Smarter functional fibres CFF

SMARTER FUNCTIONAL FIBRES

CFF is a global technology leader in the development and manufacture of organic cellulose fibres for a broad range of industries. Philip Yorke talked to Markus Dreher, the company’s product manager for the filtration division, about its latest products that minimise waste and optimise the purity of liquids in precoat filtration.

Headquartered in Thuringia, Germany, CFF is a privately-owned company that was founded in 1977 and manufactures customised natural cellulose fibres. These are produced exclusively from organic and renewable raw materials. They are used in a wide variety of industries including filtration, road construction, cosmetics, animal feed, pharmaceuticals, building chemicals, industrial applications and the food industry. The company has a global network of sales and service agents that support its international customer base.

The diversity and naturalness of its products have contributed largely to CFF’s success. Innovative technologies combine with the power of nature to create a wide variety of sustainable products. The company’s well-known brands include TECHNOCEL®, TOPCEL® , SANACEL®, DIACEL® and SENSOCEL® . Unique sustainable innovation

Over the years CFF has developed countless products based upon the use of natural raw materials and despite being passed through an intensive manufacturing process, they remain integrated into the natural cycle: ‘from nature and back to nature’. CFF is fully certified to ISO 50001, which ensures that it is committed to an efficient and sustainable use of energy and to the long-term reduction in its energy consumption.

Dreher said, “Our programme of developing truly sustainable natural fibre products is very special and we provide tailor-made solutions for our customers worldwide. The market for natural cellulose fibre applications is growing every year and we are already active in more than 80 countries on five continents. Another unique aspect of our manufacturing processes is that it is impossible to buy machinery from stock to manufacture products like ours. And so the equipment we use has been developed or modified in-house. We are one of just a handful of companies that specialise in the manufacture of natural cellulose fibres and we are one of the market leaders in our chosen discipline.

“We provide sustainable materials to a broad range of industries, the biggest sector is the road construction industry and we also supply products for a diverse range of industrial applications with different raw materials designed to offer different grades of purity. This is especially true of recycled materials where we are able to offer grades of the highest purity that are outstanding.”

Dreher added, “We work in close partnership with universities and institutions and are constantly trying to improve our product portfolio and the sourcing of high quality raw materials. At the forthcoming FILTECH Trade Fair we are showcasing products developed for a range of manufacturing industries, which includes products required for liquid filtration using organic natural fibres. Thus we are offering a clear green alternative to the use of mineral filter aids like diatomaceous earth and perlite and thanks to our optimisation process we are able to lower consumption rates with far less waste.

“There are many differentiators between us and our competitors. For example, we are at the cutting edge of niche and new markets, as well as those of mature markets such as food, roadbuilding and precoat filtration, where the trend is very much towards the use of alternative natural, organic products. As a result, we expect to see strong organic growth in the future thanks to our new and smarter organic fibre products.”

CFF actively practices its ecological responsibility towards society as a whole and one of its most important objectives is its continuous improvement of the environmental protection practiced by the company and its partners. “We are committed to observing the laws of environmental protection in our company in all areas and for the long term protection of our planet,” commented Dreher.

Natural efficiency

In the area of filtration CFF leads the field with its DIACEL® product range. These high-tech products are used as filter aids in a wide range of filtration applications and in direct contrast to the mineral filtration agents diatomaceous earth and perlite, are made of organic, regenerating raw materials. DIACEL® can be used as precoat as well as in the ‘bodyfeed’. These sophisticated filter aids are not only suitable for manufacturing industries in the non-food area but can also be used in the food and pharmaceutical industry. The production standards at CFF set the benchmark for others and its customers trust our production standards according to FCC and GMP.

For food filtration DIACEL® is the product of choice for the filtration of sugar, beer, wine, fruit juice and kitchen oils. Pharmaceutical applications include antibiotics, proteins, blood plasma, vitamins, and cell disruptions. DIACEL® offer many unique product benefits including low consumption volumes, material protection of the filtration system, extension of filter service lives and medical compatibility, which is complimented by environmental compatibility and sustainability. n

Mr Dreher

For further details of CFF’s latest innovative organic fibre products visit: www.cff.de