ProFood August 2020

August 2020

SUSTAINABILITY EXCELLENCE IN MANUFACTURING AWARD WINNERS

CONAGRA BRANDS HILAND DAIRY MCCORMICK & CO. SMITHFIELD FOODS WORLD’S FIRST INSTALLATION OF IN-BULK HPP RFP TOOL PAYS OFF FOR CAMPBELL SOUP TECH TODAY: PUMPS AND VALVES SENSOR PREDICTS SHELF LIFE OF PERISHABLE FOOD

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Reduce and Distance Plant Personnel while Boosting Output and Preventing Contamination with automated, enclosed bulk equipment and systems from Flexicon

Automated, sealed BULK-OUT® Discharger-Conveyor Systems replace multiple workers dumping hand-held bags manually, while preventing contamination.

Enclosed Bulk Bag Weigh Batch Systems feed a central weigh hopper mechanically, and remove weighed batches pneumatically, requiring labor only to attach/detach bulk bags.

Bulk Bag Discharging Systems can loosen solidified material and meter it into liquid streams (shown), screeners, size reduction equipment and continuous blenders—automatically.

Dual SWING-DOWN® Bulk Bag Fillers fed by weigh hoppers fill up to 40 bags per hour with only one operator connecting empty bags and one forklift removing full bags.

Flexicon Bulk Bag Filling Lines automatically dispense pallets, fill bulk bags, and disconnect/accumulate filled bags, minimizing operator involvement.

TIP-TITE® Drum/Box Dumpers seal, tip and mate a discharge cone to a gasketed hopper lid, open a slide gate and feed downstream processes— automatically and dust-free.

Flexicon automated equipment and systems can move your bulk materials at higher capacities with fewer personnel, cutting costs while distancing operators from one another.

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— Production keeps running At Absolut Vodka The key benefit of conditionbased maintenance is that maintenance work only needs to take place when necessary instead of according to a fixed schedule.

— 01

— 01 Absolut Vodka is one of the world’s most eminent spirits producers — 02 Smart sensors installed on motors in the mash preparation process

Challenge The Absolut Vodka distillery in southern Sweden has only one production line serving the world. Their mash preparation process is critical to the whole operation.

Substantial installation and running costs for permament condition-based monitoring technology prevented their management from finding a satisfactory solution.

Solution ABB recommended ABB AbilityTM Smart Sensors for motors. Right after the sensors were fitted, plant engineers identified a faulty bearing on an agitator motor and elsewhere a pump cavitation problem.

Benefit Smart sensors helped Absolut prevent substantial process disruption. “Detecting the defective bearing before it failed allowed us to fix the problem during a planned shutdown, avoiding lost productivity caused by unexpected downtime,“ said Tony Knutsson, Absolut’s Automation Engineer.

“The sensors now offer us an easy way to gain a deeper insight into our mash preparation, with the possibility to find even small problems and address them before they become a major issue.“

Read the whole story here.

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What innovation looks like.

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August 2020

CONTENTS 29

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From the Editor

Recalculating for a better new normal for the food industry by year end.

In the News

Nestlé is using augmented reality tools, such as smart glasses, to work on complex projects at its facilities across the globe during the coronavirus crisis.

37 37 43

Packaging Technology

To deter food waste, a paper-based electrical gas sensor indicates how much shelf life is left in perishable foods more accurately than misleading expiration dates.

COVER STORY

The winners of ProFood World’s Sustainability Excellence in Manufacturing Awards go above and beyond to save energy, water, solid waste, ingredients, and food products by scrutinizing their operations and taking advantage of state and utility grants.

Manufacturing Innovation: In-bulk HPP

The world’s first commercial line for in-bulk high pressure processing represents a breakthrough technology that delivers increased output, cost savings, and sustainable value for Hermes Boissons.

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Tech Today: Pumps and Valves

Manufacturers are turning to pumps and valves that enhance clean-in-place processes, offer gentle product handling, and improve energy use in their quests to increase uptime.

Dry Processing Solutions

A bulk bag discharger helps a cocoa processor create a dust-free environment and optimize operations for its processing line. Bulk and dry processing equipment solutions follow this lead story.

Plant Floor New Products

An inside look at the latest machinery and technologies for production facilities.

Case Study: Vegetable Processor Boosts Quality and Production with Digital Sorters

Antarctic Foods uses digital sorters that feature a combination of next-generation cameras, sensors, and pixel-level detection that allows for all-sided surface inspection.

Case Study: Cobot Automates Icing Process

A collaborative robot takes on the repetitive task of icing gourmet cookies, delivering speed and efficiency while easing workers’ ergonomic discomfort.

OpX Intel

The OpX Leadership Network’s RFP Guidelines for the CPG Industry and RFP Process Template help CPGs clarify their expectations, allowing OEMs to provide more precise quotes. Learn how this tool pays off for Campbell Soup.

www.profoodworld.com

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ProFood World ISSN 2476-0676

VERTICAL CONVEYOR SOLUTIONS

EDITORIAL

EDITOR - IN - CHIEF JOYCE FASSL

Connect with us

Mobile: 610/547-9814 jfassl@pmmimediagroup.com MANAGING EDITOR MAYA NORRIS

312/205-7898 mnorris@pmmimediagroup.com NEW PRODUCTS EDITOR MORGAN SMITH

@ProFoodWorld @ProFoodWorld www.linkedin. com/showcase/ profoodworld

msmith@pmmimediagroup.com EDITOR AT LARGE AARON HAND

ahand@pmmimediagroup.com CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

JEFFREY BARACH , STEPHEN SCHLEGEL , MATT SWANSON , JOHN UBER

B U S I N E S S S TA F F PUBLISHER PATRICK YOUNG

610/251-2579 pyoung@pmmimediagroup.com DIRECTOR , BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CAROLYN DRESS

