LAUDA Versafreeze Ultra-Tiefkühlgeräte wurden optimiert für die extremen Anforderungen der Ultra-Tiefkühllagerung und kühlen sicher und zuverlässig Proben, Medikamente oder organische Substanzen. (Bild: LAUDA)
LAUDA presents Versafreeze ultra-freezers for the safe storage of vaccines and valuable samples
LAUDA, the world market leader in temperature control equipment and systems, is expanding its portfolio with the new LAUDA Versafreeze product line. This consists of high-quality ultra-freezers which have been optimized for the extreme requirements of deep-freeze storage. LAUDA thereby meets the requirements of vaccine producers, pharmaceutical service providers, vaccination centers and universities for the safe storage of temperature-sensitive corona vaccines and valuable medicines, chemical substances or biological samples. With a temperature range from 0 to -85 °C, LAUDA Versafreeze ultra-freezers provide state-of-the-art refrigeration technology, excellent insulating properties and the greatest possible protection, thanks to password-protected access rights and secure monitoring via the LAUDA Cloud.
Deep-freeze appliances with cutting-edge insulation technology
LAUDA Versafreeze freezer cabinets and chest freezers use a combination of vacuum insulation panels, thermofoil and diffusion-resistant foamed polyurethane insulation to protect against warming. This high-grade combination enables economical energy consumption, an excellent temperature homogeneity and consistency as well as short pull-down and maximum warm-up times. The insulation is also thinner with the same or even improved properties, leaving more space for the chamber. In the design, LAUDA relies uncompromisingly on components of the highest quality, such as vacuum panels from va-Q-tec, compressors from Embraco or controllers from Störk. After all, quality and reliability - and therefore the safety of valuable samples - are LAUDA's top priorities for its deep-freeze appliances.
In addition to this, LAUDA stands for continuity. As early as 2008, LAUDA-GFL was the first manufacturer in the world to set standards in the storage of sensitive pharmaceuticals by using efficient and natural refrigerants in ultra-freezers. Today, the use of sustainable refrigeration technology remains an essential component of LAUDA Versafreeze ultra-freezers.
Safe storage of valuable and sensitive materials
LAUDA Versafreeze deep-freeze appliances offer maximum sample reliability even in the event of a power failure, thanks to long thawing times. The integrated accumulator is a standard feature and ensures that the actual temperature display and alarm functions are maintained for a period of up to 60 hours. Locking systems right through to the individual drawer and inner compartment protect high-value and critical samples against tampering and access. New features of the Versafreeze deep-freeze appliances also include operation via an intuitive, modern touch display with a wide range of setting options, password-protected access rights and secure monitoring via the LAUDA Cloud. This allows critical values of the ultra-freezers to be checked and controlled independently of the location and appliance.
LAUDA Versafreeze can be optionally equipped with a safety cooling system for added safety. These systems protect against an uncontrolled temperature increase by keeping the chamber temperature constant at a freely definable value (-70 to 0 °C) through the controlled addition of LN2 or CO2 in the event of a failure of the appliance cooling system. LAUDA Versafreeze are available with safety cooling systems for either CO2 or LN2 coolants. LN2 is always used when the stored materials may not come in contact with CO2. LAUDA Versafreeze safety cooling systems include an accumulator which supplies power to the safety cooling system and the alarm module. An optional data logger for external control and recording of the chamber temperature is also available. The data logger has adjustable limit value monitoring with an acoustic alarm and sufficient memory for up to 60,000 measurement values with sample times from 1 sec to 24 h. All devices are equipped with a data logger integrated in the controller as standard.
Extensive accessories for individual customer requirements
LAUDA Versafreeze ultra-freezers are characterized by exceptional variability and perfectly tailored accessories. Upon request, the deep-freeze appliances can be equipped at the factory with additional options to increase safety and performance. In addition to an optionally selectable water cooling system, drawer sets, appliance-specific factory certificates, plug-in units for boxes, microtiter and DeepWell plates are available to make optimum use of the chamber of the deep-freeze appliance. Their use guarantees clearly arranged and safe storage of all the sample material. LAUDA Versafreeze ultra-freezers have proven themselves in a wide variety of applications for decades and also solve the most difficult problems, no matter whether they are series devices or special solutions. Special equipment and customized accessories can be flexibly manufactured in our high-quality in-house sheet metal processing shop.
