Stela Laxhuber

What Stela Laxhuber does

Stela Laxhuber GmbH is a privately held, third-generation family-owned industrial drying technology company headquartered in Massing, Bavaria, Germany. Founded in 1922 by Stefan Laxhuber as a locksmith and sheet-metal workshop, the company began producing dryers in 1967 and has built a 100+ year specialization in low-temperature belt drying systems. Its core product portfolio includes belt dryers (BTU with proprietary RecuDry® heat recovery, BT, BTL, BTF-S), stationary AgroDry® agricultural dryers, and mobile Universal agricultural dryers, with installations collectively processing approximately 43 million tonnes of bulk material annually worldwide across more than 100 countries.

The company's competitive foundation rests on its patented RecuDry® heat recovery technology, which recirculates drying air through a condensation module to deliver 35-50% energy savings versus standard belt dryers and supports a 2-3 year payback for customers. It serves enterprise customers across agriculture, woodworking/panel, food, feed, cement, recycling, renewable fuels, and water management verticals, with named multi-decade relationships including Pfeifer & Langen, Peter Kölln (25+ years), Johann Pabst Holzindustrie, HS Timber Group, Franz Moser, and GARANT Tiernahrung.

Revenue is generated primarily through custom-engineered, project-based one-time equipment sales supplemented by an aftermarket service stream covering spare parts, 24/7 technical support, remote maintenance via TeamViewer, training, and lifecycle optimization. Go-to-market is direct enterprise field sales with dedicated product-line sales managers, supplemented by an event-driven presence at IFAT, LIGNA, EuroTier, AustroAgrar, and Bio360 Expo. A wholly-owned subsidiary, stela Steuerungstechnik GmbH & Co. KG, provides in-house switchgear, automation, and process visualization, while stela Drying Technology Corp. (Atlanta, established 2023) handles North American coverage.

Name

Stela Laxhuber

Legal name

stela Laxhuber GmbH

Website

https://stela.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1922

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stela Laxhuber GmbH is a family-owned German industrial drying technology company (founded 1922) that designs, manufactures, and services low-temperature belt dryers, agricultural dryers, and food dryers with proprietary RecuDry® heat recovery for enterprise customers across agriculture, wood, food, cement, and energy verticals in over 100 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Drying Equipment

NAICS

Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing (33341)

SIC

Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523), Air-Cond & Warm Air Heatg Equip & Comm & Indl Refrig Equip (3585)

akta.pro primary industry

Grain Dryer Systems Integration & Installation (AFAOAHAB)

Keywords

• Industrial drying equipment
• Belt dryer systems
• Agricultural dryers
• Heat recovery drying
• Low temperature drying

Headquarters

HQ city

Massing

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Industrial Drying Equipment Sales: Design, manufacture, and sale of industrial drying systems including belt dryers, agricultural dryers, and food dryers. Custom project-based sales with full lifecycle support from planning to commissioning and ongoing service.
2. Aftermarket Services: Spare parts, maintenance, technical support, training, optimization, and documentation services over entire plant lifecycle. Service department available 24/7 with remote maintenance access capability.
3. Control Technology Systems: STELA Steuerungstechnik subsidiary provides switchgear construction, electrical installation, commissioning and maintenance services for industrial automation systems.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Stela Laxhuber designs, manufactures, sells, and installs low-temperature industrial belt dryers (BTU/BTL/BTF/BT series) and stationary and mobile agricultural dryers (AgroDry®, Universal/MUF) for drying bulk crops, wood, sawdust, food/feed, alternative fuels, and sludge. Each project is custom-engineered with proprietary RecuDry® heat-recovery technology, in-house control systems (STELA Steuerungstechnik), and full lifecycle service from planning to commissioning and aftermarket support.

