VOW – Bioreactor

Service Area: Stainless Tanks & Vessels | Industry Type:

Project Overview

In this project, J. Furphy & Sons Group didn’t just deliver the specifications, we delivered a world-first. Vow required a 20,000-litre food-grade bioreactor (designed at 28,500L volume) to produce cultured meat at scale at their Sydney facility. The vessel had to be registered as a pressure vessel with WorkSafe and built from stainless steel 316L to meet strict hygienic, non-corrosive, and sterile requirements. We covered design and verification, 3D modelling, material sourcing, fabrication, testing, client inspections, and delivery of what Vow describes as the largest food-grade bioreactor in the world, warmly nicknamed ‘Andromeda’.

The Challenge

This project had extremely technical components and strict compliance requirements to adhere to. It required engineering a pressure vessel with external limpet (½ pipe) coils for heating and cooling, while meeting demanding design conditions (+250 / -56 kPa, +150°C, hydrostatic test to +430 kPa) and withstanding repeated CIP (+75°C) and SIP (+121°C) sterilisation cycles. Design had to comply with AS1210-2010 and AS1170.4 (seismic), with elastic finite element analysis (FEA) used to assess complex attachments. Maintaining a fully sterile, non-leachable, non-porous internal environment between batches was critical.

Our Solution

We delivered an end-to-end scope with Vow, including cost estimation, formal design and design verification, detailed drawings with 3D modelling, material sourcing, fabrication, testing, client inspections, and final loading and delivery to site. Stainless steel 316L was the natural material choice for its non-corrosive, non-toxic, non-leachable, non-degradable, and non-porous properties. The design was undertaken to AS1210-2010 (pressure vessels) and AS1170.4 (seismic loading), with elastic finite element analysis (FEA) applied to assess complex attachments beyond standard code rules. Andromeda was designed and certified as a registered pressure vessel with WorkSafe, including external limpet (½ pipe) coils for heating and cooling and the 316L construction and CIP/SIP capability allowing full sterilisation between batches at scale.

Technical Specifications

Vessel type

Registered pressure vessel (Bioreactor) with external limpet coils (½ pipe) for heating and cooling

Dimensions

28,500 L (with 20,000 L operational capacity)

Materials

Stainless steel 316L

Standards

AS1210-2010 (Pressure Vessels), AS1170.4 (Seismic Loading)

Additional analysis

Elastic Finite Element Analysis (FEA) for complex attachments

Regulatory

Registered with WorkSafe

The Outcome

This highly successful project delivered:

A vessel described as the largest food-grade bioreactor in the world
End-to-end project management from scoping through to site delivery
A fully AS1210-2010 and AS1170.4 compliant and WorkSafe registered vessel
A publicly championed centrepiece for Vow’s cultured meat facility
316L construction with non-corrosive, non-leachable, fully sterile environment supporting long life with minimal contamination risk or maintenance
A reported a world-record harvest of 20,000 litres of cell culture in a single day, with a 79-day grow cycle from quail cells to harvest-ready meat