GEA Lyophil GmbH

History of GEA Lyophil GmbH and Lyovac® lyophilizers (freeze dryers)

1951 – Leybold in Cologne builds its first laboratory freeze dryer.

1960 – Manufacture of the first Lyovac® pilot and production freeze-dryers for the pharmaceutical and food industry. Leybold becomes one of the leading manufacturers in the field of freeze-drying technology and receives numerous patents for future-oriented systems, e. g.:

• BTM (Barometric Temperature Measurement) to determine the temperature at the ice surface of a product.
• PRM (Pressure Rise Measurement) to determine the end of the drying process.
• TLC™ (Thermodynamic Lyophilization Control) to monitor and control freeze-drying processes without the need of measuring the temperature in the product, and
• Automatic loading and unloading systems for freeze-dryers.

1978 – Leybold converts its pharmaceutical freeze-drying department into an independent business division.

1990 –The Finn-Aqua Santasalo-Sohlberg Corporation. Finland, acquires the Leybold pharmaceutical freeze-drying division as an independent subsidiary for manufacturing, marketing, and worldwide sales.

1992 – The Amsco International Corporation, U.S.A. and the Finn-Aqua Corporation merge thus creating a broad range of high quality systems for the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.

1996 – In May 1996 the STERIS Corporation, U.S.A. and Amsco International Corporation agree that STERIS Corporation will take over all stock holdings and all international activities of Amsco International Corporation. Through further acquisitions, STERIS Corporation expands its range of products considerably, now having access to new market sectors.

1999 – The name of the Hurth facility is changed to STERIS GmbH. The company now offers a complete program of high-quality products associated with all aspects of aseptic manufacturing and integrated solutions in addition to efficient service for the pharmaceutical, healthcare, and biotech industries.

2005 – In November 2005 the GEA Group acquire STERIS GmbH and rename the company GEA Lyophil GmbH. GEA Lyophil is now part of the GEA Process Engineering Segment and operates as a worldwide technology center for cGMP lyophilizers (freeze dryers) under the Niro Pharma Systems umbrella.