R&D Drying Systems

Committed to providing flexible, modular equipment to support research and development in the pharmaceutical industry, the multipurpose AirConnect™ from GEA delivers a range of fluid bed processing solutions for small-scale applications.

In early research and formulation development, the availability of the active ingredient is often very limited and there is a need for process equipment that is capable of producing only a couple of hundred grams to develop new drug formulas. In response to this need, GEA developed ConsiGma™ 1, the lab-scale version of the ConsiGma™ concept.

A complete range of technologies for R&D designed for specific applications, our small-scale range covers every aspect of pharma oral solid dosage production, from high shear mixers, fluid bed dryers and single pot systems to extruders and spheronizers, blenders and containment solutions, right through to tablet compression.

With an integrated fluid bed at the bottom of the drying chamber, the FSD™ Spray Dryers combine spray and fluid bed technology into a robust process where drying and agglomeration take place in one single operation. The particle structure thus obtained is comparable to a bunch of grapes. This technology is especially well-suited for food applications, including sticky, hygroscopic, aromatic and heat-sensitive products.

Extending its range of LYOVAC™ Freeze Dryers, GEA now offers both integrated and standalone equipment for the production of small-scale batches and formulation or process development.

In the MOBILE MINOR®, small quantities of solutions, suspensions or emulsions can be dried into representative powder samples, facilitating the retrieval of the process data required for scaling-up to industrial production. It is a flexible and easy-to-handle spray dryer which has become standard equipment in the R&D departments of many leading manufacturers, independent research institutes and universities worldwide.

At the heart of GEA's small-scale and R&D approach is PharmaConnect®, which allows a number of diverse process modules from GEA companies to be docked to one control unit.

GEA's range of versatile pilot scale dryers can be used to prove the application of various flash and ring dryer configurations. We also have several small scale production units available. Various heating sources and product collection systems are available.

The PRODUCTION MINOR™ belongs to GEA’s range of versatile R&D and small-production-scale spray drying units. It is a standard Spray Dryer for which several modules and options are available to configure it to match specific requirements. This includes interchangeable atomization and powder discharge systems intended to provide even greater flexibility in e.g. product or process development.

The SDMICRO™ is a fully functional small-scale spray drying plant designed with the smallest possible spray drying chamber and to retain the same air flow pattern as a production-scale spray dryer.

SMART LYO™ Freeze Dryers help reduce the cost of freeze drying while maintaining quality and performance, making validation and documentation easier and reducing delivery times.

UltimaPro™ Single Pot Processors (One-Pot Processor) offer a choice of mixing, granulation and drying options integrated into one processing vessel. With our help, choose the most appropriate technique for the product.

The VERSATILE-SD™ Spray Dryer comes in several sizes; ranging from sizes 6.3 and 12.5 and semi-industrial size plants of sizes 25 and 50 to industrial size plants. As it is designed to meet the strictest requirements to both plant and product safety it has become a well-recognized spray drying solution for products such as advanced ceramics, catalysts, flavors, herbal extracts and food ingredients.