Following the acquisition of Outokumpu’s filtration business, Larox has emerged as a leading global technology provider in the field of suspension separation. The trade marks Larox, Hoesch, Pannevis, Ceramec and Scheibler are now united under one roof and, for the first time, pressure and vacuum filtration are available from a single source. Reiner Weidner and Ulrich Derenthal outline the additional advantages arising for plant designers and process operators below.
The crucial strategic goal behind the take-over by Larox of Pannevis, Hoesch and Ceramec was to concentrate all industrial suspension separation technology and focus expert know-how in a single company. The most important branch in the Larox group, founded as recently as 1977 and headquartered in Lappeenranta (Finland), is presently located in Alsdorf near Aachen, where approximately 60 people are employed. Reiner Weidner is head of the newly established Larox Hoesch GmbH. “We are now able to offer the complete technical spectrum of vacuum and pressure filtration, so that plant designers and operators today have just one partner for the vast range of solid-liquid filtration tasks”, he says.
Economical suspension separation
“By merging the Larox, Pannevis, Hoesch, Scheibler and Ceramec technology in a single process portfolio, we are excellently placed to develop genuine tailor-made solutions for each individual process”, explains Derenthal, Regional Sales Director at Larox Hoesch. A comprehensive description can be found on the corporate web site (www.larox.com).
Larox is confident of developing uniquely economical processes for suspension separation, particularly in the European marketplace for fine chemicals, pharmaceuticals, food production and biotechnology. “Especially when it comes to complex processes for the fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries, we are now in a position to offer not only established Pannevis technology but also our own automatic pressure filters in GMP design, which have been part of our product range since last year’s Achema. This technology can consequently also be employed to benefit biotechnical processes”, Derenthal continues. “This represents another logical step in the strategy adopted by Larox a while ago of advancing from leadership in ore separation technology to worldwide acclaim as a competence centre for suspension separation in the chemical, pharmaceutical, cosmetics and food sectors.”
The envisaged concentration in Alsdorf means that Larox will merge its two existing German branches in Langenfeld and Wiesbaden. These units, mainly responsible for consulting, sales and service in German-speaking countries, will be gradually integrated into the Alsdorf branch, which forms an important hub in the global network. From its Alsdorf location, Larox will control all activities in Africa, Turkey, the Middle East and the whole of Europe.
Full service
“We in Alsdorf are part of the global Larox network. From this base, we offer comprehensive engineering, consulting and service of a quality previously held to be unattainable. Our stationary and mobile pilot plants empower us to elaborate solutions for new products collaboratively with our customers. Our philosophy of providing optimum service to plant operators is thus visibly realized. Right from the outset, we have never hesitated to place our theoretical and practical experience at the disposal of our customers long after they have installed one of our filter units. This tradition of process support, typical of Larox, will be continued in the newly organized competence centre”, says Weidner. “Approximately 3,000 Pannevis, Hoesch and Scheibler plants presently operate in the German-speaking world alone. To these plant operators, the staff in our competence centres in Alsdorf/Germany and Utrecht/Netherlands are more than just central contacts: they are also partners who are at hand to assist when processes or capacities in existing plants need to be optimized or who adapt the design data if the process or product is changed. Automating existing plants is another frequently resorted-to method of increasing profitability with a comparatively small investment.”
Larox perceives the opening of the new branch in Alsdorf as an exciting opportunity for rapid growth. Approximately 430 employees at the two production sites in Lappeenranta (Finland) and Utrecht (Holland) as well as at branches in 13 countries are currently driving the international evolution of Larox as technology and market leader for solid-liquid separation. The aim is to achieve a 20 % increase in the company’s annual turnover of more than 100 million euros by 2006.
Share:
