NEWS large, complex capital projects that include Culligan’s portfolio of technologies used in industrial markets such as oil & gas, food and beverage, and energy and power. The expanded space also enables Culligan to assemble up to five mobile water treatment containers at once, speeding delivery for customers who need mobile solutions for fast response, temporary or emergency situations. The new Libertyville facility also provides additional office space, enabling Culligan to bring together design and application engineers and project managers in one location, streamlining the development of solutions for clients across a wide array of industries. Approximately 70 employees work at the Libertyville facility. Culligan employs more than 200 people in Illinois including staff at its global headquarters in Rosemont. “Culligan’s expansion in Libertyville creates exciting new possibilities for water solutions in the global market. With three times more manufacturing space and the ability to house design through manufacturing under one roof, we are certain to reach new levels of innovation, productivity and speed,” said Culligan’s chief operating officer Allan Connolly. For further information, visit www.culligan.com
AAF inaugurates new cleanroom at Dutch facility
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AF Air Filter Europe has officially opened a new cleanroom facility for HEPA filter manufacturing at its main European production plant in Emmen, the Netherlands. The new cleanroom has been constructed as a separate area inside the Emmen plant. The 900 sq m floor area consists of four core process steps: media pleating, filter assembly, testing and packaging. An ISO 7 controlled environment has been designed for media pleating, HEPA filter assembly and filter testing according to the EN1822:2009 standard. The HEPA filters will be packaged in an ISO 6 controlled environment. Both
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cleanroom areas are designed, constructed and validated to ISO 14644 standard. Johan Langius, chief operating officer (COO) for AAF Europe and Middle East, said: “AAF has significantly upgraded its manufacturing facilities over the last few years with the aim to better meet customer expectations and simultaneously enhance operational excellence. The new cleanroom facility exemplifies the positive development of our organization and strengthens AAF’s leading position in the high-end air filtration market.” For further information, visit www.aafeurope.com
Johns Manville to add lightweight spunbond line to Berlin plant
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ohns Manville (JM) is planning to invest E32 million in a stateof-the-art polyester spunbond production line at its facility in Berlin, Germany. The new production line, which is scheduled to start in 2015, will use newly developed proprietary spinning technology. It will increase the spunbond lightweight capacity at the Berlin plant by more than 40%. With a capacity of more than 4000 tons per year, the new line will be built with Johns Manville’s advanced Bi-Component (BiCo) spinning technology. The investment is part of Johns Manville’s strategic plan to support the growing demand for high-end polyester filtration media. “This new investment clearly underscores Johns Manville’s commitment as a market leader to responsibly satisfy the long-term demand of our valued filtration customers,” said Dr Enno Henze, senior vice president & general manager, Engineered Products Europe/Asia. “JM’s leadership position as a provider of premium filter solutions will be significantly strengthened by this new investment,” added Christian Hassmann, senior product and market manager and the project leader for this investment.
For further information, visit www.jm.com and www. jmeurope.com
Lakos invests in new warehouse
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onstruction work has started on Lakos Separators and Filtration Solutions’ new warehouse at its headquarters in Fresno, California, USA. The new warehouse is part of an ongoing expansion project at Lakos to accommodate successful filtration product lines. The new facility will help house raw materials for products like the recently introduced eHTX separator before they are built on site. In addition to the new warehouse, the expansion also includes a remodel of the existing main office building to add a state-of-the-art training and conference facility. The new facilities are expected to be completed by early autumn. For further information, visit www.lakos.com
Sartorius defers sale of Industrial Weighing division
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artorius has postponed the planned sale of its Industrial Weighing division for the time being because investment decisions are being impacted by the current uncertain economic environment. “Interest in this business is significant, but obtaining a selling price that reflects the value of the division is not possible at present,” said Sartorius CEO Joachim Kreuzburg. “However, this will not alter our long-term plans for our industrial weighing business.” Last year Sartorius decided to concentrate on its core laboratory and bioprocess businesses and to divest the smallest of its three divisions over the medium term. The Industrial Weighing Division reported sales
Filtration Industry Analyst
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IN BRIEF/NEWS
In Brief
revenue of E102.7 million and an underlying EBITDA margin of 11.6% for fiscal 2012. For further information, visit www.sartorius.com
