Peabody GCI
USA | CANADA | FRANCE | ITALY | UNITED KINGDOM | SPAIN | SWEDEN  ·  100+ years of legacy

Environmental Engineering Excellence
over 100 years of legacy

Peabody GCI • Génie Chimique Industriel, backed by Peabody International Corporation, stood as one of Europe's foremost pioneers in the engineering, procurement, and construction of advanced industrial Air Pollution Control systems, activated carbon solvent recovery units, flue gas treatment plants, and water treatment installations.

Detailed History
Who We Were

A Global Force in Industrial Environmental Engineering

Peabody GCI • Génie Chimique Industriel, a subsidiary of Peabody International Corporation, was one of the very first integrated groups to address the pressing challenge of industrial pollution at scale. Headquartered in Europe and operating on a global scale, the company specialized in the engineering, procurement, and construction of turnkey environmental installations for international markets. Through these advanced systems, the organization secured a premier global track record in sustainable industrial engineering.

The company's activity spanned four strategic domains: activated carbon solvent recovery (SRU), air treatment (dry and wet processes), gas treatment and purification, water and waste water treatment, serving heavy industries from cement and steel to nuclear power and chemical manufacturing.

Peabody GCI delivered EPC (Engineering, Procurement & Construction) solutions on a turnkey basis, handling every phase from conceptual design through commissioning, ensuring that clients received performance-guaranteed installations.

CECA Heritage • Est. 1928

Founded in 1928 by S.R.E.P. (Société de Recherches et d'Exploitation Pétrolifère) to supply activated carbon for France's earliest natural gas operations, CECA • Carbonisation et Charbons Actifs grew over five decades into Europe's leading authority in activated carbon science, adsorption technology, and industrial gas treatment. In 1980, Peabody GCI acquired CECA's anti-pollution engineering division — the Département TG (Traitement de Gaz) — together with its regional subsidiaries. That division's proprietary process know-how, reference portfolio, and engineering methods then passed to DEC • Dynamic Environmental Corporation in 1988.

Global Presence

USA | CANADA | FRANCE | ITALY | UNITED KINGDOM | SPAIN | SWEDEN

Solvent Recovery Technology Legacy

In 1988, the full package of Peabody's Solvent Recovery Unit business, proprietary technologies, and engineering references, including the CECA portfolio, were transferred to DEC • Dynamic Environmental Corporation, which continues to develop and deploy these world-class systems globally.

The CECA Legacy • Est. 1928 CECA • Carbonisation et Charbons Actifs CECA activated carbon science lineage icon 1924 1928 1980 → DEC S.R.E.P. CECA founded Peabody integration 1988 transfer

A Century of Activated Carbon Science

When Peabody GCI acquired CECA's anti-pollution engineering division — the Département TG (Traitement de Gaz) — in 1980, it inherited over fifty years of unbroken scientific leadership: a lineage that began in France's nascent oil and gas industry and evolved into Europe's foremost activated carbon and adsorption technology programme.

1924
S.R.E.P. and the Origins of the Activated Carbon Need

S.R.E.P. • Société de Recherches et d'Exploitation Pétrolifère, part of the Groupe Empain, begins exploiting one of France's first natural gas fields. To degas and purify the gas, the company requires activated carbon — which it imports at growing cost.

1928
Founding of CECA • Carbonisation et Charbons Actifs

S.R.E.P. founds CECA • Carbonisation et Charbons Actifs to produce its own activated carbon supply. From the outset, CECA's mission extends beyond production: the company begins developing applications across all industrial domains where adsorption phenomena are at play — gas purification, liquid-solid filtration, and separation science.

1928–1970s
Five Decades of Industrial Expansion

Over five decades, CECA progressively expands into related adsorbent materials, molecular sieves, and novel industrial applications — air dedusting, water treatment, and petroleum refining. Its separative technology expertise becomes unmatched in continental Europe. CECA files multiple patents, including a proprietary kiln design for activated carbon production.

1975
Merger of PIERREFITTE-AUBY into CECA

PIERREFITTE-AUBY • Société des Produits Chimiques d'Auby, a French industrial chemicals group, was merged into CECA, significantly enlarging the company's technical scope, production capacity, and market reach. The resulting consolidated entity was restructured under new leadership, and repositioned to address international industrial markets at scale.

