ClearFox® History

PPU Umwelttechnik GmbH was founded in 2007-2008 by Dipl.-Ing(FH) Wolfgang Pöhnl together with other wastewater specialists in Kemnath-Germany.

In 2008 PPU moved to Bayreuth. The reason was a specialisation in the construction of modular container sewage treatment plants, which are distributed worldwide by partners under the PPU own label ClearFox®. The traffic connection became therefore a very important location factor. The ClearFox® brand has always stood for modular solutions of the most diverse process technologies, which are adapted to the respective market conditions.

In 2009 ClearFox® nature – an absolute game changer in the sewage market – received all official approvals throughout Europe for market entry. In the following years, in addition to the ClearFox® SBR plants and ClearFox® Retrofit Kits, this domestic sewage treatment plant which operated without electricity began to replace conventional sewage plants globally.

From 2010, the ClearFox® flotation system with improved sludge discharge by means of an airlift was optimised in the production process. As a result, it could be sold as a patented OEM product to plant manufacturers worldwide.

In 2011, the PPU wastewater laboratory was expanded for pilot tests, so that tailor-made solutions can be offered especially for industrial wastewater. Since then, the laboratory and pilot service has been managed by an internationally renowned wastewater specialist.
In the same year more and more parts of the standard production of Bayreuth were outsourced to contractually bound partner companies. The ClearFox® contract manufacturers were provided with special aquaplast tools to increase quality and productivity.

In 2012 the standardised production of FBR reactors and lamella separators in sea containers was started. For the watertight lining of the containers, hollow bodies (inlets) specially developed by aquaplast were used. Since then, the success of this construction method has been based on its high chemical resistance and the absence of any underwater welding seam.

In 2013 a variant of the proven cascaded ClearFox® fixed-bed stage was developed. Since then, this has been used for wastewater with high nitrogen loads, such as reducing the N content of liquid manure and fermentation residues. The required growth media are explicitly produced by a partner company for this application.
Furthermore, the first ClearFox® nature in prefabricated concrete tanks and by the end of the year over 5,000 ClearFox® nature in aquaplast PE tanks had been delivered.

In 2014, the Bayreuth production facility was expanded to include the area of sample construction and test rigs. Here, the ClearFox® wastewater modules, which had been tried and tested in practice, were tested, optimised and documented from a production engineering point of view. The reason for this was that the PPU contract manufacturing companies were able to ensure consistent quality for the end customer.
A focus was placed on delivering solutions for the food and beverage sector. It was now possible to cover the complete range (from pre-treatment to reuse of waste water) by means of prefabricated modules.

Additional storage space was rented in Bavaria in 2015. The product range was expanded to include a leasing sector. Various prefabricated cleaning modules were stored especially for the German-speaking region (D-A-CH). These could be delivered and commissioned by PPU within a very short time. Since then, many plants composed of modules have performed well in Germany, Switzerland and Austria in the case of temporary (leasing contract) wastewater treatment.

In 2016, the ClearFox® FBR (cascaded aerated fixed bed) bioreactor was successfully certified for COD degradation up to 150 kg/(container x d) after one year of testing. This was the only high performance bioreactor in the world, in a sea container, which was ever certified by an independent testing institute. In the meantime, more than 80 of these high performance reactors are produced annually by PPU itself or by PPU contract manufacturers and delivered worldwide. Furthermore, an internationally successful sales manager joined the ClearFox® team, who has since strengthened the international presence of partner companies, production facilities and local offices for ClearFox® products.

In 2017 the proven QuickQNE+ technology (single chamber SBR plant with sludge stabilisation) was also standardised for wastewater treatment plants with more than 5,000 population equivalents. This technology is now also being used worldwide through the global partner network and replaces conventional SBR plants. Since then, an average of more than 1,500 plu&play biotreatment plants per year have been built by PPU contract manufacturers and delivered directly to partner companies.

In 2018 the ClearFox® DAF with Airlift sludge discharge was implemented as a rectangular version in HC sea containers. The size range Q > 50m3/h waste water could therefore be extended more easily to over 300m3/h by connecting sea containers in parallel, daily waste water volumes of more than 5000 m3 could now be realised much more easily.
Furthermore, the development of a biocomponent fibre as a growth medium for high-performance bacteria for nitrogen decomposition was started within the framework of a research project. (Project Biocomps, completion 2022)

In 2019 the company moved to the new location in Bayreuth – Carl Kolb Strasse. Since then, the sample construction, engineering, laboratory, test stand as well as parts of the production and the entire technical processing are located on 4,500 m².

In 2020/21, the office and production at the new Bayreuth location were expanded to include a visitor lounge and a room for sampling wastewater systems.
(Due to the corona situation, this construction will be slightly delayed, the provisional completion date is 01.04.2021). With this extension, international customers will have the opportunity to get answers to all questions regarding ClearFox® products in a pleasant atmosphere. It is also planned to train supervisors, operating personnel and partner companies for operation and maintenance on the property.