Mühlenchemie and its sister companies DeutscheBack and SternEnzym have greatly enlarged their facilities for applications research. All in all, the three companies from the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe have invested over six million EUR in enlarging the Technology Centre in Ahrensburg, near Hamburg. Newly extended, lavishly equipped Technology Centre in Ahrensburg that Mühlenchemie, DeutscheBack and SternEnzym have enlarged recently now comprises laboratories covering an area of 3,000 m². In the enlarged flour test center and trial bakery, mills, bread factories and manufacturers of pastry goods or pasta can simulate processes and have the effects of enzymes and other active ingredients tested. One of the features of the flour test center is a pilot plant for pasta products. With a continuous hourly output of 70 kg of pasta and a minimum quantity of only 10 - 15 kg of the end product per trial, it enables Mühlenchemie to close the gap between the laboratory scale and commercial production. Also, the new equipment includes an automatic grinder that enables grain samples to be ground into flour much as in industrial milling. A particle sizer using laser technology permits exact determination of the particle size distribution and thus makes it possible to adjust the automatic grinder precisely. A rotation oven and two shock freezers are available as well as a modern, computer-controlled mixer for preparing the dough, and several multideck ovens. The capacity of the rheological laboratory for conducting analyses has also been enlarged. In the vitamin and nutrients laboratory, stability tests and analyses are carried out according to international standards in order to meet the requirements of the FFI, GAIN and WHO. The enzyme laboratory has also been fitted with the latest fermentation equipment.