LAUDA bleibt auch 2021 Weltmarktführer. Im Bild: Der Geschäftsführer Dr. Mario Englert, der Geschäftsführende Gesellschafter Dr. Gunther Wobser sowie der Geschäftsführer Dr. Marc Stricker (v. l.).
Erneut wurde LAUDA mit dem Siegel der Weltmarktführer ausgezeichnet.
LAUDA World Market Leader Champion for the fifth time
LAUDA DR. R. WOBSER GMBH & CO. KG has once again been declared World Market Leader Champion in the field of "Constant Temperature Equipment and Systems for Precise Temperature Generation". This is the fifth award in a row for LAUDA. The family-owned company has been represented in the World Market Leader Index since the survey first started. The well-respected index has been drawn up under the direction of Prof. Dr. Christoph Müller from the University of St. Gallen since 2015. Every year, the business magazine WirtschaftsWoche selects the 450 world market leaders in their respective industries in a special edition.
"We are very proud of our repeated nomination as World Market Leader Champion," says Dr. Gunther Wobser, the President and CEO of LAUDA. "Our employees in the two German locations and the twelve foreign subsidiaries work day-in and day-out to drive forward the performance of the temperature control technology and to inspire our worldwide customers with temperatures in line with our mission statement". The fact that this has also been successful against the background of a global pandemic shows that LAUDA is excellently positioned with its comprehensive portfolio of temperature control and laboratory equipment. The company has so far been able to avoid introducing short-time working and even reported a maximum number of new trainees this year. In addition, the sales level was maintained compared with the previous year with more than 90 million euro.
Equipment and systems from LAUDA are used in a wide range of industries, including the automotive and pharmaceutical industries, research & development and aerospace. In particular, LAUDA constant temperature and laboratory equipment is increasingly used in vaccine production and logistics. For example, LAUDA Versa-freeze ultra-freezers are making an important contribution to the storage of the sensitive corona vaccine. "In an extremely difficult year, this award is a welcome and motivating recognition of our performance", concludes Dr. Gunther Wobser.
LAUDA has completed the integration of laboratory devices with the "GFL Technology” quality mark over the past year, including water baths, shakers and ultra-freezers for the storage of vaccines. LAUDA has implemented a strategic corporate objective in the shape of the GOAL (Global Ordering and Logistics) project and has consistently aligned international sales to the needs of LAUDA customers by reorganizing the worldwide logistics and production processes. As a result, the world market leader has simplified and standardized its worldwide ordering process, so that it is now possible to obtain all LAUDA products from a single source.
In addition, the family-owned company is consistently pushing ahead with digitalization, e.g. with the monitoring and control of constant temperature equipment via the LAUDA Cloud in the LAUDA Ultracool circulation chillers or the new generation of LAUDA Integral process thermostats. The world market leader is also further expanding its strategic innovation management, e.g. with its collaboration in the "Maschinenraum", an innovative collaboration platform for German SMEs, and sustainable partnerships with various start-up companies, or new.degree, its innovation laboratory in Sunnyvale, CA, USA.
Dr. Gunther Wobser, der Geschäftsführende Gesellschafter von LAUDA, feiert am 23. September 2020 seinen 50. Geburtstag.
Success through hard work and a pioneering spirit
We are celebrating a big "O" at LAUDA, the world market leader in temperature control equipment and systems. President and CEO, Dr. Gunther Wobser has reached his half-century. With a degree and doctorate in business administration, he is the third generation of the family to manage the company. With its headquarters in Lauda-Königshofen, LAUDA was founded by his grandfather, Dr. Rudolf Wobser in 1956.
After completing his studies and gaining initial experience in an international corporation, Dr. Gunther Wobser began his career as Head of Marketing in July 1997. He has been managing the temperature control specialist as President and CEO since 2003. Dr. Gunther Wobser shared responsibility with his father, Dr. Gerhard Wobser until 2010. Today he is actively supported by the two managing directors, Dr. Mario Englert and Dr. Marc Stricker.
