ALL Power Labs Makes Big Moves by Starting Small

In 2008, Jim Mason, founder of ALL Power Labs began manufacturing and selling kits for the construction of small-scale downdraft gasifiers. Designed for the thermal conversion enthusiast, his business sought to support “research, education and DIY hacking.”

Four years later, more than 300 Gasifier Experimenter’s Kits (GEK) have been sold with units supplementing research in over 40 universities around the globe. Meanwhile, ALL Power Labs continues to grow in popularity and size as new products reach a larger capacity.

With the GEK, customers have the option of building the gasifier from scratch or purchasing a fully fabricated version that is ready for final assembly. The GEK makes clean gas for power generation or biochar for soil amendment. While the system is meant for smaller engines such as Listers, China Diesels and Briggs, the website shows how it is possible to adjust the nozzle size and position to make it compatible with a four-cylinder engine.

ALL Power Labs Gasification Weekend Workshop
in March 2012. Courtesy: ALL Power Labs. 

The GEK served as an entre into the gasification industry for Mason. As his company and technical knowledge grew, so did the size of its gasifiers. The GEK Power Pallet was launched two years after the first GEK kit as a fully automated downdraft gasifier that converts woody biomass into electricity, heat and PTO shaft power. Using Kubota and GM engines, Mecc Alte AVR gen heads and mounted on a metal pallet, the unit comes in 10kW and 20kW sizes.  ALL Power Labs tailors each unit to the customer’s needs and the onboard computer makes adjustments normally required of a trained operator.

Director of Sales Dusty Swartz says the company has seen a shift in customer demand from the original GEK to the fully automated Power Pallets, which are often used in agricultural communities and third-world countries. He estimates that ALL Power Labs has sold approximately 100 units since it came onto the market in 2010 and says that sales of the original GEK  now make up only 10 percent of sales.

While the company has solidified itself as the dominant force in the small-scale market, it continues to work on increasing the size of its units. Mason and company have just finished installing a 100kW Power Trainer system, housed within a standard shipping container, at the University of Minnesota.

One of All Power Labs’ greatest strengths is its openness and transparency. Stressing that he seeks to build a collaborative society, Mason invites pitch ideas from anyone on anything ranging from feedstock to possible uses and technological tweaks. Additionally, ALL Power Labs holds monthly Open Houses, inviting anyone interested to come and see a demonstration and ask questions of the engineers, sales professionals and other members of the community. Occasional weekend workshops assist in bridging the gap between client and company.

BETTER BTU TAKE: ALL Power Labs is the only company we’ve seen enter the market through home kits and we’re reminded of the hundreds of hobbyists who built computers in garages from Apple kits in the early ‘90s. While Mason still has a long way to go before becoming the next Steve Jobs, we love the idea of starting small a reputation as you learn. While some may discount ALL Power Labs as just a company for gasifier enthusiasts, we’d caution against that. Mason can sidestep obstacles other companies face such as having to raise capital for a project with largely unproven technology. If the company can keep up its momentum it should be a strong competitor with IST’s Gem and GSS Energy’s k500 Mobile Pyrolysis Unit (see previous blog posts).

For more information on the Gasifier Experimenter’s Kit:

http://gekgasifier.com/

Anyone interested in attending the July 13^th Open House at ALL Power Labs headquarters in Berkeley, Calif. should contact sales@allpowerlabs.org.