Ingredient water system
Through its business unit Solys comes Nurion, a skid-mounted, reverse osmosis (RO) system to produce high-quality ingredient water. Ingredient water must be free from undesirable taste, odor, color and impurities that could be harmful to consumers and to the product quality. This RO system produces top-quality and consistent water for infant formula, soft drinks and more. Its permeate line design and certified components follow EHEDG hygienic design principles to optimize microbial control throughout the treatment process. The equipment pipes are made entirely of stainless steel, with a variable speed pump integrated with automatic control valves, aligned with the automation features ensuring a stable operation and an autonomous reverse osmosis. Permeate flow rate is from 5 up to 25 m3/hr. Veolia Water Technologies; Moon Twp., Pa.; 412-809-6000; www.veoliawatertechnologies.com
Dust-free drum dumper
The Tip-Tite drum dumper is designed for use with poorly flowing or agglomerated materials, allowing rapid transfer of free- and non-free-flowing bulk solid materials dust-free. Similar in performance to open chute dumpers but with total dust containment, the outlet on the downstream end of the dumper is nearly equal in area to that of the drum opening, allowing agglomerated materials and large chunks to be discharged with minimal possibility of bridging. Drums 30-55 gal. are positioned on the dumper platform, which is raised by a hydraulic cylinder, seating the rim against the circular end of the discharge transition. A second hydraulic cylinder tips the platform-hood assembly and drum, stopping at dump angles of 45, 60 or 90 degrees with a motion-dampening feature. At full rotation, the transition outlet mates with the gasketed square inlet on the lid of a hopper or downstream process equipment, allowing a pneumatically-actuated slide gate valve to be opened and closed for total or partial discharge with no dusting. Flexicon Corp.; Bethlehem, Pa.; 888-353-9426; www.flexicon.com
Automated ingredient handling system
DCS (Daxner Container System) is a flexible, automated mixing and dosing system for the production of various ready-made ingredient mixes that consist of a very large number of different ingredients. These ingredients are handled without any contaminations and mixed homogenously, such as flour, crystal sugar, example salt, spices & seasonings etc. The system was designed with regard to cleaning-out-of-place, dry-cleaning and cleaning-in-place. It provides dust-free powder handling and prevention of cross contamination with strict separation of components that contain allergens from those products that are allergen-free. Daxner USA Inc.; Houston; 832-420-2643; www.daxner.com
Great news for ground beef
New high-pressure processing (HPP) technology for fresh ground meat retains the natural appearance and texture during the HPP process. Meat companies, retailers and consumers can take advantage of the food safety benefits that HPP provides, as well as a more natural appearance and a 2-4 times increase in shelf life. This is a viable lethality step (FSIS Directive 6120.2) for fresh ground meat. While still pending USDA approval in the U.S., international opportunities exist. While fresh ground beef is the first application, it's slated to expand to whole muscle beef, as well as poultry and pork in the future. JBT Avure Technologies; Erlanger, Ky.; 614-255-6633; www.avure-hpp-foods.com
1,000-gal pivoting triple-shaft mixer
The VMC-1000 VersaMix is a 1,000-gal. triple-shaft mixer available on a pivot-design single-post hydraulic lift. The design allows the machine to be raised from a vessel, rotated 90? and lowered into another vessel. This enables convenient discharge of finished product in the first vessel while a new batch is being made in the second, reducing overall processing time and minimizing downtime. The mixer is available across a range of working capacities from 1 qt. to 2,000 gal. Charles Ross & Son.; Hauppauge, N.Y.; 800-243-7677; www.mixers.com
Tray sealer with intelligent machine control
The TX 710 tray sealer can pack a variety of products, from fruit and vegetables to meat, sausage, fish, poultry and dairy products. It incorporates an intelligent machine control and a space-saving mechanical construction. Its output with air packs is up to 25 cycles/min, with modified atmosphere packs it is up to 18 cycles/min, and with MultiFresh packs it is up to 10 cycles/min. It uses multisensor control to determine the switching times of the various control circuits and compensate for them where required by triggering early starts of the subsequent processes. Multivac; Kansas City, Mo.; 800-800-8552; www.multivac.com
Flexible-pouch packaging system
The AsepFlex Linear Pouch Filler has been developed to help overcome high rejection rates and low capacities associated with flexible-pouch packaging. With a capacity as high as 500 ppm—or 30,000 pouches/hr—the fully aseptic solution is designed in accordance with FDA guidelines for low-acid aseptically filled food products and can achieve a 95% efficiency rate and a typical reject rate of 0.5%. The flexible system allows pouch formats and sizes to be changed on the fly without a parts change. It can fill a range of products from water-like liquids to high-viscous products, such as smoothies with particulates. JBT; Chicago; 312-861-5900; www.jbtc.com