International expansion of the temperature control specialist
An important focus of Dr. Gunther Wobser's work is the internationalization of the medium-sized company. He founded the first foreign subsidiary, LAUDA France S.A.R.L., in 2005, and LAUDA has a total of nine sales companies abroad today. In addition to founding new companies, the business administration graduate acquired a total of four companies, three of which are located abroad. With the most recent addition, LAUDA-GFL Gesellschaft für Labortechnik mbH in Burgwedel near Hanover, Dr. Gunther Wobser expanded the LAUDA Group with a fifth production location and supplemented the product range in the key market of laboratories. The company's turnover has grown steadily from around 18 million euros in 1997 to around 92 million euros today. In the same period, the number of employees increased from 180 to 520 today, with more than 100 of them outside Germany. Even in the current challenging times, the largest employer in Lauda-Königshofen is managing without short-time working and continues to hire. The highest number of trainees in the company's history with nine new additions was reported recently. The global family-owned company is known for fair treatment of its qualified employees and enjoys an excellent reputation both regionally and in professional circles.
A leading role in innovation and digitalization
With his current focus on innovation and digitalization, Dr. Gunther Wobser continues to drive the LAUDA success story forward. He ran the company from the Silicon Valley location for one year as of July 2017 and established new.degree, his own innovation laboratory, which is now part of the newly created innovation team in Germany. A facility was also opened in September in the new "Maschinenraum" in Berlin, an innovative collaboration platform for medium-sized businesses. In addition to directing idea management, the tasks include testing ideas outside the core business and co-operating with start-ups, such as the multiple award-winning heating specialist watttron. So it is appropriate that the pioneer has recorded his insights in a book to be published at the Frankfurt Book Fair just in time for his birthday.
Das Kältesystem Kryopac wurde an die speziellen Bedürfnisse des Endkunden angepasst. Das Bild zeigt die fertige Anlage. (Bild: LAUDA)
LAUDA provides temperature control at -80 °C for freeze-dryer
LAUDA, the world market leader for temperature control equipment and systems, has been manufacturing customer-specific refrigeration systems for pharmaceutical companies for more than 50 years. The company has now completed a cryogenic cooling system for use in a pharmaceutical freeze-drying plant. This enables pharmaceutical substances to be gently frozen at -80 °C. The order was placed by Martin Christ Gefriertrocknungsanlagen GmbH, one of the world's leading freeze-dryer companies with more than 70 years of experience in this field. Martin Christ relies on the expertise of LAUDA for the reliable provision of the deep-freeze environment. A Kryopac Secondary Circuit Unit from LAUDA Heating and cooling systems, the plant construction division of the temperature control specialist, which plans and manufactures exactly according to customer requirements, provides the requisite cooling capacity.
Drugs and vaccines are essential for the treatment of diseases and the health of people worldwide. Since many drugs would only have a short shelf life when dissolved in water, the pharmaceutical industry relies on gentle freeze-drying for longer preservation. LAUDA was quickly chosen as the cryogenics expert for Martin Christ for the manufacture of a freeze-drying plant for an international pharmaceutical company. Apart from LAUDA's comprehensive know-how, the two companies have enjoyed a successful working relationship for many years. "We are specialists for extremely low temperatures and have been able to gain valuable experience in this field over many years", emphasizes Ralph Herbert, the project manager for Heating and cooling systems.
Liquid nitrogen provides temperatures down to -115 °C
Precise temperature control for the freeze-dryer is provided by a LAUDA Kryopac Secondary Circuit Unit, which enables cryogenic reactions to be safely controlled. The possibility of individual temperature control of the shelves and the ice condenser is of great importance in this refrigeration system. But the Kryopac, a heat exchanger specially developed for the evaporation of liquid nitrogen, is the heart of the system. Liquid nitrogen boils at -196 °C and is therefore particularly suitable as a refrigerant for applications which require extremely low temperatures. Depending on the design of the Kryopac system, temperatures down to -115 °C are possible in the secondary refrigerant oil circuit. The -80 °C required for the freeze-dryer is therefore reached quickly and exactly to the degree. Liquid nitrogen is also a non-flammable refrigerant which is preferred not only by the end customer but also by the pharmaceutical industry in general. Other advantages include economic, safety and environmental aspects, such as low investment costs and lack of waste products. Depending on the specification of the application, the nitrogen requirement can be decreased by adapting the control system designed by LAUDA, thereby significantly reducing operating costs.