312/205-7912 cdress@pmmimediagroup.com

BRAND OPERATIONS MANAGER CLAUDIA SMITH

312/222-1345 csmith@pmmimediagroup.com ART

ADVE R TI S I N G SALE S

CREATIVE DIRECTOR DAVID BACHO

PUBLISHER PATRICK YOUNG

ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR KATHY TRAVIS

AU DIE NCE AN D TECH NOLOGY

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, DIGITAL AND DATA DAVID NEWCORN SENIOR DIRECTOR , DIGITAL AND DATA ELIZABETH KACHORIS DIRECTOR , WEBSITE PRODUCT MANAGEMENT JEN KREPELKA SENIOR DATA ANALYST LAUREN SANZ

PUBLISHING

Spirex™ • •

PRESIDENT JOSEPH ANGEL PUBLISHER PATRICK YOUNG

DIRECTOR , BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CAROLYN DRESS

Compact solution to elevate, or lower, a variety of products

VICE PRESIDENT, CONTENT AND BRAND STRATEGY

JIM CHRZAN CONTENT STRATEGIST, ALIGNMENT KIM OVERSTREET

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DIRECTOR , MARKETING SUE DAMARIO SENIOR MARKETING MANAGER AMBER MILLER EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATOR JANET FABIANO

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ADVE R TI S I N G PRODUCTION MANAGER GEORGE SHURTLEFF

SENIOR DIRECTOR , CLIENT SUCCESS

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AND MEDIA OPERATIONS KELLY GREEBY

DIRECTOR , MEDIA INNOVATION SARAH LOEFFLER

SENIOR MANAGER , PRODUCT AND REVENUE STRATEGY ALICIA PETTIGREW

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pyoung@pmmimediagroup.com • 610/251-2579 DIRECTOR , BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CAROLYN DRESS

cdress@pmmimediagroup.com • 312/205-7912

REGIONAL SALES MANAGER BRIAN J . GRONOWSKI

bgronowski@pmmimediagroup.com • 440/564-5920 VICE PRESIDENT, SALES WENDY SAWTELL

wsawtell@pmmimediagroup.com • 847/784-0520 REGIONAL MANAGER RICKY ANGEL

rangel@pmmimediagroup.com • 630/805-3892 REGIONAL MANAGER LEO GUENTHER

guenther@packworld.com • 904/377-7865 REGIONAL MANAGER JIM POWERS

jpowers@automationworld.com • 312/925-7793 REGIONAL MANAGER CHRISTINE J . SMALLWOOD

csmallwood@pmmimediagroup.com 770/664-4600

PUBLISHER , AUTOMATION WORLD KURT BELISLE

kbelisle@pmmimediagroup.com • 815/549-1034 PUBLISHER , HEALTHCARE PACKAGING LIZ TIERNEY

tierney@packworld.com • 815/861-2992 PUBLISHER , OEM MAGAZINE JIM CHRZAN

jchrzan@pmmimediagroup.com • 847/830-2915

ProFood World • PMMI Media Group 401 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60611 Phone: 312/222-1010 • Fax: 312/222-1310 Email: info@pmmimediagroup.com • Web: www.profoodworld.com PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies 12930 Worldgate Drive, Suite 200, Herndon, VA 20170 Phone: 571/612-3200 • Fax: 703/243-8556 • Web: www.pmmi.org Staff at PMMI Media Group can be contacted at info@pmmimediagroup.com.

conveyor systems www.nerconconveyors.com 844-293-2814

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FROM THE EDITOR

Recalculating for a Better New Normal by Year End While PPE supplies seem to be under control, current pandemic-related challenges include the ongoing labor crunch, greater demand to produce goods for grocery stores, difficulty in forecasting future production needs—and, now, a can shortage.

W

hen the coronavirus began to infiltrate highly populated areas of the U.S. that quickly went on lockdown back in March, I was hopeful things would return to a new normal by summer. Today, it’s still hard to get a true pulse on the industry when so many places are at polar opposites in terms of disease outbreaks.

In April, most ProFood World readers polled lacked enough personal protective equipment (PPE) for their facilities. With some informal polls I have conducted recently, the good news is the PPE supply chain now appears to be intact.

While some food and beverage processors are embracing robotics and remote equipment connectivity during these unprecedented times, many others have addressed the pandemic with shelters, additional lockers and breakrooms to enhance social distancing, more signage, and plexiglass partitions.

ProFood World’s official polling back in April and May showed an anticipated high level of supply chain disruptions, and, unfortunately, my recent informal discussions with several food and beverage processors say these challenges are continuing.

Other current challenges faced by processors include the ongoing labor crisis, greater demands to produce goods for grocery store customers, handling misinformation, and the difficulty to forecast future production demands. In the packaging arena, another challenge is emerging. According to a recent report from CNN Business, an aluminum can shortage is causing some out-of-stock beer and soda brands or less product offerings. And consumers purchasing canned foods in bulk are only adding to the shortage. This combined with raw material shortages of steel and tin from China is delaying fulfillment of canned items for months, according to Marketplace.org.

Just when I was hoping late summer would be a turning point, we remain in the thick of pandemic challenges. I must now recalculate my better new normal forecast for the food industry for year end. PFW

PROFOOD WORLD EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD CHRISTINE BENSE CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Ventura Coastal

HENDRIK EYSELEE DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING, CHEESE AND DAIRY The Kraft Heinz Company

GREG FLICKINGER SENIOR VP, OPERATIONS Green Thumb Industries Inc.

BILL GILL ASSISTANT VP, ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS

Smithfield Foods

JOHN HILKER SENIOR VP, MANUFACTURING The C.F. Sauer Company

VINCE NASTI VP, OPERATIONS

Nation Pizza & Foods

JIM PRUNESTI VP, ENGINEERING Conagra Brands

LISA RATHBURN VP, ENGINEERING

T. Marzetti

MARK SHAYE VP, ENGINEERING Ken’s Foods

TONY VANDENOEVER DIRECTOR, SUPPLY CHAIN ENGINEERING PepsiCo

DIANE WOLF FORMER VP OF ENGINEERING AND OPERATIONS Kraft Foods

JOYCE FASSL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF jfassl@pmmimediagroup.com

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JOE ZEMBAS DIRECTOR, ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL SERVICES

The J.M. Smucker Company

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NEWS

IN THE

Pandemic Causes Shift to New Plant Tools

Frito-Lay Expanding in Georgia

JOYCE FASSL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

A

S COVID-19 continues to rear its head across the U.S., food and beverage manufacturing plants have had to alter the way they do business, shifting from foodservice and restaurant-focused products to retail goods while employing lots of new technology. As a result, new suppliers to the industry have popped up as well, with products including handheld and walk-through Nestlé is using augmented reality tools, such as smart glasses, temperature scanners, tem- to work on complex projects at its facilities across the globe porary outdoor structures to during the coronavirus crisis. Photo courtesy of Nestlé. protect employees from harsh weather conditions as they wait for temperature checks, touchless door sensors and time clocks, and plexiglass partitions to keep employees safe both on the plant floor and in the cafeteria.