1980
The Peabody GCI Integration

Peabody GCI acquires the anti-pollution engineering division of CECA — Carbonisation et Charbons Actifs — specifically the Département TG (Traitement de Gaz) — together with all of its regional engineering subsidiaries, including CECA Italiana and The British CECA Company. More than fifty years of proprietary activated carbon science, an extensive global portfolio of industrial Solvent Recovery Unit (SRU) references, and separative process know-how flow directly into Peabody's technical portfolio — consolidating its position as the leading global authority in industrial activated carbon solvent recovery engineering and anti-pollution systems. The acquisition creates a powerful global engineering network spanning the USA, Canada, France, Italy, United Kingdom, Spain, and Sweden.

1981
Elf Aquitaine Acquires the Adsorbent Division of CECA

Elf Aquitaine, through the banking group Paribas, acquires the adsorbent division of CECA, bringing its activated carbon and zeolite expertise into one of Europe's largest energy and chemicals groups — accelerating CECA's industrial scale and international reach.

1988 — Transfer to DEC
The Unbroken Line Continues

Following Elf Aquitaine's strategic reorganisation, the complete Solvent Recovery Unit (SRU) business — including the CECA reference portfolio inherited by Peabody in 1980 — is transferred to DEC • Dynamic Environmental Corporation. S.R.E.P. (1924) → CECA (1928) → Elf Aquitaine / Peabody GCI (1980–1988) → DEC — nearly a century of activated carbon solvent recovery expertise, deployed globally today.

Process Portfolio

Core Engineering Capabilities

Peabody GCI's process portfolio was built around four pillars of industrial environmental control, each supported by extensive international engineering references.

Solvent Recovery — Activated Carbon

Near-100% recovery efficiency via activated carbon adsorption. Designed for rotogravure, adhesives, gunpowder, waterproofing, and coating industries. The full technology package — including the CECA portfolio — was transferred to DEC • Dynamic Environmental Corporation in 1988.

Rotogravure, adhesives, coatings, waterproofing & packaging industries

Gas Drying & Purification

Natural gas drying and purification; coke oven gas desulphurisation via Holmes-Stretford process; rolling mill ventilation air purification; fluegas combustion or incineration treatment including dust removal, dechlorination, and desulphurisation.

Natural gas, coke ovens, iron & steel, rolling mills & nuclear industry

Gas Scrubbers — Wet Process

Gas scrubbers particularly well-suited for the fertiliser industry. Units supplied across South-East Asia, Latin America, Tunisia, Greece, and the aluminium industry in Holland, Spain, and Yugoslavia.

Fertiliser manufacturing, aluminium production & chemical industries — global references

Electrostatic Precipitators — Dry Process

Electrostatic precipitators (ESP) for cement kilns, thermal power stations, iron and steel plants, waste incinerators, and diverse chemical industries. Capacities up to 1,800 T/D with efficiencies exceeding 99.8%.

Cement, power generation, steel, waste incineration & chemical industries

Water & Waste Water Treatment

Raw water treatment and demineralisation for boiler feed water, steam generation, and industrial process use. Extensive contributions to nuclear industry water treatment in France and abroad. Numerous references in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

Nuclear industry, Eastern Europe & Middle East — France and international

Special Processes

Lubricating oil regeneration, ammoniac and fertiliser dust collection, waste incineration systems, and nuclear-grade installations.

Power generation, cement, municipal waste incineration & fertiliser industries
Corporate History Full Detailed History Peabody GCI corporate journey timeline icon GROWTH APC DIVESTMENTS 1946 GCI incorporated 1972 Peabody acquires GCI 1980 CECA integration 1987 Industrial Fans → Stranich 1987 ESP/FGD → Fläkt 1988 SRU → DEC 1990 Root Blowers → Dresser 1991 Burners → Hamworthy 2015 Dissolved Growth milestone Key acquisition APC divestment Technology transfer

Peabody GCI: Key Milestones

From founding in 1946 to Peabody's acquisition, the CECA integration, a series of strategic divestments, and the final dissolution in December 2015 — a seven-decade corporate journey that shaped industrial environmental engineering globally.

