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GEA has been awarded a contract by Mataura Valley Milk Limited to construct a nutritional powders plant in McNab near to Gore in the south island of New Zealand.
The plant will process fresh milk and ingredients into added value nutritional powders as well as standard skimmilk and wholemilk powders. The value of the order to GEA is a figure in the mid double-digit millions (EUR).
The new plant, expected to begin production for the 2018 season, will produce around 140 tonnes of nutritional powder per day. Included in the GEA scope is a milk reception and standardisation plant, powdered and liquid ingredients handling, batch formulation, evaporation and drying, powder handling and filling into 25kg bags. It will also feature a high degree of process automation and product traceability. Energy efficiency and environmental impact have also been a key focus in the plant design.
Mataura Valley Milk is majority-owned by Chinese Animal Husbandry Group (CAHG), a Chinese company. Roughly half of the premium nutritional powder produced by the new plant will be exported to China, where Mataura Valley Milk expects steady growth in demand for this product.
“This contract, which was long-awaited to win by GEA, serves as further proof of our technological leadership and strong market position in the field of dairy processing,” explains Jürg Oleas, CEO of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft. “It also demonstrates the continuing investment appetite of our customers as they attempt to satisfy the growing consumer demand on the Chinese market for milk-based infant formula and other high-quality milk products – and that in an environment impacted by regulatory changes. Although the challenging economic conditions mean that GEA’s order intake in the fourth quarter of 2016 will not repeat the record level achieved in the same quarter of the previous year, we are confident that customers throughout the world will continue to invest in our process technologies and place major orders for all product areas and applications.”
This cooperation has resulted in the recent development of new ‘GE Blister Free’ reverse osmosis (RO) membranes that have the potential to significantly reduce costs for dairy processing plants.
In 2014 GEA and GE agreed to work jointly to solve the problem of blistering RO membranes in dairy processing that has plagued the industry for quite some time. RO membranes are especially susceptible to blistering owing to the high pressures experienced during the process. The problem can also occur in nanofiltration (NF) and ultrafiltration (UF) membranes when used in some applications.
These blisters pose a risk since they can harbor microorganisms and, when discovered during routine USDA (United Stated Department of Agriculture) inspections, can result in the plant being shut down immediately until the membranes have been replaced. Not only are the membranes themselves expensive, the cost of an unscheduled shutdown of the plant can be extreme. This high cost, plus the adverse publicity that could arise, have made the avoidance of blisters a key ambition in the industry for 30 years or more.
Following the GEA initiative, GE set about enhancing their RO membranes to stop blistering. GEA, with the cooperation of an end user, provided testing and evaluation facilities allowing membranes to work under operational conditions for over one year in GEA equipment. Applications tested included whey concentration and water recovery operations and several different membrane formulations were used during the test period. During testing, the final revision of membranes showed prevention of blistering.
“Our customer, just like many others, had been having a problem with the blistering of RO membranes for some time,” explains Mike Roberts, GEA Process Engineer. “By joining forces and working closely with GE we have been able to provide a solution that enhances GE’s product range giving it a competitive edge, reduces costs for our customers and helps to prevent the risk of product contamination. It also means that the USDA is happy – which has got to be a good thing!"
Mike Roberts continues by thanking his customer for its cooperation and congratulating GE for its ingenuity and perseverance in solving a problem that has existed in the industry for many years. “We were the intermediary,” he says. “The customer used our equipment which, in turn, used GE membranes. It shows that through cooperation it’s often possible to achieve remarkable results.”
Fred Liberatore, Global Commercial Director at GE explains, “Partnering GE’s technology with GEA’s processing knowledge to ultimately reduce product contamination is in everyone’s interest, especially the consumers.”
The improved ’Blister Free RO Membranes’ are available from GE since November
GEA and A&P Group have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) regarding a cooperative partnership for the promotion of the ballast water treatment system GEA BallastMaster marineX at the marine trade fair SMM in Hamburg, Germany. The MoU with A&P Group covers the complete requirement from vessel survey, supply, installation, commissioning and service of the GEA BallastMaster marineX system by A&P Group.
The newest version of the system as just released, features an in-line driver design, incorporated junction box and increased power supply range. These new features reduce the installation footprint by approximately 30 percent and the mechanical and electrical installation requirements significantly on any refit or newbuild project.
GEA compressors fulfill the high maritime demands for many years already. They help to provide a comfortable climate in cabins, keep provisions cooled and are additionally used in many other applications. GEA compressors also work reliably on container ships, passenger ships or fishing boats.
High efficiency does not need to come at the expense of durability, as GEA proves with the piston compressors of the semi-hermetic series GEA Bock HG44e and GEA Bock F16.
The F-series includes open, single-stage compressors with 2, 4 or 6 cylinders that are designed for common synthetic refrigerants (e.g. R134a, R404A, R507, R407C, R22). The maximum displacement volumes are 12,6 to 214,1 m³/h (1.740 1/min). They are optionally driven directly via a coupling or with a V-belt. Due to the high-volume oil sump as well as the reliable oil pump independent of rotating direction, the use in a wide speed range is possible. A stable drive, the successful mass compensation and the low pulsation contributes to the robustness and calm operation. The F-series runs without any problems even at short-term inclinations of up to 30° in both axes, making it perfect for marine use.
GEA Piston compressors HG44e/770-4 S
The semi-hermetic piston compressors HG44e represent a broadly set-up series of suction gas cooled compressors with maximum displacement volumes from about 6,5 to 337,5 m³/h (at 60 Hz). Therefore the series cover the whole refrigeration and air conditioning requirements on ships, from cabin cooling to provision cooling. The optimized semi-hermetic compressors benefit from a cutting-edge valve plate system, highly efficient electrical motors and an improved gas flow as compared to the predecessors.
We dare for dairy… So do you? As one of the major players in dairy GEA sponsors the IDF World Dairy Summit 2016
The global dairy community is invited to discuss future solutions of the dynamic global dairy sector.
Date: October 16 – 21, 2016Location: Conference Centre De Doelen, Rotterdam, The NetherlandsFinding GEA: booth no. 11
How can we increase animal welfare and performance and secure the best product quality while minimizing the use of resources? How can we optimize the value chain of milk processing offering added-value for consumers as well as farmers and manufacturers? Based on the motto “From farm to table” GEA approaches these questions from both the dairy farming and dairy processing perspective. Our experts answer these questions on our booth and in two speaking slots:
Presentation Alex Strolenberg, GEA expert for sensor solutions: Dairy Farming 4.0 – How the digital change can improve animal welfare
Date: Tuesday, October 18, 2016, between 03:00 – 04:00 pmSummary: Dairy Farming 4.0 means having smart data instead of big data to the benefit of the animal and the farmer. The new technologies like automated processes, self-learning systems, monitoring tools, and collaborating cross-manufacturer product systems are helping to make the animal health status more predictable and raise animal welfare.
Presentation Anders Sehested, GEA expert for milk drying solutions: Application of sensors and smart controls for efficient spray drying
Date: Wednesday, October 19, 2016, 11:50 am – 12:10 pmSummary: Recent debates on spray drying of milk products are covering process improvement minimizing operational costs, improving product quality and making installations safer. Get to know new methods for efficient spray drying allowing for precise process control and continuous quality monitoring.