BASF opened a research center at its Verbund site in Ludwigshafen, Germany. This new pilot plant facility houses highly automated experimental facilities for efficient process development and testing of new process catalysts.

BASF is investing a single-digit million euro sum each year to turn a 60-year old building into a cutting-edge research facility. The ground floor has been finished now. Once completed, the building will be the central hub for experimental work with automated pilot plants for liquid and gaseous substances.

The pilot plants can be managed and monitored from separate quiet workspaces or directly in front of the pilot plant via a computer, tablet, or smartphone. With the software hteControl^TM, experimental programs can be visually planned and carried out with various distributed control systems. The individual data systems at the pilot plants are perfectly harmonized. Seamless integration of process and analytical data allow automatic integration and evaluation of processes.

• BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany