Steam Distillation, Botanical Extraction and Drying Plants for South Africa
Mechotech engineers and builds essential oil distillation plants, herbal and botanical extraction plants and drying equipment at its Hyderabad, India works. Tell us your raw material, target product and capacity and our engineers will come back with a technical proposal for your South Africa project.
- Manufactured at our Hyderabad, India works
- SS 316L product-contact construction
- Pilot trials to validate your process
- Delivery and installation scope agreed per project
Three Equipment Areas for South African Projects
Pick the area closest to your project. Each section links to the product pages and states plainly what Mechotech lists and what is scoped on enquiry.
Essential oil steam distillation
Steam distillation plants for aromatic flowers, leaves, herbs, grasses and spices.
See plantsFruit & vegetable dehydration
Industrial dryers for fruit and vegetables, with the full produce line scoped on enquiry.
See plantsIndustrial botanical extraction
Herbal and solvent extraction plants for botanical raw materials.
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Essential Oil Steam Distillation Plants for South Africa
In steam distillation, live or generated steam is passed through aromatic plant material so the volatile oil is carried overhead, condensed and separated from the water. Because the oil compounds distil with steam well below their normal boiling points, delicate oils are recovered with limited thermal degradation. Mechotech designs and builds complete steam distillation systems around the feedstock, daily throughput and oil specification of each project.
Steam is the usual route for flowers, leaves, herbs, grasses and many spices, but it is not the only one: hydro, vacuum and pressure distillation are also listed, and the right mode depends on the plant material. Tell us what you intend to distil and how much per day, and our engineers will propose the plant family and distillation mode.
- Steam distillation for flowers, leaves, herbs, grasses and spices
- Hydro, vacuum and pressure distillation also listed
- Condensation with oil-water separation and hydrosol recovery
Steam Distillation
Turnkey steam distillation systems for essential oil recovery, engineered around your feedstock and throughput.
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Essential Oil Distillation Plants
The full essential oil distillation range, with plant families by raw material.
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Hydro Distillation
Hydro distillation for delicate flowers, fine powders and ground spices.
View plantFruit and Vegetable Dehydration and Drying Equipment for South Africa
Dehydration takes a controlled amount of water out of fresh fruit or vegetables so the product keeps, weighs less and can be sold as flakes, slices, granules or powder. The dryer is chosen by the form of the feed: pieces, granules, pastes or liquids. Mechotech lists vacuum tray, fluidised-bed, vacuum paddle, freeze and spray dryers, each suited to a different feed form.
A complete raw-produce dehydration line, from washing and cutting through to drying and packing, is not a listed standard product, so it is scoped after engineering review of your crop, final moisture target, capacity and utilities. Because most of the fresh weight is water, sizing starts from a mass balance and a drying trial is recommended before the commercial plant is sized.
- Sizing from a fresh-to-finished mass balance
- Vacuum tray, fluidised-bed, vacuum paddle, freeze and spray dryers listed
- Powder routes from juices, purees and dried produce
Scope note: We list spray, vacuum and other dryers, mainly for extracts, concentrates and process materials. A complete raw-produce dehydration line, and belt dryers specifically, are not listed standard products; they are scoped per project after engineering review.
Fruit & Vegetable Dehydration Plant
How a dehydration line is built up, the listed dryers and what is scoped per project.
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Fruit & Vegetable Powder Plant
Spray, freeze and vacuum drying routes to fruit and vegetable powder.
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Drying Equipment Plants
The full drying equipment range, with a page for each dryer.
View plantIndustrial Botanical and Herbal Extraction Plants for South Africa
An industrial botanical extraction plant turns plant material into a concentrated, standardised extract. The raw material is milled, extracted with alcohol or an aqueous solvent in closed, jacketed SS 316L extractors, filtered, concentrated with solvent recovery, standardised and dried to a liquid concentrate or powder. Mechotech engineers the plant around your raw material and target extract rather than a fixed catalogue size.
A leaf, a root and a flower rarely share the best route, so we ask for the exact plant material and the extract you want to make before proposing a plant. Process development and pilot plants are available through our Botanical Process Development Centre to confirm parameters before a commercial plant is sized.
- Herbal and solvent extraction plants in SS 316L
- Closed-loop solvent recovery on the extraction plants
- Pilot validation before scale-up
Scope note: Final configuration depends on your exact raw material and target extract. Our engineers confirm the process route before proposing a plant.
Herbal Extraction Plants
Turnkey herbal extraction plants engineered around your feedstock and target specification.