AIB International launched the Pandemic Prepared Certification, the first certification standard created for the food and beverage supply chain. The company collaborated with government, academia, international agencies, and top brands to develop the standard for the following proficiency areas: Pandemic Crisis Management, Supply Chain Management, Intermittent Operations Planning Management, Health Crisis Mitigation Measures and Management, and Pre-Requisite Program Review. Learn more at www.aibinternational.com.

Nestlé has expanded its use of augmented reality (AR) technology to remotely support its production and R&D sites as well as connect with suppliers. The company and its suppliers are using remote assistance tools, including smart glasses, 360-deg cameras, and 3-D software, to set up or redesign production lines and carry out vital maintenance.

For example, R&D teams in Switzerland remotely worked with employees at a Nestlé factory in Thailand to upgrade existing production lines and install new production lines and technologies that make ready-to-drink dairy products. In addition, the company used AR to help with maintenance at its factories in Colombia and Ecuador.

Nestlé is transforming its operations by digitalizing its supply chain and manufacturing.

The goal is to create a competitive edge through data, artificial intelligence, automation, and predictive analytics, according to the company.

“The remote support approach isn’t just a response to COVID-19 though. Going forward, remote assistance will become a new way of working,” explains David Finlay, global head of manufacturing at Nestlé. “It will increase speed and efficiency in facilities and reduce travel to Nestlé sites, helping us reduce our CO2 emissions across our operations.”

Meanwhile, TerraCycle has created a zero-waste solution for safety equipment and protective gear. Plants can collect waste, such as masks, disposable garments, gloves, hair nets, and shoe covers, then ship them to TerraCycle. The collected waste is separated into fibers and plastics. The fibers (such as paper or wood-based products) are recycled or composted. The plastics undergo extrusion and pelletization to be molded into new recycled plastic products. Learn more at www.terracycle.com. PFW

Frito-Lay will invest $200 million to expand its Perry, Ga., facility. The project will add lines to make Frito-Lay tortilla chips and Baked Cheetos Puffs, plus space for a future manufacturing line and a warehouse.

Pandemic Requires New Methods for Conducting FATs An addendum to the factory acceptance test (FAT) work product from PMMI’s OpX Leadership Network tackles how to use communication and connection technologies to allow consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies to interact remotely with original equipment manufacturers (OEM) via virtual FATs. “The pandemic has required new methods be established for executing FATs, which are likely to become standard procedures in the post-pandemic ways of working.

This document provides the guidance both CPGs and OEMs need to successfully implement these new processes,” says Bryan Griffen, director of industry services, PMMI. There are two parts to both the FAT work product and vFAT addendum: the playbook and an editable checklist. The FAT and vFAT work products, as well as other operational solutions, are available for download at https://rb.gy/vwixcc.

ProFood Tech 2021 Cancelled ProFood Tech producers, PMMI, Koelnmesse, and International Dairy Foods Association, have decided to cancel ProFood Tech 2021 due to the unusually crowded spring 2021 trade show calendar resulting from COVID19. The show was originally scheduled to take place April 13-15, 2021. The ProFood Tech partners remain committed to serving the needs of the processing industry independently through events and trade shows, such as PACK EXPO, Anuga FoodTec, and the Dairy Forum.

www.profoodworld.com

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IN THE NEWS

Industry Certifications from PMMI’s OpX Leadership Network

T

HE INDUSTRY-RECOGNIZED, assessment-based OpX Leadership Network One Voice Ready certificate program recognizes individu-

als and companies embracing the OpX Leadership Network work products.

Individuals earn certificates after passing tests based on knowledge of OpX Leadership Network solutions and best practices. One Voice Ready certificates belong to the individual, allowing them to maintain earned certifications as they move within the industry.

There are 14 bronze certificates: • Allergen Cleaning Validation Checklist • Asset Reliability Roadmap – coming soon • Clean-In-Place (CIP) – coming soon • Factory Acceptance Tests (FAT) • Hygienic Equipment Design for LowMoisture Food Manufacturing • Journey to Sustainability Excellence – coming soon

• Manufacturing Workforce Engagement • OEE Benefits Calculator – coming soon • Remote Equipment Access – coming soon • Request for Proposal (RFP) • Pathogen Reduction Validation • Pathogen Reduction: Spotlight on Baking • Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) – coming soon • Worker Safety – coming soon One Voice Ready Assessments are available for half price through PACK EXPO International (Nov. 8-11). Enter coupon code OpX2020 during checkout at www.OpXLeadershipNetwork.org/ certificates to receive the discount. PFW

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PACKAGING TECHNOLOGY

Packaging Sensor Predicts Shelf Life of Perishable Foods To deter food waste, a paper-based electrical gas sensor measures the freshness of meats, poultry, and fish, indicating how much shelf life is left in the package more accurately than misleading expiration dates.

MAYA NORRIS MANAGING EDITOR

A

NEW SMART PACKAGING solution will soon hit the market in a bid to combat food waste.

BlakBear, a London-based food supply chain company, has developed a paper-based electrical gas sensor that indicates how much shelf life is left for packaged meats, poultry, and fish in real time that the company says is more accurate than traditional expiration dates and provides accountability in the supply chain.

Chief Technology Officer Giandrin Barandun, along with CEO Max Grell and COO Michael Kasimatis, created the BlakBear smart labels when they were bioengineering students pursuing their Ph.D.s in the Guder Research Group at Imperial College London.

Placed inside the packaging or embedded within a multilayered packaging material, the label measures the freshness of packaged meats, chicken, and fish by detecting gas emitted from perishable foods as they spoil in order to accurately quantify their shelf life.

