Many industrial companies only face the challenge of planning and implementing a new wastewater treatment plant every 20 to 30 years. The project managers responsible for the old plant are often no longer with the company, there is a lack of experience - and suddenly a highly complex infrastructure measure has to be successfully implemented.
In our new interview with Tobias Höfer, engineer and project manager at MÖLLER Medicalwe provide an authentic insight into just such a project. Open, detailed and practical, he describes the path from the analysis of the old stock to the commissioning of a fully automated wastewater treatment plant from ALMAWATECH.
Table of contents
Introduction
MÖLLER Medical GmbH, based in Fulda, is an internationally active company that has stood for innovation and precision in medical technology, diagnostics and pharmacy since 1949. The medium-sized company develops and produces a broad portfolio of medical products and technical solutions, including devices for aesthetic surgery, blood transfusion, biopsy and CSF management.
ALMAWATECH was commissioned to build a wastewater treatment plant in 2023. In this interview, we speak to Tobias Höfer, Project Manager at MÖLLER Medical, who played a key role in the planning and implementation of the plant.
Photo: Our modular CP system ALMA CHEM MCW for the removal of heavy metals, AOX and refractory COD
Introduction & activities
Mr. Tobias Höfer, can you briefly introduce yourself? What is your area of responsibility at MÖLLER Medical?
Mr. Höfer: With pleasure! My name is Tobias Höfer, I am 37 years old, live in Gelnhausen with my small family and have recently become the father of a wonderful daughter. I have been working at MÖLLER Medical in the Production Management department for ~3 years. My core task is process development and equipment procurement for production.
Which projects do you typically manage and which topics do you deal with in your day-to-day business?
Mr. Höfer: The nice thing about my projects is their variance and the resulting variety, you learn something new with every project. My first project at Möller was the procurement of a complete production island consisting of 4 machines. As this was a running change, there was a strict timeline and hardly any start-up curve. We were also able to optimize the process during the changeover and manufacture the product for our customer completely differently to the previous supplier. This enabled us to install state-of-the-art processes such as a USP laser, an injection molding machine with rotary table and a micro welding system.
After this huge project, I brought more equipment into the company, and in 2023 we started planning our new wastewater treatment plant.
The initial situation at MÖLLER Medical
What kind of wastewater is produced at MÖLLER Medical and why was a new wastewater treatment plant necessary?
Mr. Höfer: As MÖLLER Medical has a very high level of vertical integration, the process wastewater comes from many different sources. In total, there are over 40 processes that generate wastewater. However, the largest source by far is our surface treatment, where the largest proportion is produced in electropolishing, vibratory grinding and cleaning. Other generators include several cleaning systems, ultrasonic tanks, polishing systems and many more. Our waste water therefore mainly contains heavy metals and is very acidic. A new plant was necessary because the 50-year-old continuous flow plant with Dortmundbrunnen was on the verge of no longer being able to guarantee our discharge values. Purifiers (which kept the metals in suspension) and an excessively high flow rate due to an increasing number of polluters were pushing the existing plant to its limits.
Did you already have previous knowledge or points of contact with wastewater treatment plants, or was the topic new to you?
Mr. Höfer: I started this project without any prior knowledge. As I am very self-taught, I was able to familiarize myself with the topic very quickly (also with the help of AI tools). I also had 2 chemists in the project team (Sascha Ziegler and Mario Gatterdam), who gave me very good advice. Discussions with suppliers also helped. I would like to take this opportunity to praise Dominik Hoffmann, whose in-depth specialist knowledge helped me a lot, especially in this early phase of the project. Unfortunately, salespeople with a technical background are becoming increasingly rare these days, so I must emphasize this anomaly in particular.
Photo: Our CP system ALMA CHEM MCW Modular installed in the ALMA Modul technical room container. You can see a chamber filter press for sludge dewatering, as well as the dosing stations for our ALMA AQUA operating resources
The path to the right system
When you realized that a new system was needed, where did you start planning?
Mr. Höfer: I always start a project by creating a OneNote notebook, where I simply file everything that comes into contact with the project. For larger projects like this one, I usually start with research and interviews. This is where I collect all the information that will later flow into my specifications. In the case of this project, other tasks were added: I had to find a location, the infrastructure had to be addressed and I had to find out what the input variable, i.e. our wastewater, really looked like. I also wanted to optimize the process and introduce state-of-the-art technology.
Did you know from the outset what type of system you were looking for, or were there different approaches?
