Join the safe drinking water revolution
How we came to a product that decontaminates water without the use of electricity.
How it started: The Turbokiller
It all started with an idea. In 2001, Ir. Drs. Jan Tholen — a career water treatment engineer who had built multiple drinking water plants — invented a device he called "The Turbokiller." A bold name, but the concept was even bolder: take salt electrolysis, a disinfection technique previously only used at industrial scale, and make it work for households. No electricity needed. Jan's innovation earned him a Dutch DSM Innovation Prize and two patents.
Name change to Sensiblue
In 2007, Smart Water Systems was established to bring the technology to market. The product was renamed Sensiblue in 2012, and Jan continuously improved the design through multiple iterations — Type 2 (Model 312) and Type 3 (Model 315) — achieving over a thousand installations worldwide, all without a dedicated sales or marketing team.
From father to son
When the previous investor pulled out in 2020, Wirijn Tholen — Jan's son — refused to let his father's life's work disappear. He left his career in logistics and purchasing to take the reins. What followed were three intense years of redevelopment: redesigning the product from the ground up, solving the reliability issues of earlier generations, and building a team to take Sensiblue to the next level.
How it’s going
The result is the Sensiblue S4 — our third-generation device, and the product we always knew it could be. In 2022 we were granted a new Dutch patent for the technology, which received EU-wide protection in early 2026 and is pending in many more countries around the world. Through a strategic partnership with VDH Watertechnology — part of ProMinent GmbH — we now have access to a global distribution network, combined with decades of shared expertise in salt electrolysis.
The market response speaks for itself: in just nine months, we sold as many S4 units as the previous generation managed in thirteen years. Over twenty years of development, multiple generations, and a lot of blood, sweat and tears brought us here. With a global addressable market of over 1.5 billion households, we're just getting started.
Functional design
When we developed the Sensiblue S4, we set ourselves seven non-negotiables:
- Function over form.
- Meets all drinking water standards.
- Bulletproof — the strongest part in your plumbing.
- Quick and easy to install, no extras needed.
- Fully recyclable, no glue, easy to repair.
- Best-in-class components only.
- Built to last a minimum of 7 years.
It took over 20 years and three generations of development to get here. And it shows.
Quality first
Every Sensiblue undergoes 100% quality control — no sampling, no shortcuts. Each unit is tested for 24 hours following a rigorous protocol before it leaves our facility.
We use only best-in-class components from proven manufacturers, and our formulations are approved by drinking water authorities in the strictest regulatory environments.
Every day, we say a little prayer to the drinking water gods — and then we double-check everything anyway.
Not a single compromise on quality. Ever.
Customer care
Our devices are built to keep you safe — no matter what.
Need advice? Reach out.
Need help? We're here.
If something isn't right, we solve it.
No excuses, no delays — 24/7, anywhere in the world.
We're only as good as the trust you place in us, and we take that seriously. Always.
Meet the team
Wirijn Tholen
CEO Sensiblue
Mladden Bosnjask
Design Engineer
Robert Smits
Commercial Director
Jan Tholen
Inventor
Partners of Sensiblue
The organizations that support our mission and help us turn our vision into reality. We're proud to work with each of them.