The paper-based label features two electrodes printed on it as well as an embedded RFID chip. When food spoils, microbes release ammonia gas. This water-soluble gas is absorbed into the paper’s cellulose fibers and then dissociates into ions. The electrodes sense and measure the ionic conductivity in the layer of water that is already naturally present in the paper’s fibers to determine the shelf life of the product.

“We correlate the voltage or the electrical signal that we measure from the dissolved gas with the actual microbe and organoleptic data,” Grell says.

“The sensor can measure ammonia gas down to 200 parts per billion, which is more than 100 times better than the best human noses,” he adds. “So it’s much more sensitive than what you could do yourself.

And it responds in seconds as well.”

Sensing the benefits Grell says the BlakBear sensor can mitigate food waste caused by fixed expiration dates. About 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted globally each year, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Part of the problem is that consumers misinterpret those conventional date labels. Sell-by dates designate when a product is at peak quality and flavor and are not indicators of food safety, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. But many consumers mistakenly throw away edible food based on those conservative expiration dates.

According to Grell, the BlakBear sensor offers shelf-life data that is much more accurate than food expiration dates. Consumers can access the shelf-life data in real time when they scan the RFID tags with their smartphones. In addition, the BlakBear web app can send consumers smartphone reminders notifying www.profoodworld.com

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The BlakBear sensor determines the shelf life of perishable foods like packaged fresh meats by detecting and measuring the gas emitted from the products as they spoil.

Photo courtesy of BlakBear.

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PACKAGING TECHNOLOGY

them of how much shelf life is left in their packaged foods—indicating whether it is still safe to eat the products or to discard them after purchase.

Food manufacturers can use the shelf-life data from the BlakBear label to improve quality control and add shelf-life days to the products. For example, they can

Consumers can access shelf-life data in real time when they scan the RFID tags embedded in the BlakBear labels with their smartphones. Photo courtesy of BlakBear.

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choose the best shipping routes to optimize freshness.

In addition, if a product is spoiling faster than it should or the packaging has been tampered with, the manufacturer can immediately locate and fix the problem.

BlakBear says it is currently trialing its paper-based electrical sensors with large U.K. and North American protein processors and retailers, but declined to mention the specific brands it is working with. While the BlakBear sensor has proven effective with fresh meats, chicken, and fish, the company is testing the sensor to see if it can be applied to other packaged food products. BlakBear is also working with TPG Rewards, a marketing technology company, to develop consumer marketing programs that leverage the RFID technology embedded in the packaging.

In the meantime, BlakBear is also developing reusable food storage containers with the sensors now that more people are cooking at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s in response to the new world that we’re in,” Grell says. “People can’t go out to eat, so they have to store a lot of food at home. We’re testing the waters there.” PFW BlakBear www.blakbear.com

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PACKAGING TECHNOLOGY

Material Innovation Key to Sustainable Packaging Strategy The market will continue to see innovations in sustainable packaging materials as more companies embrace eco-friendly options.

KIM OVERSTREET CONTENT STRATEGIST

A

S CONSUMERS SEEK RECYCLED packaging materials and consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies invest in sustainable strategies, the variety of renewable packaging materials and recyclable options will continue to increase, according to 2020 Packaging Sustainability: A Changing Landscape, a new report from PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies.

Biodegradable and compostable materials are considered to be the next frontier of innovative sustainability options. Biodegradable content is any material that can be broken down through a biological process, with the end goal to drastically reduce the time they take to break down. Bioplastics derived from natural sources, such as fungus-based shipping packers, fall into the biodegradable category.

Going green The report recommends five steps CPGs should consider to achieve their sustainability goals: 1. Identify material alternatives that offer equal or less costs, use fewer resources, and produce less waste.

2. Implement operational changes that bring equal or improved quality.

U.S. Packaging Materials 4.9%

Plastic bags/pouches (CAGR 3.2%)

11.3%

Plastic packaging film/sheet (CAGR 0.7%)

15.1%

Plastic bottles (CAGR 2.6%)

14.2%

Paper bags: coated, treated (CAGR -1.1%) 13.0%

Paperboard containers (CAGR 1.1%) 11.5%

Paperboard folding boxes (CAGR -1.8%)

8.7%

Metal cans (CAGR -0.2%) 21.3%

Glass containers (CAGR -1.7%)

Annual Survey of Manufacturers, U.S. Census Bureau 2013-2017 (Most recent data is from 2017.)

While plastics were growing at a faster rate in 2017, in the next five years, industry analysts predict plastics usage will see slower growth compared to other materials. Source: 2020 Packaging Sustainability: A Changing Landscape, a report from PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies.

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3. Focus on cultural change that will have a measurable impact.

4. Allocate enough resources to address sustainability aggressively.

5. Instill the importance of sustainability companywide.

Based on the report’s findings, here are a few guidelines to create a more successful sustainable package: • Too much reduction: Reducing the packaging too much can result in damage to the product inside, increasing overall costs and harming brand perception.

• Consider all sustainable factors of your material: For instance, paper typically takes much more water and energy to produce than plastic. While it might be easier to recycle, it may be less sustainable overall when the larger picture is examined.

• Durability: Material made from recycled products is not as durable and gets less so after each round of recycling. Recycled material is not the correct choice for every product due to the increased cost and decreased overall durability.

• Hygienic: Recycled materials need to be clean, convenient, safe, and sterile.

• Origin: If recycled content is used, the origin of the material must be known, according to ISO standard 11-607.

When looking at global packaging material growth forecasts to 2025, glass, aluminum foil, and paper show the highest expected compound annual growth rate (CAGR): • Plastic packaging market: estimated CAGR of 3.7%.

• Paper and paperboard packaging market: estimated CAGR of 4.2%.

• Aluminum foil packaging market: estimated CAGR of 4.3%.

• Metal packaging market: estimated CAGR of 4%.

• Glass packaging market: estimated CAGR of 4.4%.