The heat technology of the Kryopac system is derived from the proven LAUDA Heat Transfer Units used by many customers. These produce a temperature-controlled liquid flow and are delivered as a compact, fully insulated, ready-to-connect system with a control cabinet. The benefit: There are no freezing problems in the heat exchangers here. Precise temperature control, compact design and high plant availability were particularly important for Martin Christ's customer. The LAUDA Kryopac Secondary Circuit Unit also meets these requirements without any problems.
Freeze-drying makes use of a physical phenomenon
Freeze-drying is an extremely gentle preservation method, as the chemical properties of the source substances are not changed. All the active ingredients in pharmaceutical products are therefore preserved. This type of preservation is also used for sample preparation in laboratories, in the food industry or archeology, for example to preserve wet leather or wood.
The refrigeration system of the Kryopac system cools the shelves on which vessels filled with drugs are placed with a cooling capacity of 30 kW at -80 °C and freezes the pharmaceuticals in two and a half hours. Heat is supplied during evacuation, the removal of air by creating a vacuum. This results in a physical phenomenon called sublimation: The frozen water evaporates without liquefying. The drug is dried directly from the frozen state. The resulting water vapor is deposited on the ice condenser of the freeze-dryer in the form of ice crystals. The ice condenser is maintained at a temperature of -80 °C by the Kryopac system. A complete freeze-drying process typically takes 48 hours.
The Kryopac system was initially completely tested at LAUDA and then subjected to a further thorough inspection as a complete system at Martin Christ before the freeze-dryer was delivered to the end customer. However, this is not the end of the cooperation. As a result of the successful working relationship and implementation of this project, Martin Christ has already ordered two more LAUDA Kryopac Secondary Circuit Units.
LAUDA Puridest Destillierapparate sind je nach Modell in ein- oder zweistufigen Varianten erhältlich. Im Bild: Der Puridest PD 4 R mit internem Vorratstank.
LAUDA extends its portfolio with high-quality stills with the ‘GFL Technology’ quality mark
LAUDA, the world market leader for constant temperature equipment and systems for precise temperature generation, has extended its laboratory technology product range with the LAUDA Puridest stills product line. The devices with the 'GFL Technology' quality mark produce an ultra-pure, low-gas, sterile and pyrogen-free distillate with very low conductivity. Puridest stills are used in bacteriological and medical sample preparation and also in the preparation of cell and tissue cultures. They are also used for cleaning and sterilization processes, buffer solutions and microbiological and analytical applications. The distillate complies with the DAB regulations and the specifications of international pharmacopoeias. LAUDA Puridest stills also distill raw water of lower quality, separate pollutants, and reliably kill germs such as bacteria and viruses.
Low-maintenance and easy to use
LAUDA Puridest stills are available throughout the world in four high-performance product lines with 14 single- or two-stage model variants in the form of stainless steel or glass stills. Depending on the model, the devices are equipped with a storage tank and produce 2 to 12 liters of distillate per hour with conductivities down to below 1.6 µS/cm. Apart from their reliability and extremely long service life, LAUDA Puridest stills are characterized by their simple handling in the daily work in the laboratory. The stills are extremely easy to commission and operate. The ultra-pure water can be extracted directly after connection to the raw water and power supply. The devices are maintenance-free, because the glass stills automatically remove pollutants.
LAUDA Puridest stills with the "GFL Technology" quality mark
Decades of experience and technical development have set the standard: LAUDA Puridest stills are developed and manufactured by LAUDA-GFL. The company has been a member of the LAUDA group since December 31st, 2018 and is known throughout the world as a premium manufacturer of reliable laboratory technology. The use of the "GFL Technology" quality mark means that LAUDA is continuing the tradition of the GFL brand, which has been renowned for its quality and reliability in laboratories worldwide for more than 50 years.
Pure water: The Art of Distillation
Distillation is an effective and reliable way of producing pure water. The distinctive feature of distillation is that it only requires the input of energy. Compared with other auxiliary materials, such as absorbents or solvents, energy has the major advantage that it can be easily supplied to a system and removed again. As a result, stills require minimum maintenance. They are maintenance-free apart from regular cleaning. Distilled water, also referred to as aqua dest (lat. aqua destillata), is produced when steam condenses. This "pure water" is approx. 99.5 percent free of salts, organic substances, microorganisms, pyrogens and bacteria.
