Explosion-protected test in accordance with ATEX standards at GEA’s Process Test Center in Oelde, Germany. Source: GEA

Explosion-protected test in accordance with ATEX standards at GEA’s Process Test Center in Oelde, Germany. Source: GEA

Germany: GEA Expands Test Center for Separation Technology

GEA is expanding its Process Test Center (PTC) for mechanical separation technology at its Oelde, Germany site. A third test room is being added, giving the facility more capacity for customer pilot trials, internal development work, and tests involving larger machines and skid-mounted solutions. Once finished, the PTC will span 3,500 square meters and be able to handle pilot runs with up to 5,000 liters of raw material or media per hour. Completion is scheduled for the end of 2026.

The center has a 70-year history and has produced more than 60,000 test reports across various industries. Customers use it to analyze product properties, select and design disk stack and decanter centrifuges, and validate separation processes before scaling up to full production. While chemical and pharmaceutical applications make up a core focus, the facility also serves beverage and dairy processing – relevant technology areas for producers looking to refine clarification and separation steps, such as juice or beer clarification and whey processing.

Around 800 product samples are tested at the site each year, a figure GEA says has grown steadily. The expanded center will offer more than 120 test machines, ranging from small lab units to near-industrial-scale skids, plus an ATEX-certified room for tests in potentially explosive atmospheres.

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