To download the free executive summary of the 2020 Packaging Sustainability: A Changing Landscape report, please visit www.pmmi.org/report/packagingsustainability-changing-landscape. PFW

www.profoodworld.com

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WINNING PATHS TO Smithfield Foods, McCormick & Company, Conagra Brands, and Hiland Dairy go above and beyond to uncover ways to save energy, water, solid waste, ingredients, and food products by paying close attention to their operations and taking advantage of state and utility grants.

JOYCE FASSL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

DDRESSING THE LOW-HANGING FRUIT of sustainability potential in food and beverage manufacturing has been a muchdiscussed topic for more than a decade.

But in today’s era of increasing transparency, the discussion and implementation of these projects has become even more of a necessity.

Each year, ProFood World uncovers the leading projects undertaken by food and beverage facilities across North America with its Sustainability Excellence in Manufacturing Awards. The awards honor companies and individuals that seek to go beyond environmental compliance. The following award-winning proj-

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ects were completed last year. All entries were judged by a team of food industry peers.

FIRST PLACE PROGRAM CATEGORY

Smithfield Foods Facility Reduces Solid Waste by 10 Million Lb When a customer of Smithfield Foods made a product specification request a few years ago, the environmental team at its Crete, Neb., facility, was ready for action. The facility’s wastewater solids were dewatered via a centrifuge and then processed in the rendering operation. The customer’s change meant these solids were no longer approved to be part of the cooker feed

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SUSTAINABILITY

James Garr, wastewater supervisor for Smithfield Foods’ Crete, Neb., facility, was a key member of the plant’s successful composting team project. Photo courtesy of Smithfield Foods.

stream. As a result, the facility was landfilling tons of material. Collecting, loading, and hauling the solids was a labor-intensive and costly operation, causing a significant increase in solid waste from the facility.

At first, it was difficult to find a vendor that could handle the amount of wastewater solids generated, says James Garr, wastewater supervisor for Smithfield Foods.

And frequent hauling costs added to the expense.

With assistance from Waste Connections, a recycling provider, the facility found a composting operation, Soil Dynamics, in Omaha, Neb. This operation accepts and processes the high-volume waste stream, and it evaluated and accepted bedding, smokehouse ash, and other organics that were previously landfilled.

Completed in just three months and implemented in February 2019, the project yielded more than 9.6 million lb of solids waste reduction per year.

“The project was transferrable to other facilities from the beginning,” says Jason Lindquist, director of environmental affairs for Smithfield Foods. Smithfield’s Lincoln, Neb., facility was sending smokehouse ash to Soil Dynamics and had discussed it with the Crete facility on weekly environmental conference calls. Soil Dynamics also began hauling centrifuged wastewater solids from Smithfield’s Denison, Iowa, facility, while the team in Crete was simultaneously arranging transportation and hauling logistics for wastewater solids.

After the project commenced, the Crete facility installed a conveyor system to bulk load wastewater solids that further reduced hauling frequency and handling.

throughout various production processes appeared to be a daunting task.

But through an intense process investigation, many loss points were identified and corrected. The team discovered that a large contributor to food waste was cheese miss-cuts, and it rectified the problem through editing standards, optimizing run settings, and conducting preventive maintenance on machinery. This program resulted in approximately $530,000 in annualized savings and the avoidance of 130 tons of edible cheese waste per year. Also as a result of the program, the facility was able to increase production with the same amount of incoming ingredients.

“In the three months prior to the program implementation, the site would have produced close to 1,900 tons of solid waste,” says Tracy Kayhanfar, senior director, environment. “Through continued efforts, the plant is now saving 130 tons or almost 7% of total waste produced by the facility per year. With an initial investment cost of $111,545, the solution yielded annual savings of $537,055, with a [return on investment] of less than a year.”

The program is part of a problem-solving process that is being implemented across all Conagra Brands manufacturing facilities. The issue at the Milwaukee facility was identified during regular yield loss and operations meetings at the plant as well as comparisons with a similar sister facility.

Conagra Brands is committed to diverting waste from landfills as well as reducing its total waste footprint. By implementing corporate best practices, the Milwaukee facility achieved the highest tier in EPA’s Waste Management Hierarchy for source reduction and reuse.

SECOND PLACE PROGRAM CATEGORY

Conagra Brands Team Rectifies Cheese Loss In September 2019, Conagra Brands’ Milwaukee team initiated a program to limit cheese yield loss. Initially, identifying and justifying the project capital was difficult.

Gathering, separating, and weighing cheese waste

(From left) Conagra Brands’ Milwaukee plant team members Nick Thompson, Xiomaris Mendez, and Jake Rozenberg proudly display Chicken Melts products that are now more sustainably produced. Photo courtesy of Conagra Brands.

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SUSTAINABILITY

“We were able to remove over 32 tons of solid waste that would have gone to landfill over the first three months of the program,” says Xiomaris Mendez, manager of plant continuous improvement. “Also, there are intense greenhouse gas emissions associated with the production of dairy products, and by limiting our waste of these products, we are reducing our total emissions footprint.”

THIRD PLACE PROGRAM CATEGORY

Water-Reduction Project Results in 5 Million Gal Saved for Smithfield Foods In 2018, Smithfield’s hog processing facility in Sioux Falls, S.D., was using close to 100 million gal of water per year. But today, a small investment in a new tank system and pumps has paid dividends for the facility.

The new equipment includes a round 300-gal storageto-tank system that receives cold water that is then pumped by a Fristam FPX-702 pump with a Baldor 5 HP 3,600 rpm motor. It feeds a Travaini TRH Liquid Ring vacuum pump driven by a 15 HP 1,800 rpm motor, and then recirculates back to the tank, allowing the facility to reuse the water.

Completed in just three months in 2019, this project reduces the need for city water used in the processing facility by about 5.15 million gal per year, allowing the city to instead use this water for approximately 145 residents annually.

“The [return on investment] on this project was less than one month,” states Charles Schulz, environmental coordinator for Smithfield Foods. “The cost of both purchasing city water and then treating the clean

Installation of a new tank system and pumps has paid dividends and saves more than $30,000 per year at Smithfield Foods’ Sioux Falls, S.D., facility.

Photo courtesy of Smithfield Foods.

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water in our wastewater system is $0.0062 per gal.