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Solvent Extraction Plants
Closed-loop alcohol and aqueous solvent extraction plants across the botanical range.
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Pilot Plant for Extraction, Evaporation & Drying
Pilot-scale systems to validate your process before scale-up.
View plantHave a raw material and a target capacity? Get a technical proposal for South Africa.
From Engineering Review to a Running Plant
South Africa projects are handled directly by the manufacturer. Equipment is engineered and built at our Hyderabad, India works, and how delivery, installation and commissioning work for your site is agreed project by project in the technical proposal.
- 1
Engineering
Process route, equipment duties and utility needs worked out around your raw material and your site in South Africa.
Process engineering - 2
Manufacturing
Built at our Hyderabad, India works with SS 316L process-contact parts and factory testing, with export-ready documentation.
Turnkey plant solutions - 3
Installation
Mechanical erection, piping and utility integration and instrumentation checks. How this is delivered for South Africa is agreed in the proposal.
Installation & commissioning - 4
Commissioning
Trial runs, parameter stabilisation and handover documents: drawings, P&IDs and O&M manuals.
Validation & documentation
Equipment on this page for South Africa projects
Technical Reading Behind These Equipment Areas
Process write-ups and guides for the equipment above, plus how a raw material is validated before you commit to a plant.
Process write-ups and guides
Validate before you scale
Our Botanical Process Development Centre, with Sureka Life Sciences, takes a raw material from lab feasibility through pilot trial and scale-up to plant engineering.
Process Development CentreEngineered in India for South Africa Projects
South Africa enquiries are handled by our engineering team at our global headquarters in Hyderabad, India, where the equipment is also manufactured.
Installation, commissioning and project-support scope for your site is defined project by project in the technical proposal.
You deal with the manufacturer
Engineering and fabrication happen at our Hyderabad, India works, so you work with the company that designs and builds the equipment.
Scope stated plainly
Each section says what Mechotech lists and what is scoped on enquiry, so you know where a proposal is firm and where engineering review comes first.
Validate before you scale
Raw-material feasibility and pilot trials are available through our Botanical Process Development Centre with Sureka Life Sciences.
Engineering heritage since 1997
Semi- and fully-automatic extraction, distillation, evaporation and drying equipment, built in SS 316L.
Questions About Plants for South Africa
Which plants does Mechotech offer for South Africa projects?
Essential oil steam and other distillation plants, herbal and solvent extraction plants for botanical raw materials, and drying equipment, with evaporation equipment to support them. Each has a product page with the process route. Send your raw material, target product and daily capacity to confirm the right plant.
Which distillation mode is right for my aromatic plant material?
Steam distillation is the usual route for flowers, leaves, herbs, grasses and many spices. Hydro, vacuum and pressure distillation are also listed, and harder or more delicate materials can suit them better. We confirm the mode from your plant material, target oil and throughput. See the steam distillation plant and hydro distillation plant pages for the routes.
Do you supply complete fruit and vegetable dehydration lines?
A complete raw-produce dehydration line is not a listed standard product. We design dehydration systems per project and list the dryers they use: vacuum tray, fluidised-bed, vacuum paddle, freeze and spray dryers. Send the crop, final moisture and capacity for a scope review.
Do you supply belt dryers for fruit and vegetables?
Belt dryers are not a listed standard product in our catalogue. If you are looking for continuous drying, send your product, moisture targets and capacity through the belt dryer enquiry page and our engineers will say whether a listed dryer fits or whether the project needs a different scope.
Can I validate a process before buying a plant?
Yes. Our pilot plants and the Process Development Centre support laboratory and pilot trials, mass balance and scale-up before commercial plant engineering.
Where is the equipment built, and how are South Africa enquiries handled?
Equipment is engineered and manufactured at our Hyderabad, India works, and enquiries are handled by the engineering team there. How delivery, installation and commissioning work for your site is agreed project by project in the technical proposal, so please tell us where the plant will be built.
Which approvals or standards does the equipment carry for use in South Africa?
Requirements for electrical, pressure-equipment and food-contact approvals depend on your site and product. This page makes no approval claim for the equipment. Share your requirements with the enquiry and our engineers will confirm what design support and documentation can be provided for your own qualification.
Ready to Scope Your Plant in South Africa?
Send your raw material and target capacity. Our engineers will reply with a technical proposal.
Tell Us About Your South Africa Project
Only name, email, phone and industry are required. The more you share about raw material and capacity, the more precise our proposal. We respond within 24 hours.