EKATO

Modular hydrogenation plant

Modular hydrogenation plant

Modular hydrogenation plant for the production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) delivered

At the end of September, EKATO delivered a modular high-pressure hydrogenation plant to a European manufacturer of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). The system was completely planned, manufactured and tested by EKATO and comprises four functional modules that were installed on site in a building designed by EKATO. The project duration from the concept to the handover of the system was less than 12 months.

The customer develops and produces active pharmaceutical ingredients and related intermediates for the research-based pharmaceutical industry. Success factors in this industry are the rapid market launch of new substances, maximum efficiency and the greatest possible flexibility in production.

«The modularization of hydrogenation plants, especially for production plants on a small and medium scale, offers our customers and EKATO enormous future potential,» explains Hans-Jürgen Weiß, Vice President Engineering. “On the one hand, our customers gain the decisive competitive advantage in their market: The fastest possible start of production (“time-to-market”) after approval of a new active ingredient. On the other hand, we at EKATO can combine the engineering, production and assembly of the skids under one roof through modular process plant concepts. By bringing these activities together, we make optimal use of our skills and resources as a supplier of turnkey hydrogenation plants.”

EKATO has been active in the field of hydrogenation for over 85 years and, with more than 500 active references, offers an extensive product and service portfolio for everything to do with hydrogenation – from tests in the EKATO R&D technical center, the resulting scale-up to system components and turnkey hydrogenation plants.