UÊ Lanxess is relocating its headquarters to Cologne from Leverkusen in Germany as of 1 August 2013. Production is not affected by the move and will remain at the current locations. www.lanxess.com UÊ Freudenberg has opened a new Regional Corporate Centre in Bangalore, India. The new centre will also support Freudenberg’s ten Indian companies with human resources management, innovation management, finance and insurance, as well as communication and infrastructure. The German company has had business ties with companies in India for more than 90 years. The Group employs over 3500 associates at 30 locations in India. www.freudenberg.in UÊ Transor Filter USA, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, is investing in a new 25 000 sq ft facility in Elk Grove, Illinois, USA. The new facility includes expanded office space, manufacturing and assembly, as well as warehousing for the filter components. “The new facility will have an enlarged R&D area which will help us bring several new developments we have been working on to market,” said Transor Filter vice president Sune Backman. www.transorfilter.com UÊ /
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Ê `>Ê ÕÌÞ½ÃÊ surface water treatment plant in Southern Arizona, featuring GE’s ZeeWeed 500 advanced treatment technology, has won the 2013 Water Project of the Year Award from the AZ Water Association. The Native American water plant, commissioned in 2012, has a capacity of 2.25 million gallons per day and provides drinking water to community members and Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino. GE also provided the technology for the Ak-Chin Indian Community’s nearby award-winning membrane bioreactor water reclamation facility. www.ge.com UÊ Headworks International Inc has moved to a new headquarters building in Houston, Texas, USA. www.headworksinternational.com UÊ Heckmann Corp has changed its corporate name to Nuverra Environmental Solutions Inc. www.nuverra.com 4
Filtration Industry Analyst
ADS and BaySaver form JV
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orrugated plastic pipe producer Advanced Drainage Systems Inc (ADS) has acquired a controlling interest in a new joint venture established with BaySaver Technologies Inc. The new company, BaySaver LLC, will be based in Mount Airy, Maryland and will focus on storm water filtration and separation technologies. ADS and BaySaver Technologies have had an exclusive marketing agreement since 2008 for ADS to sell the BaySeparator and BayFilter units, which separate and filter pollution from storm water runoff. “We are very pleased to now completely include BaySaver in the ADS family,” said ADS chairman and CEO Joe Chlapaty. “During the past several years both companies have proven how successful these storm water quality treatment systems can be. The BaySeparator and BayFilter products have been true assets to ADS, adding to our technology-driven initiatives and to our storm water quality treatment line that includes FLEXSTORM inlet filters and the Nyloplast Envirohood structure. This strategic partnership helps complete the ADS offering in the storm water treatment arena.” “It has always been our goal to design and manufacture products that permit compliance with all EPA and local storm water quality requirements,” said BaySaver president Tom Pank. “This strategic partnership maximizes the strengths of both companies - the strong research, development and technical approvals of BaySaver coupled with the industry-leading engineering, sales and distribution of ADS. By aligning with ADS we can build on our success and increase our efforts. This is the best partnership in the industry today and we anticipate rapid growth and acceptance in the marketplace.” Pank, the founder of BaySaver, also serves as the company’s chief design engineer. “Evolving requirements imposed on municipal storm water systems by the EPA have created the need for a more complete
storm water treatment methodology,” explained Ron Vitarelli, vice president of Storm and Sanitary Markets for ADS. “As a solutions-based manufacturer we are asked to provide a ‘treatment train’ approach to owners and specifiers. The BaySaver product line rounds out the ADS storm water product offering.” For further information, visit www.ads-pipe.com and www.baysaver.com
Sembcorp buys stake in Norway’s Biowater Technology
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ingapore-based energy, water and marine group Sembcorp has signed an agreement to invest NOK30 million in Biowater Technology, a Norwegian company that designs and engineers technologies and solutions for the treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater. When the transaction is completed, Sembcorp will have a 28.8% stake in Biowater Technology, while existing shareholders Incitia, Mallin, Biowater’s founders and employees will own the rest of the company. Incitia Ventures remains the largest single shareholder with just over 30%. Biowater Technology has also raised a further NOK8 million from its existing owners Incitia Ventures II and Mallin Venture, giving a total of NOK38 million of new capital for Biowater to fund its continued research and development (R&D) work and commercialisation efforts. As well as the equity investment, Sembcorp will also enter into a strategic partnership agreement with Biowater, which will give Sembcorp preferential and early access to its technologies and provide Biowater with the opportunity to apply its technologies in Sembcorp’s global facilities to accelerate the development and commercialization of its technologies. “This investment will strengthen our technological capabilities and cement our leading position in the treatment of multiple streams of complex industrial wastewater,” said Tang Kin Fei, group president and CEO of Sembcorp. “As a company that is focused on innovation, process and technology, this partnership not only enables us to enhance the efficiency of our operations, but also allows us to
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