The project cost was $6,000, and the water saving cost is $31,917.60 annually.”

This project came about from a Smithfield Ideation Project to find areas in all facilities that can reduce the use of single-pass water for reuse elsewhere. “We have a total of five vacuum pumps that will be switched over to this process, which greatly reduced the water use in a single-pass system,” Schulz adds.

After some investigation, the facility saw that the amount of clean city water going to the wastewater treatment plant could be reduced. Schulz says the only challenge was finding a spot for the water-recycle tank and then plumbing the tank to the vacuum pump. At the end of the day, a small investment in equipment and labor resulted in monetary as well as environmental savings.

FIRST PLACE

PROJECT CATEGORY

Compressed Air Upgrade at McCormick Provides Excellent Energy Savings At McCormick & Company’s Hunt Valley, Md., plant, the compressed air system was previously comprised of two 9-year-old compressor-dryer systems. The facility recently replaced this system with four new compressors and dryers that incorporate best practices in energy efficiency.

Initially, the project’s return on investment was not attractive based on simple payback, Sustainable Manufacturing Manager Jeff Blankman explains.

“However, the equipment was at the end of its life and required replacement regardless of sustainability initiatives,” he adds.

“The new system was upsized so it could also make compressed air for the company’s Spice Mill, another manufacturing site adjacent to the Hunt Valley plant,” states Blankman. “The new system has proven to be 30% more energy efficient than the old Hunt Valley plant system and 50% more efficient than the Spice Mill’s old equipment.”

The combined electricity savings between the two sites in fiscal 2019 compared to fiscal 2018 yielded cost savings of more than $300,000 per year. It also represents a greenhouse gas reduction of over 1,300 tons.

In addition, the project received more than $1 million in energy-efficiency rebates from Baltimore Gas & Electric through the utility’s Smart Energy Savers program.

The project could have been completed at a lower cost using less efficient equipment, but by going with best-in-class equipment, the project received $1 million in rebates. “The incremental payback to look at this project through a sustainability lens was excellent,” Blankman says.

The $3.5 million project included all equipment,

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SUSTAINABILITY

This oil-free air compressor from Atlas Copco helps McCormick & Company save on energy costs.

Photo courtesy of McCormick & Company.

piping, and installation, but was offset by a one-time utility rebate from Baltimore Gas & Electric and a onetime Maryland Energy Administration grant.

This was the second McCormick site to install the same compressor-dryer system to maximize energy efficiency, with the company’s Dallas site being the first installation in 2018. The size of the compressors was changed to adapt to the larger load at the Hunt Valley plant, but the approach was the same. After the Hunt Valley project, McCormick’s London, Ontario, Canada, site became the third application of this approach in spring 2019, says Blankman. Two more sites in Gretna, La., and Springfield, Mo., are slated for 2020 and 2021, respectively.

SECOND PLACE PROJECT CATEGORY

Smithfield Foods Lights the Way to Sustainability Smithfield Foods is on a mission to replace high-intensity discharge lamps (HID) in all of its facilities. Once the company locked in the lowest price for LED light fixtures, its Kinston, N.C., facility began its replacement project.

In fact, all Smithfield facilities are working on LED light replacement projects.

Back in 2018, the Kinston facility upgraded the lighting in its ammonia engine room to meet new International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration standards. That upgrade was done with LEDs that provided more foot candles and safety. In the event of an emergency, hazmat teams would have instanton lighting. This project helped to drive future LED light installations.

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easy,” says Charlie Prentice, environmental coordinator for Smithfield Foods. “No extra hardware was needed.

Using a one-man lift, our in-house electrician was able to easily remove the old fixtures and install the new fixture in a minimal amount of time.” The new lights also have a 10-year warranty.

Because of some equipment locations, a one-person lift would not fit directly under some light fixtures.

Smithfield left those fixtures for last and replaced them later when the facility rented an articulating lift for other projects, providing even more cost savings.

Smithfield’s Kinston facility had 719 HID light fixtures, with the vast majority using 400-watt bulbs.

LEDs use a fraction of the energy and produce many more foot candles. Because they produce instanton lighting, they provide a safer environment for our employees, explains Prentice.

Forty-two fixtures were replaced at a cost $18,732, and the new energy savings from LEDs bring that cost down to $8,316 while also saving 119,206.08 kWh per year. The facility’s energy reduction calculations are based on lamps burning 24/7 with a return on investment of nearly two years. “We expect to see a return in our investment in an even shorter time due to employees turning off lights as they leave a room,” adds Prentice.

Smithfield set a goal of 5% energy reduction at every facility. “By replacing the high-energy-use HIDs with LEDs, we are driving down our total kWh usage each month,” states Prentice. “As a company, we also have a very aggressive goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25%. The facility’s reduced annual electrical consumption will help in a small way to reach that goal.”

Smithfield’s Kinston, N.C., facility upgraded the lighting in its ammonia engine room to meet new International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration standards. New LEDs provide more foot candles and safety. Photo courtesy of Smithfield.

www.profoodworld.com

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The 2019 Sustainability Excellence in Manufacturing Award winners will present more details on their green projects at a special session during PACK EXPO International. Learn more about PACK EXPO at https://packexpo.com.

THIRD PLACE PROJECT CATEGORY (TIE)

Continuous Energy Improvement at Hiland Dairy After implementing a continuous energy improvement project, Hiland Dairy’s Norman, Okla., plant achieved an energy savings of nearly 1.1 million kWh or 12.2%.

The energy saved is equal to the removal of 769 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions or 1,134 single-family homes’ energy usage for a year.

All of Hiland Dairy’s processing plants have implemented sustainability efforts primarily through recy-

cling and water conservation. Participation in energy savings goes hand in hand with those efforts and is another step in the direction for sustainability, according to the dairy processor. With Oklahoma electrical plants at full capacity and by reducing the dairy plant’s energy, Hiland helps Oklahoma Gas & Electric (OG&E) avoid building new power plants and allows the utility company to keep electricity affordable for residents.

During 2017 and 2018, Hiland established a baseline of energy usage, then started and completed its energyefficiency efforts in 2019. For example, in March 2019, the plant used 599,748 kWh, compared to 751,490 kWh in March 2017. In August 2019, the plant used 692,205 kWh, compared to 886,065 kWh in August 2017.

