Companies like Dedert Corporation are watching technologies they’ve used in the petrochemical industry for years now being applied to the biochemical industry in exciting ways. The company provides thermal systems to the starch and ethanol industry, with a focus on drying solids and concentrating liquids.
“For us, the most interesting thing is seeing what’s happening with in particular the bio-based chemicals,” said Colin Crankshaw, vice president of process engineering and sales with Dedert Corporation. “Our equipment and technology is used throughout the world in the chemical industry, and seeing now that there is opportunity to generate the same chemical products from corn that have been generated from petrochemicals for 50 to 100 years is exciting now. So we can employ our technology into this new biochemical business.”
Crankshaw said new processes to separate sugars and proteins are generating value-added products that used to be considered byproducts. He said the company recently built a new research facility in the Chicago area that will help them to seek better solutions for every possible drying and evaporation problem brought to them by their customers. Crankshaw attended this year’s Corn Utilization & Technology Conference in St. Louis.
Listen to Chuck’s interview with Colin here: Interview with Colin Crankshaw, Dedert Corporation