OREANDA-NEWS. inge GmbH, a subsidiary of BASF SE and a world's leading supplier of ultrafiltration (UF) membranes and Aquasource, a leading supplier of membrane systems, have agreed to enter into a strategic cooperation effective April 1st, 2014, with each company focusing on their respective competences. Aquasource will choose inge(r) patented Multibore(r) membranes for all types of water, where a UF in-to-out technology is suitable. Within this cooperation, inge(r) will concentrate on the development and production of UF membranes while Aquasource becomes a center of excellence for membrane systems. Both partners target to combine technologies to provide customers with even better solutions. Aquasource provides engineering, processes and applications and selects the best membrane technology for the customers' needs.

Know-how on membrane material is considered to be the key success factor for future innovations in polymer membranes. Since the acquisition by BASF, the world's leading chemical company, in 2011, the Greifenberg (Germany) based inge GmbH has access to the comprehensive know-how of the BASF polymer experts and expands as a growth field the range of products and solutions of BASF's Water Solutions business worldwide.

In the last two years BASF and inge(r) have jointly defined several R&D projects in order to drive forward innovation in UF membranes. This shows BASF's commitment to expand its membrane technology leadership and to become the leading supplier of chemistry-based solutions for the industrial and municipal water treatment.

inge(r) CEO Bruno Steis and Marc Messerli, CEO of Aquasource, jointly summarize the advantages as follows: "This strategic cooperation will allow our clients to benefit from the competence of two leading European companies in developing innovative membrane technologies, with inge(r) focusing on membrane optimization and Aquasource on the provision of membrane systems for water treatment plants."

Aquasource, based in France, is a leading supplier of membrane systems and is part of the Technology division of the Degremont Group (Suez Environment). Pioneers in ultrafiltration, Aquasource participates actively and all over the world in UF projects. The processes created by the own innovation program allow Aquasource to propose innovative, efficient and ecological ultrafiltration solutions for drinking, industrial or recycled waters. Production plants using Aquasource's systems are implanted in over 25 countries, and in over 300 sites.