Fluid Quip Technologies

What Fluid Quip Technologies does

Fluid Quip Technologies (FQT) is a Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based engineering and technology licensing firm that develops and commercializes proprietary processing systems for the corn-to-ethanol dry grind industry and adjacent biochemical markets. Founded in 2012, the company has built a portfolio of patented technologies covering distillation (LED — Low Energy Distillation), grinding and oil recovery (SGT — Selective Grind Technology, DCO, Overdrive, BOS, Amplify), protein separation (MSC — Maximized Stillage Co-products), clean sugar production (CST), wet fractionation (WFS, FBP), and the integrated Flex Plant platform. Technologies are engineered to be combinable, allowing customers to layer solutions for cumulative yield, energy, and co-product benefits. The company reports 75 issued patents and 30+ pending applications, supported by a team of 25+ chemical, mechanical, and process engineers with three decades of combined experience in alcohol plant design.

Fluid Quip operates under a technology licensing and project services model. Revenue streams include technology licensing for ethanol and biofuel plants, engineering and design consulting, construction project management for turn-key plant builds and expansions, and ongoing mechanical services through affiliated Fluid Quip Mechanical. Pricing is project-based and custom; technology investments are justified to customers through documented return metrics, typically sub-3-year payback, with MSC deployments showing ~$0.10-$0.20 per gallon of additional EBITDA. Sales are conducted through direct enterprise field engagement, with named customers spanning ethanol producers in the US Midwest (Chief Ethanol, E Energy Adams, Tharaldson, ACE Ethanol, Green Plains, CHS, Adkins Energy) and beverage and sugarcane-ethanol operations in Brazil (São Martinho, SJC Bioenergia). The company is majority-owned by Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ: GPRE) since January 2021 in partnership with Ospraie Management, and operates a regional hub in Uberlândia, Brazil alongside its US headquarters and a Columbus office for mechanical services.

Name

Fluid Quip Technologies

Legal name

Fluid Quip Technologies, LLC

Website

https://fluidquiptechnologies.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fluid Quip Technologies is a Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based engineering firm that develops and licenses proprietary corn-to-ethanol processing technologies — including distillation, oil recovery, protein separation, and clean sugar systems — for ethanol, beverage alcohol, and biochemical producers across North America and South America.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ethanol Processing Technology

NAICS

Distilleries (312140), Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing (3241)

SIC

Petroleum Refining (2911), Beverages (2080)

akta.pro primary industry

Distillation & Fractionation (Crude, Condensate & NGL Splitters) (EUALAGAD)

Keywords

• Bioethanol processing technology
• Corn oil recovery systems
• Distillation engineering
• Protein coproduct production
• Agritech biorefining

Headquarters

HQ city

Cedar Rapids

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Technology Licensing: FQT licenses its proprietary technologies (LED, SGT, DCO, MSC, CST, etc.) to ethanol and biofuel plants. Plants pay for technology deployment, often with ongoing support and maintenance.
2. Engineering & Design Consulting: Provides process engineering consulting services including process improvements, optimization, and design guidance. The team of 25+ engineers brings decades of real-world knowledge to customer facilities.
3. Construction Project Management: Manages new plant construction and expansion projects around the world, including full turn-key projects. Supports capital projects such as fermenter additions and mole sieve expansions.
4. Mechanical/Service: Around-the-clock service to keep plants running with full-service team of plant reliability experts. Provides maintenance support and Fluid Quip parts to maintain plant uptime.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Fluid Quip Technologies develops, licenses, and engineers proprietary processing technologies for corn-to-ethanol dry grind facilities, including patented distillation, oil recovery, protein separation, and clean sugar systems. The company provides turnkey engineering, construction project management, and ongoing mechanical services to ethanol, beverage alcohol, and biochemical producers.

Product overview

Fluid Quip Technologies is a technology and engineering services company offering a portfolio of proprietary processing technologies for the biofuels, beverage alcohol, and biochemical industries. The portfolio includes the LED™ Low Energy Distillation system for energy-efficient ethanol production; Overdrive™ and Amplify™ oil recovery technologies; SGT™ Selective Grind Technology and DCO Technology for enhanced corn oil and ethanol yields; MSC™ Maximized Stillage Co-products for corn fermented protein production; Clean Sugar Technology™ for low-carbon sugar production; and the WFS™ Wet Fractionation/Flex Plant platform for integrated corn processing. These technologies are complemented by Engineering & Design Consulting, Construction Project Management, and Mechanical/Service offerings, providing a comprehensive suite of solutions for plant optimization, expansion, and new construction.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Low Energy Distillation (LED™) Patented distillation technology that significantly reduces energy usage and downtime for ethanol plants by eliminating the need for direct inject steam. Up to 40% lower energy than competing systems and 10-20% increased capacity.
• Overdrive™ Oil Pretreat System Modular skid-mounted corn oil pre-treatment system that boosts the performance of existing distillers corn oil separation systems, increasing oil production by 5% or more.
• Selective Grind Technology™ (SGT) Patented grinding system installed in the mash cook process that increases starch conversion to alcohol and releases renewable corn oil. Up to 3.0% increase in ethanol yield and 22% increase in oil yield. Currently utilized in over 2 billion gallons of annual production globally.
• DCO Technology™ (Distillers Corn Oil) Multi-stage fiber washing with thin stillage clarification technology that provides additional opportunities for corn oil to be separated from fiber for collection, using a fraction of the MSC protein separation technology at lower cost.
• MSC™ (Maximized Stillage Co-products) Protein separation system that produces corn fermented protein, a 50% purity protein product for the alternative high-value protein market. Provides ~10% plant throughput gain, >20% increase in oil yield, and ~$0.10-$0.20/gallon additional EBITDA with less than 3-year payback. 8 plants operational and 4 under construction.
• Clean Sugar Technology™ (CST) Technology that produces lower carbon intensive sugar streams from dry grind ethanol facilities with equivalent sugar quality to corn wet mill process and >40% carbon reduction. Operating since 2016.
• Fiber By-Pass System™ (FBP) System that removes corn fiber pre-fermentation, enabling up to 10% increase in fermenter capacity and producing a pure fiber feedstock for cellulosic ethanol.
• BOS™ (Brix Oil Separation) System that separates free corn oil from liquefaction prior to fermentation, producing high quality, low FFA oil (5-7% FFA) with total oil yield exceeding 1.0 lb/Bu.
• WFS™ Wet Fractionation System System that removes corn fiber before fermentation, achieving 430-460L/MT ethanol yields from corn, enabling blending with sugarcane as an ethanol feedstock.
• Flex Plant™ Integrated platform combining SGT, BOS, FBP, and WFS technologies for additive results, allowing corn processing in existing sugarcane mills.
• Amplify™ Latest oil recovery technology designed to separate and mill germ to release oil on the back end of the ethanol production process.
• Engineering & Design Consulting Process engineering consulting services with over 25 chemical, mechanical, and process engineers providing insights on process improvements, optimization, and design guidance to ethanol and biofuel facilities.
• Construction Project Management Full turn-key construction management services for new plant construction and expansion worldwide, including capital projects such as fermenter additions and mole sieve expansions.
• Mechanical / Service Around-the-clock mechanical service and maintenance support to keep ethanol plants running, including full-service team and access to Fluid Quip parts inventory.

