As the first supplier of series-produced retrofit units for wastewater treatment plants using the SBR process, we changed the entire industry with our revolutionary AQUAMAX^® small wastewater treatment plant 25 years ago, on April 1, 1999.

Since then, we have expanded our product range considerably and can now look back with pleasure on 25 years of company history as a specialist for decentralized and semi-centralized wastewater systems operating throughout Europe. Our product range includes standardized small wastewater treatment plants, application-specific solutions for e.g. food processing or the tourism sector as well as components for equipping wastewater treatment plants.

Guided by our vision "For a world with clean water" and the ecological challenges of the 21st century, we, as experts in the field of wastewater, continue to be committed to the water resources of our planet with innovative ideas.

Particularly in view of the consequences of climate change, we are continuously developing our decentralized wastewater technology, whether for use in urban areas or for the reuse of treated wastewater. Join us on our journey into the exciting future of wastewater technology.

It all began in 1999, when Markus Baumann and his father Dagobert developed the idea of how to make the lives of installation partners and small wastewater treatment plant operators easier, both economically and technically. And: the price-performance ratio should be more than fair.

The concept of developing a small wastewater treatment plant that could be easily retrofitted into both existing and new multi-chamber pits was quickly born. With the help of friendly specialists and engineers, the concept became the first prototype for a new generation of wastewater treatment plants - the AQUAMAX^® SBR small wastewater treatment plant.

Markus and Petra Baumann then quickly and decisively founded the new company ATB Umwelttechnologien GmbH on April 1, 1999, at that time still with the first company headquarters in the Baumann family's private home.

The first prototype was created in the cellar

On this basis, the first prototype of the innovative small wastewater treatment plant was created in the basement of the Baumann family's detached house.

The first units were assembled several times, tested in the garden pond and modified until, after many long nights and weekends in the cellar, the product was finished: the AQUAMAX^®.

At last it was possible to retrofit outdated small wastewater treatment plants with a modern system without extensive earthworks. Finally, new small wastewater treatment plants could be installed and put into operation without a great deal of effort.

The cornerstones of success: innovation and quality

This objective, enormous courage, visionary thinking, a high degree of innovative strength and consistently high quality have turned a small family business into one of the most renowned companies in the industry with over 100 employees in a very short space of time: ATB WATER GmbH in Porta Westfalica.

What caused an incredible stir and great skepticism in the industry at the time is now an established product throughout Europe with over 100,000 systems sold, the undisputed market leader in Germany and an indispensable part of the wastewater treatment plant market. 

The individual product has now become an entire system of different small wastewater treatment plants that cover a wide range of requirements and are available from 1 (for houses in outdoor areas) up to 10,000 population equivalents (for restaurants, hotels and commercial properties as well as for housing estates and smaller villages). 

The first AQUAMAX^® generation, which was revolutionary by the standards of the time, has now evolved into the no less revolutionary AQUAMAX^® BASIC, which - with the same performance - can do without a complete pump and therefore without too many vulnerable electrical parts. 
Thanks to the excellent AQUAMAX^® system, all systems can even be upgraded - for denitrification and, most recently, even for wastewater disinfection through hygienization with ultraviolet light.