GMP Sterilization Equipment > Continuous sterilizers

Continuous sterilizers

Continuous culture medium sterilizers for biotechnology & industry

Cutting-edge engineering for the continuous sterile sterilization of your heat-sensitive fluids and media

Designed and manufactured by Actini Group (France), our systems meet the strict requirements of the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and food industries. Our continuous sterilization systems guarantee the complete elimination of microorganisms and pathogens without compromising the quality of your food products or scientific formulations. Thanks to our rigorous manufacturing processes and our expertise in research and development, we provide standard or custom-designed solutions tailored to the specific needs of your production line.
  • Steril’Flex: The modular solution for complex and viscous media.
  • Steril’One: The compact “Plug & Play” equipment for standard needs.
  • Steril’Rent: Pilot-scale equipment rental for your R&D trials and process validations.

Discover our continuous sterilizers

Why choose continuous sterilization (UHT)?

Unlike traditional batch processing in an autoclave, continuous Ultra-High Temperature (UHT) processing offers major technical and economic advantages for production lines handling heat-sensitive fluids and media:

  • Protection of heat-labile active ingredients: Exposure to high temperatures (90°C to 150°C) for an ultra-short residence time preserves sensitive molecules, agar, amino acids, vitamins, and growth factors.
  • Energy efficiency: High-performance heat recovery (up to 80–90%) reduces the carbon footprint and utility consumption.
  • Consistent productivity: An uninterrupted flow rate of 100 to 20,000 L/h, eliminating downtime between loading cycles.
  • Biological safety: Precise control of the sterilization value (F0) to ensure the flawless sterility of nutrient media, culture media, and fermentation wort.

High-strength design & precision components

To prevent any risk of corrosion and meet strict microbiological quality control standards, each system is manufactured using top-of-the-line sanitary components:

  • Durable materials and 316L stainless steel: All piping, the aseptic tubular heat exchanger, and the storage tank are made of high-quality stainless steel to eliminate dead spaces.
  • High-efficiency heat exchanger: Tubular or plate configurations adapted to the viscosity of your liquids (from 1 to 2,000 cP).
  • Certified sanitary components: Network of control valves, aseptic booster pumps, and pharmaceutical-grade seals.
  • Full automation: Control via PLCs (programmable logic controllers) ensuring compliance with recipes, data traceability, and the initiation of in-place cleaning and sterilization cycles (CIP/SIP).
  • Recipe compliance: Guaranteed absolute repeatability of thermal cycles for consistent batch quality.

Discover our range of continuous sterilizers

Models

Hourly Capacity

Technology

Applications

Test Pilot - Steril'Rent 20 to 500 L/h Electric heating - Actijoule (single pass) - Aseptic tubular design - Cooling heat exchanger - Pumps (centrifugal and positive displacement) Product testing • Product characterization • Sterilization validation • Shelf-life testing • Product launches • Small multi-product series • SHORT OR LONG-TERM RENTAL AVAILABLE
Industrial Pilot - Steril'One 500 to 20,000 L/h Electric or steam heating • 100% tubular or mixed technology (tubular/plate) Small series production - Contract manufacturing (CMO) - Product launches
Production Sterilizer - Steril'Flex 2,000L to 40,000L Steam heating - Tubular design for heating and holding - Mixed tubular/plate technology for recovery and cooling Large-scale industrial production applications

Industrial applications

Our equipment addresses decontamination and sterilization challenges in many demanding sectors:

Pharmaceutical industry & biotechnology

Cell culture media, agar, protein solutions, peptides, insulin, and fermentation broths.

Food and beverage industry

Functional ingredients, plant extracts, molasses, flavorings, and heat-sensitive liquid food products.

Fine chemicals

Thermal treatment of chemicals, salt solutions, or specific reagents requiring strict control of biological cleanliness.

Location de stérilisateurs pour industrie Actini Group - SterilRent

Technical Specifications

Utilisation

Use

Sterilization, HTST Treatment, Inactivation

Icone produits

Products

Variable viscosity from 1 to 1,000 cP: Nutrient media (agar, glucose solutions, saline, proteins), Fermentation broth, Active ingredients (peptides, insulin...), Plant extracts, molasses, flavorings...

Programme de traitement Actini Group

Treatment Program

Programmable treatment temperature from 90°C to 150°C

Icone info

Rental - Steril'Rent

Pilot rental available at the Actini site (Evian-les-Bains, France) or at the customer's site

From study to customized industrialization

1. Product Analysis & Characterization

We study the viscosity, stability, and thermal resistance of your fluid. If necessary, physico-chemical analyses are performed on samples to define the design of the exchangers (tubular or plates).

2. Pilot Trials & F0 Validation

With Steril’Rent, test your product under real conditions. This validates the technology, optimizes thermal kinetics, and secures your investment (CAPEX).

3. Industrialization & cGMP Manufacturing

Our facilities are manufactured in France using high-quality stainless steel. We integrate specific options such as DNA removal modules, aseptic storage tanks, or CIP (Cleaning in Place) systems.

4. Installation & Qualification (IQ/OQ/PQ)

Our experts supervise technical installation and team training to ensure rapid operational autonomy. They also assist in drafting and executing qualification protocols (IQ/OQ/PQ) compliant with FDA requirements.

5. Service, Maintenance & Data Integrity

Benefit from reactive after-sales service and our SoBatch supervision system, compliant with 21 CFR Part 11, ensuring total traceability of your production batches. Our maintenance contracts and centralized supervision solutions ensure the longevity and data integrity of your equipment.

A complex cGMP sterilization project?

Entrust your cGMP sterilization projects to Actini Group to secure your processes and guarantee the compliance of your facilities.
Our experts design your custom thermal path and validate your parameters prior to industrialization.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ): Sterilization of culture media

Why choose a continuous sterilizer (UHT/HTST) over an autoclave?

Continuous ultra-high-temperature (UHT) or high-temperature short-time (HTST) heat treatment exposes the culture medium to high temperatures (from 90°C to 150°C) for just a few seconds. Unlike batch sterilization in an autoclave, which heats the product for several hours, the continuous process eliminates 100% of microorganisms and pathogens while preserving heat-sensitive molecules (vitamins, amino acids, agar, growth factors) and generating up to 80% energy savings thanks to heat exchangers.

How does the bridging table allow you to adjust the holding time according to the product?

Each fluid or culture medium has a different thermal tolerance and viscosity (from 1 to 1,000 cP). The bridging table allows you to physically or automatically adjust the effective length of the holding tube (holding time). This enables you to precisely control the duration the solution remains at high temperature, ensuring that the required sterilization value (F0) is exactly achieved without risking overheating or denaturing your sensitive materials.

How does the Steril’Rent pilot unit rental program work for our R&D trials?

The Steril’Rent service provides you with a compact pilot unit (flow rate of 20 to 500 L/h) to validate your processes before making a capital investment (CAPEX). These feasibility studies, product characterization tests, and F0 validation trials can be conducted directly in your laboratories or at the Actini Group testing center in Évian-les-Bains. The pilot unit can be rented for short- or long-term periods depending on the progress of your research and development projects.

Is Actini equipment compliant with cGMP, FDA, and 21 CFR Part 11 standards?

Yes. Designed for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, our systems comply with the most stringent international standards: cGMP, FDA, GAMP 5, and BPE. The structure and the aseptic heat exchanger are made of 316L stainless steel with sanitary components (valves, seals) suitable for clean-in-place (CIP) and sterilize-in-place (SIP) cycles. Finally, the PLC-based automatic control system integrates our monitoring system, ensuring data integrity and digital traceability in accordance with 21 CFR Part 11.