We released the Elara because we thought cold ethanol extraction was the most effective way to make distillate at high volume. We spent a long time working on the centrifuge shaft seal, so we released it much later than we expected. By then, we were finishing the development of PureFlow N2 nitrogen assist for our BHO systems. PureFlow N2 increases the throughput of our BHO extractors so much that the Oberon extractor was pushing into the throughput range of the Elara (ethanol) system. Plus, during that time, people started isolating THCA in centrifuges. If you can make a THCA isolate from BHO at the same throughput and cost (Cap Ex plus operating costs) as ethanol distillate, then why use ethanol that limits your SKUs? We essentially made our own equipment obsolete.
For the time being, if a customer has a good reason to only consider ethanol, we will sell them an Elara. But it’s usually in their best interest to use our larger BHO extractor instead. Make a much bigger range of products and make higher quality THC distillate (from THCA isolate). It’s just a no-brainer. We will likely stop selling the Elara altogether next year. We’ll continue to support all the equipment in the field but stop producing new units.