GEA Group broadens its process engineering capabilites

Steris GmbH - a Cologne (Germany) based manufacturer of lyophilisers, otherwise known as freeze-drying units, for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, and subsidiary of US-based Steris Corporation - has become a member of the GEA Group's P-Division (Process Engineering Division), and more specifically of its Niro Pharma Systems (NPS) arm, following its acquisition by GEA, and will now be known as GEA Lyophil.

The P-Division, one of eight divisions of the GEA Group, specialises in industrial drying, with spray and fluid bed processing as its core technologies. NPS, in turn a part of the P-Division, is a group of companies specialising in the design and supply of equipment for the pharmaceutical industry. Its other members provide powder manufacture and processing, handling and containment and tableting facilities.

GEA, which uses its Danish company Niro A/S as its technology centre for food, beverage, and other non-cGMP freeze-drying applications, will specifically deploy Steris as its worldwide technology centre for lyophilisers for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Niro Inc, GEA's US company, will represent Steris' lyophiliser range in North America.

'This acquisition is another valuable addition to our product portfolio for the growing biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors,' said Peter Schenk, GEA's executive board member. 'Over the next few years, the demand for lyophilisers will increase substantially, mainly driven by the growth in pharmaceutical products produced via the biotech route.'