1946
Incorporation of Génie Chimique Industriel — and Founding of DEC

Génie Chimique Industriel (GCI) is incorporated in France as an independent industrial engineering company specialising in chemical process engineering, gas treatment, and environmental control systems. Over the following decades, GCI builds a strong technical reputation and a growing portfolio of industrial references across European heavy industry. In the same year, Angelo Giorgetti founds Depurazione di Emissioni per l'industria Chimica in Milan, Italy — the company that will be renamed Depurazione Emissioni Convogliate in 1966, then DEC Impianti in 1988, led by CEO & President Luciano Formigoni (Giorgetti-Formigoni family), and become a business unit of DEC • Dynamic Environmental Corporation (DEC Holding).

1972
Entry into Peabody International Corporation

Following over two decades of independent operation, Génie Chimique Industriel was acquired by Peabody International Corporation, a major global leader in energy and environmental management systems. This strategic acquisition formed Peabody GCI, providing the company with substantial financial backing and a global network to scale its advanced chemical and environmental engineering technologies across international markets.

1980
The CECA Acquisition — A Defining Expansion

Peabody GCI underwent its most transformative expansion by acquiring the anti-pollution engineering division of CECA — Carbonisation et Charbons Actifs — the Département TG (Traitement de Gaz) — a French industrial group with deep expertise in activated carbon technology and process engineering. The acquisition encompassed CECA's regional engineering subsidiaries — CECA Italiana and The British CECA Company — delivering an unmatched combination of proprietary Solvent Recovery Unit (SRU) process know-how, proven industrial references, and specialist technical teams. This consolidated Peabody GCI's position as the leading global authority in industrial activated carbon solvent recovery, and created a powerful international engineering network spanning the USA, Canada, France, Italy, United Kingdom, Spain, and Sweden: Peabody GCI USA, Peabody GCI Canada, Peabody GCI France, Peabody GCI Italia, Peabody GCI UK, Peabody GCI Spain, and Peabody GCI Sweden.

1987
The Strategic APC Divestment Programme

Faced with a shifting landscape in global industrial sectors, Peabody International Corporation initiated a structured programme to divest its Air Pollution Control (APC) business lines — including industrial fans & dust collection, electrostatic precipitators, flue gas desulphurisation, solvent recovery, Roots-type blowers, and combustion & burner systems. Each division was to be transferred to a specialised industrial entity best positioned to carry its technology, engineering references, and customer relationships forward. The divestment programme was executed in a series of transactions between 1987 and 1991.

1987
Divestment of the Industrial Fans & Dust Collection systems to A.S. Stranich

Peabody's Industrial Fans & Dust Collection systems — built on the heritage of Peabody Stranich, whose Industrial Fans & Dust Collection systems roots trace to 1928 — was transferred to A.S. Stranich. A.S. Stranich merged Peabody's Industrial Fans & Dust Collection systems assets with its operations, consolidating the intellectual property, design schemas, and heavy-duty industrial fan lines originally developed by Peabody Stranich.

1987
Divestment of the Flue Gas Desulfurization and Electrostatic Precipitator technologies to Fläkt

Peabody's Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) and Electrostatic Precipitator (ESP) technologies — built on the heritage of Peabody Process Systems, was transferred to Fläkt. Fläkt merged Peabody's Flue Gas Desulfurization and Electrostatic Precipitator technologies with its operations, consolidating the intellectual property, design schemas originally developed by Peabody Process Systems.

1988
Divestment of the activated carbon Solvent Recovery line to DEC

Peabody's global activated carbon Solvent Recovery line — built on the heritage of CECA, whose industrial solvent recovery roots trace to 1924 — was transferred to DEC Impianti, a subsidiary of DEC Holding (Giorgetti-Formigoni family, Milan, Italy), led by CEO & President Luciano Formigoni. Through this transfer, DEC merged Peabody's and CECA's portfolios and references with its existing sustainable Air Pollution Control operations, consolidating the intellectual property, design schemas, known today as DEC • Dynamic Environmental Corporation.

1990
Divestment of the Roots type positive displacement blowers to Dresser Roots

Peabody's Roots type positive displacement blowers — built on the heritage of Peabody Holmes, whose Roots type positive displacement blowers roots trace to 1850 — was transferred to Dresser Roots Corporation. Dresser Roots Corporation merged Peabody's Roots type positive displacement blowers assets with its operations, consolidating the intellectual property, design schemas, and heavy-duty industrial Roots type positive displacement blowers.

