Company history

Our company history is based on our commitment to taking responsibility and shaping change. Read about how we have been using our technological expertise to protect the environment since 1991 and how we are passionate about developing solutions to the global challenges facing industry.

DAS Company

From a purple vision to a global environmental expert

The violet arc in plasma coating systems used in high-tech industries inspired the founders and continues to shape the company's identity to this day. DAS Environmental Expert GmbH (DAS EE) was founded in 1991 as “Dünnschicht-Anlagen-Systeme GmbH.” Later, the acronym was translated as “Dresden Abatement Systems” to reflect the company's international orientation. As the company grew, the name also developed into a strong brand with international appeal. Today, DAS EE stands for comprehensive expertise in environmental technology.

Environmental Experts

The claim underscores the company's commitment to creating solutions for a clean and livable future. Innovation and responsibility go hand in hand. A technological vision has grown into a global company that is passionately committed to protecting our environment.

Dr. Horst Reichardt und sein Sohn René Reichardt
Dr. Horst Reichardt and CEO René Reichardt

A family business in the truest sense of the word

The story of DAS Environmental Experts is one of vision, courage, and family spirit. Founded in Dresden in 1991 by Dr. Horst Reichardt and Lothar Ritter, an idea grew into an internationally successful company dedicated to clean air in high-tech industries. Their passion for physics, inventive spirit, and over fifteen patents laid the foundation for innovation with a global impact. In 2005, Horst Reichardt's pioneering work was honored with the prestigious European SEMI Award.

In 2016, he handed over the reins to his son René Reichardt, who successfully continued to develop DAS EE. Today, the company is financially independent, owner-managed, and firmly in family hands.

Responsibility. Thinking ahead. Shaping change.

What makes it special is not only the technology, but also the attitude behind it: responsibility, forward thinking, and the will to bring about real change—in the company's 12 core industries, in major social changes, and at all locations worldwide.

In the high-tech industry

Since the early 1990s, DAS EE has been accompanying the rapid development of the semiconductor industry with a courage to innovate and a clear focus on environmental protection. At a time when microchips were becoming smaller and more powerful, the challenges of clean production were also growing. Process exhaust gases containing highly reactive or toxic substances had to be treated safely. This is exactly where DAS EE came in. With its patented ESCAPE technology, the company developed the first system that captures and neutralizes harmful gases directly at the source.

DAS EE recognized the changes in the industry early on and responded with a series of new systems for cleaning exhaust gases of particles, nitrogen oxides, and greenhouse gases. Whether burners, scrubbers, dry burners, or particle separators—the Dresden-based company has created technologies that are now used by the world's leading chip manufacturers. DAS EE took advantage of the global rise of the solar industry early on and adapted its solutions accordingly. Another milestone followed in 2006 with the expansion into technologies for industrial and municipal wastewater treatment. This was an important step toward a holistic environmental strategy.

Comprehensive technology portfolio

The company now offers a total of eleven product families in five technology groups for waste gas treatment. The portfolio is rounded off by a comprehensive range of products and services for water purification, heat recovery from wastewater, and water recycling/reuse.

Milestones Technology

1993
Start: The first burn-wet system (ESCAPE)

ESCAPE (burner/scrubber)

1999
AQUABATE: Market entry of wet scrubbers

AQUABATE (scrubber)

2005
GIANT: Burn-Wet-System

GIANT (burner/scrubber)

2006
TFR: Biological wastewater treatment

TFR (biological wastewater treatment)

2007
EDC: Compact solution (burn-wet)

EDC (burner/scrubber)

2008
UPTIMUM: Efficiency in burn-wet design

UPTIMUM (burner/scrubber)

2011
JUNIPER: Special dust filter for exhaust air

JUNIPER (dust filter)

2013
SALIX: Modular wet scrubber system

SALIX (washer)

2014
STYRAX: New Burn-Wet System

STYRAX (burner/scrubber)

2015
Dry burner and heat exchanger
  • MBR (membrane bioreactor)

  • E-Plate (heat exchanger)

  • LARCH (dry burner)

2017
MBBR: Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor

MBBR (Moving Bed Bioreactor)

2018
IPAX: Integrated exhaust gas/water system

IPAX (gas scrubber with MBBR-based water treatment)

2019
Point-of-use: Water recycling filter module

Water treatment plant (point-of-use) Filtration module for water reuse from burner/scrubber systems

2024
Intensity of innovation
  • Expansion of the Burn-Wet systems portfolio to include compatibility with hydrogen-based operation

  • TSUGA (catalysis)

  • SALVINIA (standardized floating bed biology reactors)

  • TILIA (burner/scrubber)

  • DALEA and RDC (particle separators)

2025
Innovation: Plasma-based operation

Expansion of the Burn Wet Systems portfolio to include compatibility with plasma-based operation.

International and intercultural orientation

Proximity to customers has always been a key to success. DAS EE expanded its sales and service organizations specifically into Asia and North America in order to be present where the largest semiconductor factories are located. In Taiwan, China, Singapore, Malaysia, Korea, Japan, and the USA, the company is one of the most important suppliers of environmental technology solutions.

Milestones in internationalization

1991
Europe

Founded in Germany (Dresden)

2014
America

Establishment of a branch office in the USA

1994 – 2022
Asia
  • Taiwan (1994)

  • Hong Kong (2002)

  • Malaysia (2003)

  • China (2007)

  • Singapore (2014)

  • Korea (2018)

  • Japan (2022)

Technological vision and global presence

In 2006, another significant step was taken with the expansion of the portfolio to include industrial wastewater treatment. DAS EE thus developed from a specialist in exhaust air systems to a strategic partner for sustainable chip production. Today, DAS EE stands for customer-specific solutions in air and water purification, the highest quality standards, and reliable partnerships. With over 950 employees worldwide, technological vision, and a deep understanding of the industry's requirements, DAS EE is an integral part of the global semiconductor industry as well as solar, LED, and MEMS manufacturing. A company that not only reacts, but thinks ahead and actively shapes what will matter tomorrow.

Involvement in the Dresden region and in the Silicon Saxon industry association

DAS Environmental Experts has strong ties to Dresden and has been actively shaping the development of sustainable environmental technologies for over 30 years. What started as a small team of ten employees has grown into an internationally active company. With innovative strength, technological vision, and a clear commitment to the region, DAS EE is driving industrial change. At its headquarters in Dresden, the company is continuously investing, most recently in a modern technology campus, new production facilities, flexible workspaces, and sustainable infrastructure. A key factor in its success is its strong involvement in the Silicon Saxony high-tech network. CEO René Reichardt contributes his experience as a member of the extended executive committee. He is particularly committed to sustainability, strengthening small and medium-sized enterprises, and promoting young talent. DAS EE also takes on responsibility at the international level. In the European semiconductor association SEMI, Reichardt promotes the possibilities of a sustainable industry worldwide and successful industry development in Silicon Saxony.