Mr. Höfer: As a matter of principle, I approach all projects with an open-minded approach to technology, as this is the only way to find the optimum solution. At the beginning of the research, all technologies were initially on my radar (reverse osmosis, evaporation, flotation & sedimentation). After initial trials, a selection could be made very quickly. A chemical-physical solution promised the best results at the lowest investment and the lowest energy expenditure. Fortunately, the gravitational force required for sedimentation is available free of charge.
Photo: Interior view of our ALMA CHEM MCW CP system in modular design for sustainable and flexible installation. The CO2 footprint of our modular systems is up to 60 % lower compared to conventional hall construction.
Apart from the price, what factors were particularly important to you when choosing a plant manufacturer? Was it technical expertise, degree of automation, ease of maintenance or other aspects?
Mr. Höfer: We didn't make it easy for ourselves when selecting suppliers. In simplified terms, the whole process went something like this:
- We first asked very broadly
- Still over 30 suppliers
- Then came the first filter (phone calls and meetings)
- Still ~14 suppliers
- We then reduced these internally to the most promising ones
- Still ~8 suppliers
- Corresponding NDAs were then sent to these suppliers and the specifications
- Based on the offer performance, the whole thing was filtered further
- 3 suppliers left
- Then there was an extensive benefit analysis
- Each supplier is awarded points in 3 categories:
- Hard facts
- Investment, delivery time, staff retention, distance
- Load book filling
- Every single point in the LH is evaluated
- Does the item appear in the offer?
- If so, how well is it fulfilled?
- Soft facts
- The team wrote down the soft facts here
- These were weighted in a pairwise comparison
- And then evaluated jointly for each supplier
- These were our soft facts in this project:
- Service
- Throughput per batch
- Capacity
- Chemical requirements
- Reliability/robustness
- Spare & wear parts supply
- Operator qualification
- Consumption
- Complexity
- Approval and documentation
- Supplier match
- These were our soft facts in this project:
- Does the item appear in the offer?
- Every single point in the LH is evaluated
What measures were necessary to integrate the new system into operation that we as the system manufacturer were unable to accept?
Mr. Höfer: It became clear early on in the project that the plant alone was not enough! For example, the sewer into which we wanted to discharge had to be renovated, as was evident from one of the EKVO reports. Fortunately, this renovation could be carried out in parallel with the critical line in the project plan. Furthermore, the Gantt chart also made it clear that there were 2 other paths that could lead to a delay: The wastewater permit and the building permit for the container facility. In hindsight, I have to admit that I significantly underestimated the official requirements, but I'm chalking this up as a positive learning for me. I also have to mention that Maksim Milosevic's support in preparing the approval documents was really great.
Were there any structural or infrastructural adjustments that had to be taken into account?
Mr. Höfer: Oh yes, there were. But that was also due to our choice of location. We wanted to position the system optimally, which took its toll. The final location is on a property boundary, which made the building application more difficult and there had to be a building lease entry. In addition, a total of 17 infrastructure measures had to be implemented for the desired location. A roof had to be demolished, a fan had to be moved, a special foundation was poured and measured in 3 concreting sections according to the structural calculations. It was a huge effort, but it was worth it, the system was successfully installed at the target location after the 4 weeks drying time.
Photo: Our dosing stations for neutralizing and precipitating agents, as well as our preparation station for flocculants. All equipment is from our ALMA AQUA product series
Conclusion
Are you satisfied with the new wastewater treatment plant?
Mr. Höfer: Absolutely! Our wastewater is reaching record levels, personnel costs have been significantly reduced and our location in Fulda has been secured by the installation. The operators of the plant are also very happy, which is always the best indicator for me that the whole thing was successful. I would like to take this opportunity to praise Jonas Kaiser, who coordinated the project on behalf of ALMAWATECH. The cooperation and coordination could not have been better.
After completing this project - do you already have a new project that goes beyond day-to-day business and requires your attention?
Mr. Höfer: MÖLLER Medical is growing every day, I've actually never been here without a project. I can't say too much yet, but it also includes infrastructure measures, so I can clearly benefit from the project with the CP system.
The new wastewater treatment plant at MÖLLER Medical
In January 2025, the ALMA CHEM MCW Modular CP system (chemical-physical system, also known as a precipitation and flocculation system) was successfully put into operation at MÖLLER Medical. The system is equipped with heavy metal precipitation, chromate reduction, activated carbon filtration and an ion exchanger system and was installed in a double-decker container to save space. It operates as a batch system with fully automated control and has a sludge dewatering system using a chamber filter press, which ensures efficient and resource-saving operation.
If you would like to find out more about how our ALMA CHEM MCW Modular CP system works and which specific solutions were implemented in this project, take a look at our reference sheet.
Thank you very much, Mr. Höfer, for the informative conversation and the pleasant cooperation!