Plant-based bag closure
Eco-Lok is a new bag closure made with sustainable materials. The closure for bread loaves and other products converts plant-based carbohydrates, such as corn and potatoes, into NuPlastiQ, a 100% natural, renewably sourced plant-based resin. This biopolymer requires up to 20% fewer greenhouse gas emissions to produce than standard plastic bag closures. But it maintains the qualities of the company's existing plastic closures – it is printable, reusable, recyclable and metal detector compatible. Kwik Lok Corp.; Yakima, Wash.; 509-853-2708; www.kwiklok.com
Ergonomic vacuum lifter
The ergonomic Vaculex vacuum lifter eliminates heavy manual work such as lifting sacks to stack on pallets, emptying bags into hoppers or feed stations or feeding, loading or palletizing directly into or from a production line. The semi-automated lifter helps take the strain off workers. Enabling procedures to be carried out in space-restricted areas, the lifter offers a flexible solution when ceiling height or narrow and confined areas with limited available working space may be an issue. The lifters offer low-head room solutions and carbon-fiber arms as answers to challenging environments. ATEX-approved models are available, as are stainless steel tools and attachments when needed. Piab; Hingham, Mass.; 800-321-7422; www.piab.com
Clamped metal pumps
The Saniflo Hygienic Series of AODD clamped metal pumps includes the PS2 1-in. (25-mm) model, which comes equipped with the energy-efficient Pro-Flo Shift air distribution system. The pumps can handle an array of viscosities, solids and shear-sensitive products. They feature a free-draining flow path that enables clean-in-place capability. The flow-through liquid-path design also eliminates any potential areas where product residue can be trapped and contaminate the product. These design features help ensure the pump’s sanitary operation and, by extension, lowers the risk of cross-contamination or compromised finished product that may lead to recalls. Wilden Pump and Engineering; Grand Terrace, Calif.; 909-422-1700; wildenpump.com
Pneumatic conveying system
The Pulse-Flow PTA dense-phase pneumatic conveying system directs air or nitrogen into the pressure vessel and pipeline in timed, regular pulses that form the dry material into separate, wavelike, pulsed slugs. Creating a gentle conveying action, the system operates at high pressures with low gas velocities to safely convey sensitive products in mass flow up to 500 ft. to a receiving destination with minimal particle degradation or separation. It is suitable for conveying fragile, free-flowing and cohesive powders, granulates, coarse-grained products and bulk food. The integrated conveying system is designed for reliable, unattended, 24/7 operation with easy access for cleaning. Gericke USA; Somerset, N.J.; 855-888-0088; www.gericke.net
Hybrid evaporative cooling system
The Accuchiller TCF model chiller uses a hybrid film evaporator that provides the energy efficiency of wet (flooded) systems using less refrigerant. Unlike flooded evaporative systems, which immerse copper water tubes in liquid refrigerant, hybrid film evaporation systems use a thin film of refrigerant. The technology provides a 25% smaller footprint, which maximizes floor space, and reduces energy use by 34%. The chiller features the company’s PLC system to control, monitor and maintain the pumping system’s operation. A color touchscreen displays a variety of operational screens, including time-stamped faults or alarms and compressor and pump hours. Thermal Care; Niles, Ill.; 847-966-2260; www.thermalcare.com
Twintube form-fill-seal machine for sweets and snacks
The BVC 145 TwinTube is a continuous-motion unit producing as many as 500 bags/min. in a 2.85m x 1.325m footprint. Designed for confectionary and snack food packaging, the unit produces bags up to 145mm wide and 220mm long, with options to upgrade up to 320mm. The process takes packaging material from a single film roll and slits it into two film webs capable of forming, filling and sealing 250 finished bags/min. The machine also offers the option of packaging material infeed along two separate film rolls. Automatic edge control allows for repeatable format changeover and a tight tolerance on the longitudinal seal. Rovema NA; Norcross, Ga.; 404-640-5310; www.rovema-na.com
Non-dye inspection & repair
Through a partnership with Britain's Bioscan Ltd., non-dye inspection technology is available to electronically detect defects on spray dryers, as well as cyclones, bag filters, fluid beds, silos, process tanks, cheese vats, finishing tables and ducting. Food & beverage manufacturers can safely and accurately receive inspection and repair services without the necessity to introduce dyes or chemicals into their production zones. Combining the technology with the unique gantry access system for spray dryers also safely eliminates the requirement for scaffolding. Ultimately, processors can significantly reduce the amount of shutdown time required for inspection and repair services and increase overall productivity. Relco LLC; Willmar, Minn.; 320-231-2210; www.relco.net
