Addressing the particular requirements of the food industry

Graphite Metallising Corporation has been supplying food equipment and food processing customers worldwide with GRAPHALLOY engineered solutions for over 100 years. Self-lubricating GRAPHALLOY bushings and bearings operate in temperatures from -400F to 1000F. NSF, WRAS, FDA acceptable, and EC-1935 certified grades are available. GRAPHALLOY is perfect for washdown applications since they are self-lubricating, handle caustics, and require no maintenance.

Food applications present many problems for traditionally lubricated bearings. High temperature applications can cook out grease/oil lubricants, and low temperature applications can also present problems for lubricants. Washdowns wash out grease and oil, leading to bearing failure. And contamination from grease and oil, as well as tough-to-reach maintenance requirements, are further headaches associated with rolling element bearings in food applications.

Graphite Metallising Corporation can point to a number of success stories: a commercial pizza bakery, for one, was experiencing weekly failures on conventional oil-lubricated cam followers on the steel belts in the oven. After an upgrade to GRAPHALLOY cam followers, even after 16 weeks there were no signs of wear.

A seafood processing plant was running a conveyor in its freezer area to flash-freeze fresh seafood, and the company was replacing its bearings every month. It was determined that the current bearings could not hold lubrication under these conditions. GRAPHALLOY 4-bolt flange block assemblies were installed and have been running successfully for more than five years.

Accurate and reliable measurement technology

Food manufacturers know just how much the production of food depends on reliable processes and accurate measurement technology. JUMO has been a leading manufacturer of measurement and control systems for more than 75 years.

Key products on show at Food Manufacturing Live include the miroTRON thermostat and the JUMO miroVIEW digital indicator, which offer a high-quality alternative to mechanical thermostats and dial thermometers. The two devices are available in a modern design in both rectangular and round formats. Different measurement inputs for RTD temperature probes, thermocouples, and standard signals as well as a digital input make them suitable for use within a wide range of applications.

JUMO miroTRON has up to four relay outputs. As an option to the thermostatic function, it can also be used for more demanding control processes. When using the PID two-state controller with autotuning version it delivers a significantly higher control quality. JUMO miroVIEW digital indicators are ideal for displaying important process values on-site. They also support additional functions such as min/max display, hold signal, and tare signal for a scale application.

Full factory fit-out for Edwards The Welsh Butcher

Oakley Food Projects specialises in providing turnkey solutions for SME food factory owners faced with the challenge of expansion. Oakley takes care of the entire expansion process, from initial scoping and design, through to handover of the finished factory.

When Edwards, The Welsh Butcher set out to expand its current facilities to enable further product development and greater production space to supply their many customers successfully, it turned to Oakley.

The turnkey approach meant that the directors of Edwards were able to focus on their business operations knowing that the construction of their new factory facility was in safe hands. Using its years of knowledge and experience, Oakley managed the project from the very start working with architects and designers to ensure the spec of the build was to a high standard.

The Edwards brand expresses a family business passionate about creating quality award-winning products which have now become household favourites to families in North Wales and beyond. Understanding that its new factory would be an extension of its brand, Oakley set high expectations to ensure the finished project exemplified this and is a facility Edwards can be proud of.

Enhancing efficiency and productivity

Total Automated Solutions (TAS), a leading provider of automation and control systems, specialises in designing, building and implementing solutions that enhance efficiency and productivity.

In a recent project for a blue-chip food production company. TAS was called in to design control panels that would ensure the efficiency and accuracy of weighing and batching these goods into secure bags of various sizes depending on the recipe selected while ensuring seamless sealing. The system then needed to control the next step in transferring the filled bags for distribution, requiring an automated robot system that could stack these bags onto pallets.

TAS defined, built and implemented design of three control panels to automate the handling of the packaging of powdered goods with precision and efficiency, one for the batching system, one for the pneumatics and one for the conveyors and robot control.

The successful installation and commissioning of these bespoke automated systems by TAS not only met but exceeded industry standards for best practice packing solutions. The benefits realised by the included: enhanced efficiency; precision and consistency; optimised distribution; and enhanced safety.