“The customer is at the center of our considerations” – interview with Stefan Bichlmeier on Flottweg’s new process center

In the summer of 2024, separation technology specialist Flottweg started a new major project with the construction of its new process center. As an extension of Plant 2, which was opened in 2021, the new process center will allow the company to design even more targeted, customer-specific solutions on an area of around 2,000 square meters. Flottweg’s process center will accommodate the laboratory, a pilot plant for testing, a warehouse, and modern office space.

Stefan Bichlmeier, Head of Process Engineering at Flottweg and a key player in the development of the process center, took the time to answer some questions about the process center and the current construction progress. 

What is the current state of progress on Flottweg’s new process center?

The construction work, which began in mid-August last year, is progressing very well and is on schedule. The shell was completed before the end of the year. After the roof sealing and the installation of the windows, work on the interior and the facade can now commence in January. We are pleased that, as things stand right now, there is nothing in the way of our planned start of use in October 2025.

What makes the new process center so special? What were the main considerations during planning?

The customer was always at the center of our considerations during the planning phase. On the one hand, we want to process the diverse products and applications in the best possible way in order to optimally serve the needs of our customers. On the other hand, we need to ensure that we can generate meaningful data and results from the tests for our later machines and plant design. In addition, it was essential that the planning address not only current requirements. For instance, the flexibility required for the operation of a pilot plant was and remains a key focus, particularly with regard to the technical equipment.

A key difference to our current facilities will be our ability to have a stricter spatial separation for the different application areas, both in the laboratory and especially in the pilot plant area. This means that intermediate products from the food and pharmaceutical industry are processed in specially designed test areas. In addition, a permanently installed CIP system will further expand our possibilities. These include structured development trials with new machines and more efficient cleaning of the technical equipment. From the customer’s point of view, however, there was another important aspect that was a decisive factor in their investment in the plant: the possibility of extending a Factory Acceptance Test to validate the cleaning results. This will enable us to offer this in a more targeted manner and under standardized conditions where required.

The design of the pilot plant will also allow us to conduct multiple tests side-by-side in the future. This will put us in a position to increase our focus on the availability of the products and the scheduling possibilities of our customers. 

Modern workplaces will provide added value, as will the future proximity of the laboratory, technical center, and the office space for process engineering.

Why did Flottweg opt for this investment?

Requests for laboratory tests and in-house trials have grown steadily in recent years. Overall expectations and demands regarding the test results have also increased. In addition, we want to intensify the development and ongoing enhancement of processes and sub-processes. The collection of all consumption data and the associated optimization are of crucial importance in this regard. This also necessitates the mapping of these processes on a pilot plant scale where possible.

The equipment and, above all, the current premises would no longer have been sufficient for all this in the short to medium term. Consequently, we decided to implement a complete, future-proof solution.