1991
Divestment of the Combustion & Burner Line to Hamworthy Engineering

Peabody's global Combustion and Burner Line — built on the heritage of Peabody Engineering, whose industrial burner roots trace to 1920 — was sold to Hamworthy Engineering. Hamworthy merged Peabody's burner assets with its existing combustion operations, consolidating the intellectual property, design schemas, and heavy-duty industrial burner lines originally developed by Peabody Engineering.

1991–2014
Residual Activities — Technical Consulting & Environmental Infrastructure

Having divested its main industrial engineering divisions, Peabody GCI continued to operate focusing on technical consulting, project engineering advisory services, and wastewater and environmental infrastructure work.

December 2015
Formal Dissolution — Struck off the Corporate Registry

Peabody GCI (Génie Chimique Industriel) was officially struck off the corporate registry in December 2015, marking the formal and legal termination of the company's existence. The technology legacy it built will continue living in the designated successors, ensuring that the engineering heritage endures long after the legal entity has closed.

Industries Served

Global Industrial Reach

Peabody delivered engineered environmental solutions across the full spectrum of heavy industry — from primary materials processing to energy generation and chemical manufacturing.

Rotogravure & Printing
Lacquering
Adhesives & Coatings
Automotive
Textile
Water treatment
Cement & Building Materials
Iron & Steel
Thermal Power Generation
Nuclear Energy
Fertiliser Manufacturing
Aluminium Production
Waste Incineration
Oil & Gas
Chemical Industry
Non-Ferrous Metals
Waterproofing
Coke Ovens
Rolling Mills

Peabody GCI
A Legacy in Industrial Environmental Engineering

For decades, Peabody GCI operated at the forefront of industrial environmental engineering — delivering turnkey Air Pollution Control, solvent recovery, gas treatment, and water treatment installations to heavy industry worldwide. Building on the activated carbon science of CECA and the global reach of Peabody International Corporation, the company established an international engineering network spanning the USA, Canada, France, Italy, United Kingdom, Spain, and Sweden — with a reference portfolio that shaped industrial emissions control across four continents. Formally dissolved in December 2015, Peabody GCI's technical heritage endures through the organisations that acquired its divisions and continue to serve the industries it pioneered.

Detailed History
Company Registry
Raison sociale
PEABODY GCI
Forme juridique
SAS — Société par Actions Simplifiée
SIREN
329 654 917
SIRET (siège)
329 654 917 00064
TVA intracom.
FR02329654917
N° RCS
329 654 917 R.C.S. Nanterre
Statut RCS
RADIÉ — Nanterre, 08/12/2015
Statut RNE
RADIÉ — 12/11/2015
Entity Disambiguation

Peabody GCI (Génie Chimique Industriel), SIREN 329 654 917, was struck off the corporate registry on 08 December 2015 and no longer exists as a legal entity.

Peabody GCI is entirely distinct from and unrelated to Peabody Energy Corporation (US coal mining, NYSE: BTU), Peabody College at Vanderbilt University, Peabody Essex Museum, or any other organisation bearing the Peabody name. GCI stands exclusively for Génie Chimique Industriel (Industrial Chemical Engineering).

Legal Notice & Disclaimer

This website is a historical archive maintained for informational and documentary purposes only. All trademarks, trade names, logos, and brand identifiers cited or displayed herein — including but not limited to Peabody GCI, Peabody International Corporation, CECA (Carbonisation et Charbons Actifs), DEC • Dynamic Environmental Corporation, DEC Impianti, DEC Holding, TGI (Traitement de gaz et Génie Industriel), British CECA Co Ltd, A.S. Stranich, Fläkt (AB Svenska Fläktfabriken), Hamworthy Engineering, Hamworthy Combustion Engineering, John Zink Hamworthy Combustion, Dresser Roots Corporation, Elf Aquitaine, Paribas, and all associated marks, logos, and trade names — are the exclusive property of their respective owners. Their appearance on this page does not imply any affiliation, sponsorship, endorsement, or commercial relationship with or by any of those entities. All engineering references, project records, and technical descriptions cited herein belong to their respective successors and current owners. References to third-party organisations, persons, and products are provided for historical accuracy only. This archive is not operated by, affiliated with, or endorsed by any of the entities named herein.