Product overview

Stela Laxhuber is a specialized industrial drying technology company offering a portfolio of belt dryer systems and agricultural dryers. The product lineup centers on belt dryers (Bandtrockner) in multiple variants—standard BT/BTL models, BTU versions with RecuDry® heat recovery technology, and BTF-S for food applications—complemented by stationary AgroDry® and mobile Universal agricultural dryers. A subsidiary, STELA Steuerungstechnik, provides proprietary control systems and electrical engineering services. All products emphasize energy efficiency, gentle product handling, and customization for specific materials across diverse industries including agriculture, wood products, food, feed, cement, and recycling.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RecuDry®: Heat recovery technology for belt dryers that achieves up to 35-50% energy savings
• AgroDry®
• BTU RecuDry®
• BTF-S

Products and services

• Bandtrockner (Belt Dryer) — BTU / BTL / BTF / BT series Industrial low-temperature belt dryer systems engineered for constant drying results, gentle product treatment, and efficient energy consumption across numerous industries (agriculture, wood, food, paper, feed, cement, recycling, water). Available in BTU (with RecuDry heat recovery), BTL, BT, and BTF-S (food) variants.
• Lebensmitteltrockner (Food Belt Dryer) Specialized belt dryer for the food industry covering cereals, vitamin-preserving vegetable drying, herbs, and extrudates for snacks and cereal bars; designed for gentle drying that preserves product quality and food-safety compliance.
• Stationäre Agrartrockner AgroDry® Stationary continuous-flow agricultural dryer branded AgroDry® for high-throughput drying of bulk arable crops with integrated heat recovery, representing stela's core agricultural drying platform.
• Mobile Agrartrockner Universal (MUF series) Mobile continuous agricultural dryer (Universal / MUF series) mounted on a vehicle chassis for flexible deployment, with a high-positioned dry-material outlet for easy transport, integrated heat recovery, and effective dust reduction.
• STELA Steuerungstechnik Control Technology (electrical and automation services) Control-technology and electrical-engineering service offering switchgear construction, automation, process visualization, MSR electrical installation, commissioning, and maintenance for industrial drying systems, delivered from in-house production by subsidiary stela Steuerungstechnik GmbH & Co. KG.
• Aftermarket Service (spare parts, maintenance, training, 24/7 support, remote maintenance) Lifecycle aftermarket service covering spare-parts supply, preventive and corrective maintenance, operator training, process optimization, documentation, 24/7 support, and remote-maintenance access for installed stela dryers worldwide.

Quantifiable outcome

• 35-50% energy savings with RecuDry® heat recovery technology compared to standard belt dryers
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature6 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• HAVER & BOECKER: German family-owned industrial processing and packaging equipment manufacturer. Comparable as a European Mittelstand specialist serving similar cement, food, and bulk-materials customers where Stela also delivers drying systems.

Direct peers

• Sukup Manufacturing Co. US-based family-owned manufacturer of grain dryers and material handling equipment. Comparable because it competes head-to-head with Stela's AgroDry® stationary and mobile agricultural dryers, particularly in the North American market Stela is now entering.
• Carrier Vibrating Equipment: US industrial vibratory and conveyor dryer OEM serving aggregates, mining, and food processing. Comparable because it offers industrial drying systems that compete with Stela belt dryers in mineral and bulk-material applications.
• Mitchell Dryers Ltd: UK manufacturer of industrial belt and conveyor dryers serving food, chemical, and mineral processing. Comparable as a specialist belt-dryer OEM competing with Stela's BTU, BTL, and BTF-S product families.
• Brock Grain Systems: US manufacturer of grain storage, conditioning, and drying systems. Comparable because it directly competes in the stationary and portable grain dryer segment where Stela has 43 million tonnes of installed drying capacity worldwide.
• Cimbria Unigrain: Danish specialist in grain handling, drying, and seed processing equipment with strong European footprint. Comparable because it competes with Stela's agricultural dryer portfolio across European grain merchants and cooperatives.
• Büttner Energie- und Trocknungstechnik: German specialist manufacturer of drum and belt dryers for biomass, energy, and agricultural applications. Directly comparable as a German Mittelstand competitor offering drying systems to the same energy-from-biomass and agricultural customer base.

Broad incumbents

• GEA Group: German global industrial systems supplier with spray and fluid-bed drying technology for food, dairy, and chemical applications. Comparable because it targets similar food and feed customers with industrial drying solutions and competes on energy-efficiency positioning.
• ANDRITZ AG: Austrian industrial group offering drying and evaporation systems for pulp, paper, biomass, and feed industries. Comparable because it competes with Stela in wood-based panel and pellet-industry drying lines across Europe and North America.
• Bühler Group: Swiss global industrial equipment manufacturer serving food, feed, and advanced materials with drying and processing lines. Comparable because it supplies belt and conveyor dryers into the same food and feed verticals that Stela addresses with the BTF-S food dryer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stela-laxhuber-gmbh

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Stela Laxhuber