A retrofitted LED lighting system cost $110,000, but Hiland received $55,000 back from an OG&E grant.

In addition, OG&E provides a 2-cent rebate for every kWh of energy saved, which amounted to $21,751.40 in 2019. Plus, $57,859 in annual savings were achieved due to reduced energy usage. “The grant, rebate, and energy savings made the cost of the project negligible,” says Norman Plant Manager Steven Boydston.

Energy-management coaches suggested behavioral modifications, such as thermal and lighting controls, and engineering controls, such as reducing runtime on equipment through efficient measures. Other changes included updating the thermostat system from standard mercury to programmable digital thermostats, changing parameters on the refrigeration system, decreasing and increasing some parameters to reduce energy use of compressors, and using sunlight on bright days to harvest daylight and reduce usage of some lights.

Hiland employees formed an energy team, wrote a charter, and started working on ways to satisfy recommendations. All dial points were set at exact numbers, and manufacturing-process refrigeration was set at a more appropriate degree. Energy team members were trained on how to use ultrasonic leak detector tools.

“A sense of teamwork was established at the plant,” says Boydston. “The energy team is always thinking of ways that the plant can be more sustainable.” Other Hiland plants have adopted similar programs.

THIRD PLACE PROJECT CATEGORY (TIE)

Tanker Unloading Project Reaps Megabucks for Conagra Brands

At Hiland Dairy’s Norman, Okla., facility, energy management includes thermal and lighting controls, and engineering controls, such as reducing runtime on equipment through efficient measures. Photo courtesy of Hiland Dairy.

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In 2019, Conagra Brands’ Saint Elmo, Ill., facility implemented an innovative way to more efficiently unload tanker trucks of corn syrup and oils. The new system eliminates ingredient waste, minimizes transfer costs, and results in fewer total tanker loads. The switch to air pressurizing the tankers, instead of using tanker truck pumps, resulted in nearly 100% of product to be emptied from each tanker load.

“This eliminated the costs of pumping, the fuel

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SUSTAINABILITY

A change to the tanker unloading process at Conagra Brands’ Saint Elmo, Ill., facility redirects 18,000 gal of loss that can now be used in current production.

Photo courtesy of Conagra Brands.

required for the pumps, and hot water needed to thaw the pump in the winter,” says Casey Watts, manager of environment, health, and safety. “The system required new hoses, fittings, and pressure release valves, but for a facility that receives an average of 15 loads per day, the project resulted in an estimated $1 million of annual savings.”

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Waste reduction was realized through additional inventory after the switch because the tankers would haul away wasted food ingredients. If fact, 70-100 gal of food waste were left in the tankers per unload, with a typical day averaging 15 loads. In addition, the team was able to reduce tanker washing from daily to weekly and eliminate the pump cost of $200 per load.

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MANUFACTURING INNOVATION

IN-BULK HPP JUICES UP FRESH QUALITY FOR FRENCH FIRM The world’s first commercial line for in-bulk high pressure processing represents a breakthrough technology that delivers increased output, cost savings, and sustainable value for Hermes Boissons. This project received a 2020 Manufacturing Innovation Award from ProFood World.

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PPROXIMATELY 30 MILES north of Paris, there is a small city that bears the name Hermes. The town is home to juice and smoothie producer Hermes Boissons, a company that championed the world’s first commercial in-bulk high pressure processing (HPP) equipment installation, allowing it to produce HPP premium fresh-like juices in a very effective and highly automated way.

Created by Hiperbaric, the HPP in-bulk system fits easily into Hermes Boissons’ beverage production line, providing product stabilization through HPP followed by bottling, by simplifying the procedure with less steps compared to a traditional HPP in-pack process.

“With this major line changeover, Hermes Boissons has become the first in the world to implement a fully automated beverage line for squeezing, packaging, and bottling in-bulk high pressure processed juice at commercial scale,” states Hermes Boissons President and CEO Tom François.

The processing facility encompasses approximately 13,000 sq ft of renovated space to accommodate the new Hiperbaric HPP equipment and juice extraction line from Bucher Unipektin, states François. The highly flexible and automated facility features a straightforward workflow, including reception, preparation and extrac-

tion, storage and blending, stabilization, cold filling, packaging, palletization, cold room storage, and distribution. A newly implemented enterprise resource planning system provides even more accurate production indicators, explains François, monitoring efficiency and improvements as well as eliminating paperwork.

In-bulk process With its innovative design, Hiperbaric’s in-bulk technology eliminates the need for intermediate steps, moving the product through pipes and tanks directly to the extended-shelf-life-ultra-clean filling lines from www.profoodworld.com

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Hiperbaric’s 525 in-bulk machine processes twice the amount of beverage product per cycle than traditional in-pack HPP equipment.

Photo courtesy of Hermes Boissons.

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MANUFACTURING INNOVATION

The new in-bulk line consists of citrus juice extractors producing 800 gal per hr. Photo courtesy of Hermes Boissons.

Tetra Pak and Elopack at Hermes Boissons. The process optimizes traceability and drastically reduces labor costs, according to François.

In fact, the Hiperbaric 525 in-bulk machine processes twice the amount of beverage product per cycle than traditional in-pack HPP equipment, states Carol Tonello Samson, commercial and applications director for Hiperbaric.

By overcoming HPP’s in-pack processing limitations, Hiperbaric’s in-bulk system reduces processing and packaging steps from six to four. A batch of unprocessed beverage product fills the machine’s inlet tank. From there, it moves into a processing bag inside the ves-

sel that occupies 90% of the total volume, roughly double that achieved with HPP inpack technology. Next, high-pressure intensifiers pump water to the vessel during a holding time. This step is the same for HPP in-pack machines. (In-bulk HPP is subject to the same regulations, specifications, and validations as existing in-pack HPP.) When the pressure is released, water leaves the vessel, and the processed beverage passes to the outlet tank via sterilized pipes. With the bag completely empty, a new cycle starts. The processed beverage is now ready to be bottled.

