Finnish industrial technology company SpinDrive has raised growth funding led by Rhapsody Venture Partners and Innovestor to expand its presence in the United States and launch a new product line. The company develops active magnetic bearing (AMB) systems that use magnetic levitation instead of mechanical contact to reduce friction and eliminate the need for oil-based lubrication. The new funding will support the rollout of Magma X100, a compact controller that extends AMB applications to smaller-scale industrial machinery. By improving the efficiency of electric motor–driven systems, the company aims to address energy losses in industrial processes, a significant contributor to global electricity use and emissions.
SpinDrive develops active magnetic bearing (AMB) systems for high-speed rotating machinery. Its products replace traditional mechanical bearings with magnetic levitation, allowing rotation without physical contact. This approach reduces friction, eliminates the need for oil-based lubrication, and lowers maintenance requirements in industrial applications such as compressors, blowers, and expanders. Founded in 2015 and based in Lappeenranta, SpinDrive works with equipment manufacturers and industrial operators in Europe, North America, and Asia to improve energy efficiency and reliability in electric motor–driven systems.
The funding will be used to increase support for SpinDrive’s growing U.S. customer base, expand its U.S. market presence, and launch the company’s new Magma X100 magnetic bearing controller product line. Long-time investors, U.S.-based Rhapsody Venture Partners and Innovestor of Finland, led the round. The funding follows a period of rapid scale-up for SpinDrive, which has deployed Magma X800 systems with customers in Germany, France, the U.S., Finland, and other countries.
“In the past two years, we’ve significantly increased our customer base to include several multi-billion-dollar companies with stringent requirements. This growth capital allows us to accelerate further our build-up of sales and customer services. Alongside, we’re excited to introduce Magma X100 to the market. Magma X100 brings the benefits of AMBs to applications for which there has been no technical solution to date. Our new product is small in form factor and a fraction of the cost of existing AMB systems. We believe the benefits of AMBs will revolutionize a broad new set of appliances and machinery,” said Janne Heikkinen, CEO of SpinDrive.
Traditional industrial bearings rely on oil lubrication and mechanical contact between moving parts, leading to energy loss, wear, and frequent maintenance cycles. Bearings are among the most common components in rotating machinery. Their friction-related inefficiencies collectively consume vast amounts of energy, directly impacting the efficiency of electric motors in applications such as compressors, pumps, turbines, and blowers. According to the International Energy Agency, industrial electric motors account for nearly half of global electricity use, meaning that even small efficiency gains can yield major reductions in energy consumption and emissions.
SpinDrive’s magnetic levitation bearings eliminate friction by suspending rotating components without physical contact. This frictionless operation delivers maintenance-free performance for over 20 years, removes the need for oil-based lubricants, and enables significant energy efficiency gains. In contrast to traditional ball bearings that require replacement every 12-18 months in high-speed applications, SpinDrive’s systems include integrated condition monitoring without external sensors, reducing overall equipment maintenance costs by over 80%.
A notable case demonstrating SpinDrive’s impact is a large-scale paper mill in Turkey operated with the equipment provided by Runtech Systems, where a RunEco EP Turbo Blower with SpinDrive’s controller has delivered over 50% energy savings on a 1 MW unit, equivalent to nearly one kiloton of CO₂ mitigation per machine per year.
“Integrating SpinDrive’s active magnetic bearing controller has resulted in a major leap forward in sustainable production in the paper mills of our customers,” said Ville Lahdensuo, Business Director at Runtech Systems. “We’ve seen exceptional energy efficiency and reliability from the solution in continuous operation. What’s more, we’ve been able to make significant savings by reducing costs from maintenance.”
SpinDrive has seen growing traction in the United States, both through direct customers and European OEM partners with U.S. operations. The company’s solutions are increasingly being adopted in sectors such as industrial cooling, heat pumps, wastewater management, and semiconductor manufacturing, where energy efficiency and reliability are critical. To build on this momentum, SpinDrive plans to establish a U.S. office in 2026 to provide local support and strengthen partnerships with North American manufacturers.
The upcoming Magma X100 product launch extends the company’s technology to ultra-high-speed machinery below 100 kW output, enabling unprecedented access to the advantages of AMB technology to brand new markets and applications. Developed with support from the European Commission, the product is the company’s smallest, most affordable, and efficient system, and has already received commercial orders ahead of launch.
The global bearing industry represents a €120 billion market, with SpinDrive targeting high-speed rotating equipment where its frictionless technology delivers the greatest performance and efficiency advantages. The company aims for its technology to help mitigate 500 megatonnes of CO2 annually by 2050.
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Read the orginal article: https://arcticstartup.com/spindrive-raises-growth-funding/