Quantifiable outcome

• Low Energy Distillation delivers up to 40% lower energy than competing systems
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Chief EthanolcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 February 2026Strategic partnership with Chief Ethanol to revamp, modernize, and upgrade equipment and process systems at its Hastings, Nebraska ethanol facility. FQT will deliver its proprietary Low Energy Distillation (LED™) technology as part of a fully integrated distillation, dehydration, and evaporation system designed to materially reduce energy demand and improve plant efficiency.
• Whitefox TechnologiescoreTechnology or IntegrationStrategic collaboration announced February 24, 2026 to deliver advanced distillation and dehydration solutions to the global ethanol industry. Whitefox supplies its Integrated Cartridge Efficiency (ICE®) and membrane-based technology as part of fully integrated systems combined with FQT's LED technology.
• Green Plains Inc.flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent company and leading agtech innovator. Green Plains acquired majority stake in Fluid Quip Technologies along with Ospraie Management in January 2021. FQT is part of Green Plains' vision for transforming the bioeconomy and building sustainable businesses combining low-cost production and leading-edge technologies.
• Fluid Quip MechanicalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliated company providing around-the-clock mechanical service and plant reliability support. Helps maintain plant uptime with full-service team of maintenance technicians and access to all Fluid Quip parts.
• Fluid Quip South AmericacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional operation in Uberlândia, Brazil serving South American market. Supports projects like São Martinho Flex Plant deployment and SJC Bioenergia WFS system installation.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Crown Iron Works: Crown Iron Works designs and supplies process equipment and engineering for oilseed, biorefinery, and ethanol plants — competes with FQT's engineering and project management scope at greenfield and expansion projects.
• Novonesis (formerly Novozymes): Novonesis is the dominant enzyme supplier for U.S. corn ethanol and also sells adjacent bioprocessing solutions — overlaps with FQT in enabling yield and efficiency gains at ethanol plants, though at the biological rather than process-separation layer.
• POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels: POET is the largest U.S. ethanol producer and operates POET-DSM's cellulosic ethanol Project LIBERTY — comparable as a vertically integrated ethanol operator that both buys and develops in-house process technology similar to FQT's offerings.

Others

• Green Plains Inc. Green Plains is the majority owner of FQT and the largest U.S. independent corn ethanol producer; while not a competitor, it functions as FQT's flagship customer and strategic channel for MSC and other technology rollouts across its own plant network.

Regional players

• BetaTec Hop Products: BetaTec supplies hop and bio-based ingredients to beverage and ethanol producers — comparable as a process-technology provider to beverage alcohol producers, a key secondary segment for FQT.

Emerging players

• Locus Fermentation Solutions: Locus Fermentation Solutions produces specialty probiotics and bio-based additives for ethanol and agricultural producers — comparable as an emerging yield/efficiency technology provider targeting the same ethanol plant customer base.
• LanzaTech: LanzaTech commercializes gas-fermentation technology to produce ethanol and sustainable aviation fuel from industrial off-gases — competes for capital and customer attention in the low-carbon biofuel and SAF end markets that FQT's CST and Flex Plant technologies also target.

Direct peers

• D3Max: D3Max licenses the D3MAX process for corn ethanol plants to produce renewable corn oil and other co-products — competes head-to-head with FQT's DCO, Overdrive, and MSC oil/protein separation platforms.
• Whitefox Technologies: Whitefox supplies membrane-based distillation and dehydration (ICE) solutions for ethanol plants — now also a strategic collaborator with FQT, but historically a direct competitor in ethanol energy-efficiency upgrades.
• ICM Inc. ICM is a leading U.S. provider of ethanol plant process technology, engineering, and equipment for corn-to-ethanol dry-grind facilities — directly competes with FQT in plant design, distillation, and co-product separation technologies.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/fluidquiptech
• Facebookfacebook.com/fluidquiptech
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fluidquiptechnologies

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fluid Quip Technologies