Stay tuned for further news about the release of our latest accessory developed specifically for the NOAQ Boxwall Flood Fighting System.

Thanks to Scandair Helicopter for the help and assistance.

Photo credit: NOAQ Flood Protection AB

Two new countries have been added to NOAQ’s world map of distributors for the NOAQ Flood Fighting System. In Greece, a distributor agreement has been signed with Idator, a company that has been in operation for over 50 years and specializes in clean water and wastewater applications as well as manufactures electrical panels and firefighting equipment such as pump systems. And in South America, NOAQ has appointed the company Jprintech to distribute its products throughout Ecuador, a country that is repeatedly affected by floods, not least during the so-called “El Nino years”, and most recently as last month.

“We are the leading company in Greece for water technology and solutions, but the latest leap forward for us is our engagement in Civil Protection sector. Our ambition is to establish ourselves in this new domain with solutions such as the NOAQ Flood Fighting System and become part of Greece’s arsenal against natural and technological disasters” – says John Paparas, Idator’s Business Development Manager in Civil Protection Division.

“We see a great opportunity to offer a smart solution for the floods that hit my country. Our business focuses on the sale of signage and industrial safety products and absorbent materials for spills. For this reason, we see NOAQ Flood Fighting System as a perfect complement to our existing product portfolio. I am sure that we will work together to grow our mutal businesses” – says Paul Brito Commercial Manager at Importadora Jprintech.

“We’re excited about the addition of these two new distributors to our network. Their partnership marks a step forward for us, and we’re eager to collaborate with them to expand the reach of our solutions and help create a more flood resilient society globally. With their expertise and dedication, we’re optimistic about the possibilities and look forward to a successful journey together” – says Douglas Hellström, VP and Sales Manager at NOAQ Flood Protection Ab.

Photo: Idator headquarters in Athens, Greece.

NOAQ Flood Protection AB takes further steps in supporting the organizations growth plan and ambitions for the future by appointing Patric Lindh as its new production and purchase manager. Patric has extensive experience in purchasing, product development and manufacturing, and most recently held the position as a buyer at Oil Quick AB, the market leader of automatic quick attachment systems for construction machinery, with its headquarters in the nearby town of Hudiksvall.

“I have had my eyes on NOAQ for almost 4 years and couldn’t resist applying when the opportunity arose. The product and the company is here just at the right time and this will be a very interesting journey over the next few years. NOAQ’s keywords about working and living in Näsviken and the surrounding area was also a big plus for me as I live with my family in the village.

I hope that with my experience from previous very expansive international companies I can contribute to NOAQ’s continued success. I look forward to meeting everyone from suppliers and customers to build on my network and knowledge within NOAQ’s segment”.

We warmly welcome Patric to the NOAQ team!

NOAQ Flood Protection AB, in Näsviken, Sweden, is growing and agrees new partnerships in Sweden with two strong resellers: InduSafe Supplies AB and PlastInject Watersystems AB.

InduSafe Supplies AB, with its expertise in spill and absorbent materials, looks forward to including NOAQ’s Flood Fighting System into their product range. “After closely following NOAQ’s exciting development, we are happy to welcome them as our new partners. We see their innovation products as a perfect complement to our existing range of consumables” – says Elias Prasiadas, co-owner of InduSafe Supplies AB.

PlastInject Watersystem AB, which belongs to the Lundahl & Wall group, focuses on stormwater management products. With applications in the purification and management of stormwater, they offer a wide range of heavy metal and particle separators and are the leader through its own product of stormwater cassettes.

“We warmly welcome InduSafe Supplies AB and PlastInject Watersystems AB as our certified resellers on the Swedish market. Their dedication and experience in their respective sectors will not only strengthen our market position, but also enable us to handle the increased need for our products which arose as a direct result of the recent floods around Sweden. We look forward to a fruitful collaboration and are convinced that their commitment will contribute to our joint success” – says Douglas Hellström, Sales Manager at NOAQ.

Through these strategic collaborations, we can increase the availability of our NOAQ Flood Fighting System and take another step towards our vision of creating a more flood-resilient society.

Photo on the left: Elias Prasiadis, co-owner of InduSafe AB
Photo on the right: PlastInject Watersystem’s two production facilities in Sweden.

Our certified distributor in Germany, Fritz Raschel Feuerschutz Gmbh, shared a quote from Andreas Hartwig, the Fire Chief for the city of Sonneberg, describing the recent deployment of NOAQ Boxwall as follows:

“This situation was about a pond that overflowed because it had reached its capacity, and the water threatened to flow into the town of Haselbach.

We decided on the Boxwall system, because an effort of this kind had been done before, with sandbags, and had then required a lot of time and personnel.

Thanks to the Boxwall, we were able to effectively reduce the deployment time by more than 70%, and also got a significantly simpler logistics. It allowed us to direct the water along the roadside and to a suitable stormwater well or watercourse.

During the floods in Christmas 2023, we used the system in other places in Sonneberg, where the result was also positive.

This system made our work much easier, and we have therefore purchased additional Boxwalls.”

Photo: Stadt Sonneberg

Translation: NOAQ Flood Protection AB