IDM ¦ Technology/IT
Gebr. Baldauf & airinotec
State-of-the-art technology for a traditional creamery
"We found the project in Goßholz very exciting.
The requirements in the cheese warehouse in particular
called for innovative solutions. The final result and the speed with
which our plant concepts were implemented show that we are the
ideal partner for the food industry."
Stefan Schlee, responsible project manager at airinotec
State-of-the-art hygienic air technology for a traditional
food product: The traditional creamery Gebr. Baldauf has
built a new production site in Goßholz in the Allgäu region
of Germany. The goal: to create an environment in which
the best quality products can be produced under sustainable, environmentally
friendly conditions. The hygienic air technology for
the new premises was supplied by airinotec.
Germany is a cheese country: 25 kilograms of cheese are consumed
per capita in the Federal Republic. The traditional company
Gebr. Baldauf from Allgäu, among others, ensures that the German
appetite for cheese is kept satisfied. The family business has
been producing speciality cheeses since 1862. The culinary enterprise
began in Goßholz. The hat maker Martin Baldauf was forced
to reinvent himself. Headwear had gone out of fashion and sales
were faltering. At that time, Goßholz was the headquarters for
important cheese traders. So, Martin Baldauf did the obvious thing
– and founded a wholesale business for cheese and dairy products.
Five generations later, a lot has changed, but one thing has
remained: the success with which Martin Baldauf's successors produce
cheese. It was also this success that led the current company
manager Georg Baldauf to consider the construction of a new
building. It is actually a tradition at Baldauf to lease production
sites. After the two dairies reached full capacity due to increasing
demand and no longer met the current energy standards, the decision
was taken to construct a new building. Right in Goßholz, the
birthplace of the commercial Bavarian dairy industry.
High-tech meets tradition
After a construction period of one and a half years, hay milk, organic
hay milk, and organic sheep milk have been processed in a
modern interpretation of a classically shingled village dairy since
December 2020. The new building combines production pro-
18 · March/April 2022 ¦ international-dairy.com
cesses, shortens transport routes and optimises energy efficiency.
Although the basic principles of cheese production have barely
changed since the company was founded in 1862, more and more
modern technology is finding its way into the production facilities.
This also applies to Baldauf's new creamery – which was equipped
with hygienic air technology by airinotec.
Three challenging tasks for airinotec
airinotec, experts for industrial air conditioning and process air
technology systems had overall responsibility for the planning and
implementation of the hygienic air technology in the creamery, the
process and heating rooms and the cheese ripening warehouse.
In addition to the approximately 3000 cubic metres of space in
the alpine dairy and processing rooms, there is another 3000 cubic
metres in the cheese ripening warehouse. After consultation
and planning process, construction finally began in June 2020. The
ventilation technology was already up and running in October. airinotec
had to meet three major challenges in Goßholz: The air conditioning
technology for the process rooms, the air conditioning of
the cheese ripening warehouse and the process air conditioning
for the heat treatment chambers. These three requirements required
different solutions.
Process air conditioning of the heating rooms
The purpose of the heat treatment chambers is to further enhance
the quality of the cheese. Controlled via a temperature profile,
they are designed to guarantee consistently high product quality.
airinotec resolved this issue with the help of newly developed
recirculating air hygiene units in a welded stainless-steel design.
Since the heating rooms have to be thoroughly cleaned after each
production run, the units are designed so that they can be cleaned
quickly and easily with a high-pressure cleaner. The air ducting
elements in the heating compartments can be easily removed for
cleaning.
/international-dairy.com
