Trade press release

GEA software cuts water and energy consumption by up to 77% at Ammerland dairy

November 11, 2024

Copyright: Molkerei Ammerland
Leveraging GEA’s expert knowledge and two digital tools, GEA Smart Filtration CIP and GEA Smart Filtration Flush, the German dairy Molkerei Ammerland has reduced water usage by 48% and energy consumption by 77% in the cleaning of its membrane filtration systems. These savings significantly exceed initial projections. At the Wiefelstede site, GEA successfully implemented this software in a new membrane filtration unit and, for the first time, in three existing process plants, including one from a different supplier.
Copyright: Molkerei Ammerland

Copyright: Molkerei Ammerland

Increased efficiency through precise control

Membrane filtration systems are essential in dairy processing, separating components such as whey or extracting water without thermal stress. At Ammerland’s cheese production site, liquid whey, a valuable byproduct, is pre-concentrated in GEA reverse osmosis units before being evaporated and spray-dried into whey powder.

Previously, the filtration systems were cleaned according to fixed parameters, with pumps operating at full capacity throughout the cleaning process. This approach consumed a significant amount of water and energy. Now, the new GEA tools optimize the process intelligently. GEA Smart Filtration CIP pulses the pumps to reduce energy consumption, while GEA Smart Filtration Flush continuously monitors water quality during the cleaning cycles, stopping the process as soon as no cleaning agents remain in the system. This prevents chemicals from entering the product.

“These results far exceed our expectations,” said Armin Tjards, Director Production of Molkerei Ammerland. “The significant savings are helping us achieve our sustainability goals while boosting the efficiency of our production processes.”

More production time through intelligent cleaning

A key aspect of these savings is the precise control of the cleaning process. By constantly monitoring water quality, Smart Flush ensures that only the necessary amount of water is used, while simultaneously reducing wastewater. This technology saves the dairy an average of 15% of cleaning time and thus increases plant availability. GEA Smart Filtration CIP reduces pump energy consumption to a quarter of previous levels, without impairing cleaning performance.

“The principle is similar to that of a modern washing machine,” explained Morten A. Hansen, Director of Membrane Filtration at GEA. “The pump operates in intervals, allowing the cleaning chemicals to work more effectively while using less energy.”

For the Ammerland dairy in Wiefelstede, northern Germany, GEA installed the Smart Filtration CIP and Flush software, which makes the cleaning processes of the filtration systems significantly more energy and water efficient. Source: GEA/Mathias Jensen Stenholt

For the Ammerland dairy in Wiefelstede, northern Germany, GEA installed the Smart Filtration CIP and Flush software, which makes the cleaning processes of the filtration systems significantly more energy and water efficient. Source: GEA/Mathias Jensen Stenholt

Sustainable solutions for economic benefits

For the first time, GEA’s service team installed the software on two of its own older existing systems and one from another manufacturer. The retrofits were carried out during ongoing operations. The introduction of the GEA tools across the four membrane plants at Molkerei Ammerland brings not only environmental benefits but also significant financial savings. Annual cost reductions of around 180,000 Euro deliver a return on investment in less than two years. “These results demonstrate that sustainable engineering solutions can be both environmentally friendly and financially advantageous,” Hansen added. The combination of resource efficiency and cost savings strengthens the dairy’s competitiveness and supports its environmental targets.

The successful implementation of these digital technologies highlights the potential of GEA Smart Filtration CIP and Flush for existing and new filtration systems. GEA plans to expand the use of these tools in the dairy and food industries to optimize further production facilities. Both tools are part of GEA’s service portfolio for system upgrades and modernization, including non-GEA systems.

Fanny Foerster

CONTACT

Phone: +49 211 9136 1504

About GEA

GEA 是食品加工行业及众多工业领域的领先供应商之一,2019 年的销售总额约达 49 亿欧元。

作为国际技术集团,我们专注于机械制造,生产运营,工艺技术及其设备组件。 GEA 为各种终端用户市场的复杂生产流程提供可持续的能源解决方案,并提供全面的服务组合。集团在长期持续增长的食品和饮料行业的收入约占其总收入的 70%。截至 2018 年 12 月 31 日,集团的全球员工已超过 18,500 人。GEA 在其业务领域中是市场和技术领导者。GEA 是德国 MDAX 上市公司(G1A,WKN 660 200),拥有 STOXX® Europe 600 指数和优选的 MSCI 全球可持续发展指数。
接收 GEA 新闻

订阅 GEA 的新闻,掌握 GEA 的创新信息和故事。

联系我们

我们随时为您提供帮助!您只需提供少量详细信息,我们就能回复您的查询。