Industrial Machinery News

Archive for the ‘Food Processing’ Category

In many of today’s food manufacturing operations checkweighing devices are used to measure the accuracy of food production by weight.  Checkweighers can be used for either packaged or unpackaged products.  Typical uses are to measure the weight of products such as canned corn, boxed cereal or pharmaceutical pills.  You will also find these devices throughout the process making sure that the amount of ingredients used for each batch is accurately weighed.

Unlike standard scales a checkweigher is an inline device that automatically weighs each individual product as it moves past on a conveyor belt.  This continuous flow keeps production rates and through-put high and allows food producers to maximize there production capabilities. 

What happens to a product when it is either over or under weight?

As the package travels past the ‘load cell’ and is weighed a complex calculation is done to check if the package weight falls between the high and low limits set by the operator.  If the package falls outside this range an automatic rejection device removes the package from the product flow.  Typically this would be a kicker, diverter, air blast or lane diverter.  The removed package can then be further ‘worked’ to either remove or add product to the correct weight.

Many inline checkwieghers are either installed just after or just before a conveyor metal detector.  This ‘combo’ is often offered by both manufactures as an integrated system.  One can alert the other that a package needs to be rejected and the second device will ignore the package.  Both systems can then use the same rejection device cutting down on costs, space and maintenance issues.  

When looking for a checkweigher remember to understand clearly what you’re goals are and what the manufacturer is willing to guarantee.  

In today’s world of mass produced food production it is critical to put in place safety measures that help to protect consumers.  Many of today’s leading food manufactures producing everything from bread, ready to eat salads, baby formula to pickles and relish use metal detection equipment in their processing environments.

During normal food production many metal processing machines touch and move raw materials and finished goods during manufacturing.  Food mixers, grinders and conveyor systems are just some of the pieces of manufacturing equipment that come in direct contact with food ingredients.  These machines regularly have small metal fragments break off during normal food production.  This is where industrial metal detectors come in.  They are strategically placed through out the processing environment to detect and automatically reject metal contamination.  Free flowing bulk powder, liquid slurries and large food ingredients are all moved and processed to create finished goods.  Metal detection systems are placed at each critical stage to remove contaminates reducing manufacturing costs and increasing food quality for the consumers.

As sensitive as they are no metal detector can detect and reject every piece of metal.  Many factors impact the limitation of every metal detector system.  The leading manufactures such as Goring Kerr, Thermo Scientific, Safeline, Loma, Eriz and Fortress Technology push the limits of this technology.  Each having their own strengths and weaknesses the job of determining which system to buy often comes down to price rather then performance.

In today’s world of mass produced food production it is critical to put in place safety measures that help to protect consumers. Many of today’s leading food manufactures producing everything from bread, ready to eat salads, baby formula to pickles and relish use metal detection equipment in their processing environments.

By Mike Stones, 16-Apr-2009

Improved protection against the contamination of wrapped confectionery and other food products with metals and plastics is claimed for the new small-size version of Ishida Europe’s X-ray inspection system.

 

By Jane Byrne , 25-Nov-2008

A new metal detector targeted at the food processing sector offers minimal loss of good material due to a fast reacting, powerful pneumatic drive for the reject gate, says the manufacturer.

Orlando, FL, March 27, 2009 –(PR.com)– As demand increases in the food processing machinery industry, so does the need to use technology to find more efficient ways to manufacture the processing machines. Most of the equipment for the food processing machinery industry is made from thin stainless steel which is cut and then processed. Some examples of these machines are drum mixers, industrial filters, slicers, food crushers and much more. There are two main challenges for these manufacturers, cutting speed and post processing.

Cutting Speed
Due to the high demand for these products the production facilities need to run 24 hours a day. Therefore, cycle time is a very important factor. Laser Photonics, a leader in industrial laser cutting equipment, has created the solution to this dilemma with its new high power fiber laser cutting machine, the Titan FLS 48. This machine is designed with the quick cutting of metals such as stainless steel, aluminum, mild steel and most other highly reflective metals. With the fastest cutting speed when compared to current machines, the Titan FLS 48 is able to increase these plants production speed while performing around the clock. This solves a major challenge for these manufacturers and allows them to grow with their customers and helps them keep up with demand.

Post Processing
The post processing stage is a completely separate process from the initial cutting. The post processing ensures all of the edges of the products are clean and safe for everyday use. When the stainless steel has been cut in the past, it was very difficult to guarantee the edges were completely smooth. This is extremely important especially in this industry because jagged edges, no matter how small, will accumulate bacteria, dust and other harmful materials that are dangerous when working with any type of food processing. The solution to this problem is also fiber laser technology. The Titan FLS 48 uses these high power lasers which make such a precise and clean cut that the edges do not need this post processing stage thereby speeding up production time for these manufacturers and improving their bottom line. Because only one laser machine is needed to complete these two processing stages at one time, it frees up more space in warehouses and uses less energy, helping manufacturers with their efforts to become more environmentally friendly.

This is just one way fiber laser technology changing production lines around the globe. Within the next decade, most food processing machinery manufacturers and food processing companies will be implementing different laser machines to improve their cutting and marking of their products.

Benefits of Laser Systems

1. Increases production Throughput

2. Unmatched Cutting and Marking Quality

3. Eliminates Post Processing Methods

4. Virtually No Maintenance

5. Compact Systems (Takes up little floor space)

Benefits of Laser Photonics

1. Highest Quality Systems in the Industry

2. Ship Standard Products within 48 Hours

3. Leaders in Fiber Laser Technology

4. Manufactured in the U.S.A.

5. Inventory Reduction Pricing

Laser Photonics equipment produces the quality at the speed for the right price. Visit www.laserphotonics.com and find your application and how our products can benefit your bottom line. To visit their laser cutting Video library click www.laserphotonics.com/videos. For an information package on the Titan, please call (407) 829-2613.