100 Years of the Eirich Mixing Principle: A Success Story Built on Tradition and Innovation

The patent gave rise to a mixing principle that transformed entire industries and made the novel end products we know today possible in the first place. Through a series of minor and major developments, the Eirich intensive mixer has continued to adapt to ever-changing requirements to this day.

With a focus on research and development, Eirich has built up a reputation over many decades as a partner and supplier of innovative process engineering solutions for a wide range of industrial sectors. Since then, Eirich has combined an understanding of its customers and their challenges with process engineering expertise and a pioneering technological spirit.

Ideas for a whole century

“We are proud of our achievements and our long-standing presence in such a dynamic market. Eirich proves that tradition and innovation are not mutually exclusive, but rather build on one another and, when combined, are a sure-fire recipe for success. Many manufacturing companies rely on our technologies and value the durability of our machines, which have often been in use for decades. We do not intend to rest on our laurels, however; we are constantly developing further and are also bringing digitalisation into the production halls,” says Ralf Rohmann, managing partner of Eirich.

The first ring trough mixer was developed and patented in Hardheim in 1903. This was followed in 1906 by the planetary mixer, but the success story of the far more advanced Eirich mixing principle began in 1924: for the first time, mixers were designed with driven mixing vessels. The mixers were introduced as ‘Eirich counter-current mixers’ across many industries.

In 1960, the company launched the fourth generation of mixers, the counter-current intensive mixer with an additional whirl blower – arguably the first intensive mixer ever. The fifth generation followed in 1972. The mixers feature an inclined rotating mixing disc, a fixed bottom-wall scraper and a high-speed swirler. This combination ensures complete material circulation with every revolution of the mixing disc, which is what makes the Eirich mixing principle so effective to this day.

This was followed by high-intensity mixers with vacuum, heated and cooled versions, and variants equipped with a wide range of anti-seizing features, in various sizes ranging from one to 12,000 litres in capacity. A 0.1-litre machine is currently under development.

Expertise in cross-sector technology

Originally specialising in the construction and building materials industry, the company has successfully expanded its innovative mixing and processing solutions to numerous other industrial sectors. Today, Eirich intensive mixers are used not only in concrete and building materials production, but also in the chemical industry, environmental technology, metallurgy, foundry work and ceramics, as well as in the production of friction materials and carbon compounds, and in the manufacture of mineral fertilisers, foodstuffs and many other products. Over the years, Eirich has established itself as a global technology leader and has applied its expertise across more than 150 sectors.

Significant advances across many sectors

Concrete industry:

The first Eirich mixer, dating from 1903, was initially developed for the then-fledgling concrete industry. Even today, the company continues to meet the high standards demanded of modern architectural and high-performance concrete in terms of quality and cost-effectiveness, whilst constantly refining its mixing technology. The results are homogeneity, short batching times, high throughput, improved fine distribution and savings on colour pigments and binders.

Ceramics industry:

The development of the planetary mixer in 1906 marked the company’s entry into ceramic applications. The focus at that time was on the manufacture of refractory bricks. The development of the counter-current mixer and the subsequent intensive mixer then covered almost all areas of ceramic production as well as the processing of carbon compounds. Today, the ceramics industry is one of the sectors most severely affected by rising energy prices and requires innovative solutions. Eirich has therefore developed the ‘EcoPrep’ process, which produces high-quality and cost-effective granules that are subsequently pressed into tiles or other ceramic products. Compared with conventional technology using spray towers, the process saves up to 60 per cent in energy, raw materials and additives.

Foundry industry:

Eirich has been a partner to the foundry industry since 1925 with its moulding sand mixers and offers complete turnkey moulding sand preparation systems. Today, in addition to high-quality production results, the industry’s focus is on resource conservation and digitalisation. Eirich has developed an intelligent sand management technology that saves raw materials and energy throughout the entire production cycle and minimises scrap, even in the case of castings. The ‘EVACTHERM’ process combines mixing, cooling and bentonite digestion in a single machine under vacuum conditions. The ‘QualiMaster AT1’ in-line testing device monitors moulding sand quality in real time and ensures consistently high quality by detecting deviations and taking corrective action through self-learning. Data is also exchanged with the downstream moulding line, enabling comprehensive production analyses and predictive moulding sand formulations.

Metallurgy:

In the 1970s, the first trials took place in collaboration with Lurgi (now Metso:Outotec), and the EIRICH mixer was introduced into iron ore pelletising plants. EIRICH impressed with a significantly better mixing quality compared to previous systems. In the early 1990s, Eirich continuous mixers represented the next stage of development for ever-higher throughput rates, culminating in 2006 with the DW40 model – designed for processing up to 1,200 t/h of iron ore concentrate (one full freight train per hour). EIRICH also achieved a higher standard in the processing of sinter mixtures by enabling the homogeneous processing of significantly larger quantities of fine particles and iron-bearing residues. The current trend is towards the processing of micropellets, which are further processed in hydrogen-based direct reduction and in electric arc furnaces. In this way, we too can make a major contribution to the decarbonisation of the steel industry.

Battery industry:

For over 80 years, Eirich mixers have been in use for the processing of battery pastes and have been pioneers in the field of lead paste for lead-acid batteries as well as depolarisation pastes for dry cells. The machines with heavy kneading rollers were succeeded in the 1960s by intensive mixers with high-speed mixing tools. Later, with the introduction of vacuum technology, Eirich provided a highly efficient solution for achieving a completely homogeneous mixture, enabling the industry to experience a major growth spurt. Today, the company has established itself as a partner in the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries and offers new, resource-efficient technologies for everything from development laboratories to gigafactories.

Customer focus for new ideas

“An important part of our corporate development is the dialogue with existing and potential customers. The aim is to identify problems or new requirements and provide appropriate technologies. Time and again, companies approach us with enquiries or complex production challenges. Together, we develop new solutions that begin in our technical centre and ultimately lead to a series production process,” explains Managing Director Stephan Eirich.

The century-long history of the Eirich mixer is thus being continued. The long-established firm is placing particular emphasis on digital transformation. High-tech and digital products are increasingly being integrated into industry solutions, ranging from online spare parts ordering to AI-driven quality assurance for the final mixed products.

With the food and pharmaceutical industries, Eirich has this year begun to tap into yet another new sector and has already unveiled three machines – the Cleanline C5, C40 and C400 – which meet the exceptionally high requirements for hygienic and contamination-sensitive areas.

“Even after more than 100 years, Eirich’s invention of the rotating vessel, with its high degree of flexibility, remains ubiquitous. The pioneering work of the engineers of that era is set to continue as the foundation for innovation and progress – with the potential to take many more industries to a new level or even into a new era,” said Eirich. Source: Ovako