Because the Hermes Boissons facility is located near a river with a weak soil structure, the processor had to reinforce the floor with a dozen 32-ft-long pillars to handle the 90 metric tons of weight of the HPP machine. In general, a well-compacted reinforced floor of 16 in thick is suitable to site a Hiperbaric 525 machine, states Tonello Samson.

R&D investment Last year, Hermes Boissons installed Hiperbaric’s 525 Bulk system to begin HPP beverage processing. Hiperbaric customized the 525 system to Hermes Boissons’ high level of manufacturing, traceability, and food safety standards, including clean-in-place connections, oxygen peroxide handling and elimination, and software.

Hiperbaric has been involved in the design of HPP technology since it was founded in 1999. More recently, the Spain-based HPP technology provider was part of a

HERMES BOISSONS RESPONDS TO MARKET DEMANDS

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ITH THE HERMES BOISSONS FACTORY dating back nearly 200 years, beverage production has been ongoing for more than 30 years on-site. During the past three decades, the company was acquired by major industry players, including Dole Foods, Seagram, and PepsiCo. In early 2019, the beverage processor was acquired by a group of investors, including President and CEO Tom François, with the goal of using the existing state-of-the-art facilities and leveraging its experienced staff knowledge to reposition the company to address the growing This prototype package represents Hermes Boissons as the first producer to supply HPP products filled into cartons, a renewable and sustainable packaging format. Photo courtesy of Hermes Boissons.

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market of freshly squeezed juices using high pressure processing (HPP) technology.

Hermes Boissons’ first initiative was to add the HPP expertise to the heat pasteurization knowhow. The company’s premium juice products are stabilized by cold pressure to meet the increasing demand of minimally processed food and chilled and fresh juices. The second strategic decision was squeezing high-quality fresh fruits on-site as well as using never-heat pasteurized raw materials in a frozen format. These strategic changes required a $6.5 million investment in 2019 that included a new line for fruit juice squeezing, HPP machinery, and PET bottling lines.

The independent company serves three different customer sectors: co-manufacturing, distributors, and foodservice companies.

www.profoodworld.com

7/30/20 9:01 AM

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MANUFACTURING INNOVATION IN-PACK VS. IN-BULK HIGH PRESSURE PROCESSING

In-bulk HPP simplifies and reduces processing from six steps to four steps vs. HPP in-pack machinery and provides double the capacity.

Image courtesy of Hiperbaric.

high-tech R&D project called BEVSTREAM, funded by nearly $4 million in European Union grants. The project spanned more than four years and involved over 40 people, including Hiperbaric staff as well as university researchers and consultants.

Commercially available for food and beverage processing since the early 1990s, the use of HPP technology has grown significantly over the last 10 years.

Today, there are approximately 500 HPP industrial machines in place in about 50 countries at more than

2020 MANUFACTURING INNOVATION AWARDS AT PACK EXPO

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HE PRESENTATION OF PROFOOD WORLD’S fourth annual Manufacturing Innovation Awards is planned for PACK EXPO this fall.

The 2020 winners are: • The J. M. Smucker Company — Highly automated, greenfield Uncrustables frozen sandwich plant in Longmont, Colo.

• Hermes Boissons — First in the world to use high pressure processing to bulk-process juices that are sent directly to the filler at its facility in Hermes, France.

• Lotus Bakeries — Belgian-based manufacturers of Biscoff cookies with its first plant in the U.S., located in Mebane, N.C. Leaders from all three plants will discuss the outstanding engineering and production aspects of their award-winning projects during a special session at the November show. For more information, visit www.packexpointernational.com.

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300 companies, according to Hiperbaric.

Until now, industrial HPP machines have worked following an in-pack concept, processing already-packed or bottled products in their final packaging. Packaged food or beverages are loaded into baskets, which are introduced in the vessel obtaining a filling efficiency between 45% and 55% the nominal volume.

After the required pressure and holding time, the packaged product is unloaded manually.

In-pack HPP requires product to be packed before being “cold pasteurized,” but in the beverage industry, pasteurized products are bottled after pasteurization. In addition, packaging should be flexible enough to withhold pressure and recover its initial shape as well as include water-resistant properties. As a result, only plastic packaging like PET, PE, or PP bottles are appropriate for in-pack HPP processing.

Carton bricks are damaged when they come in contact with pressurized water, for example, and glass bottles are broken into pieces.

With HPP in-pack units, products in final packaging must be manually loaded and unloaded from the baskets. These stages are now automated with Hiperbaric’s in-bulk systems, where the liquid goes directly to the extended-shelf-life filling line. “This facilitates traceability and reduces the labor costs because one single operator can run the in-bulk equipment,” says Tonello Samson. The Hiperbaric 525 in-bulk’s throughput can reach 1,300 gal per hr compared to 900 gal per hr delivered by the biggest in-pack model.

Nothing but the fruit makes the difference Today, Hermes Boissons is able to produce sustainable juices while working with suppliers following France’s high environmental value (HEV) certification requirements. “A major goal is to reduce our carbon footprint on the sourcing, transportation, and transformation of our raw materials,” states François.

“Our aim is to move away as much as possible from a supply outside of France to a regional supply. This means an adaptation of our products to the different varieties of fruits and vegetables produced in these territories with different climates.”

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7/29/20 11:23 AM

ENSURE AN UNINTERRUPTED SUPPLY OF CHEMISTRY THAT’S TOUGH ON PATHOGENS BUT GENTLE ON PEOPLE WITH THE KLARION ON-SITE GENERATION SYSTEM ®

Keeping pace with increased disinfection demand doesn’t have to mean dealing with the fallout from supply chain disruption or increased exposure to toxic chemicals. With the Klarion On-Site Generation System, produce as much chemistry as needed, right in your plant. The Klarion cleaner and disinfectant are just as effective as harsh traditional chemicals but better for employees. The solutions are non-toxic and non-irritating to eyes and skin.

CLEAN EVERYWHERE Klarion solutions can be widely used throughout your plant.

Solutions can be fed into CIP systems and used in pressure washers, mobile carts, buckets, handheld sprayers, spray guns and spray bottles. Clean and disinfect when and where needed – equipment, tanks, totes, work and break areas, bathrooms, floors and more.*

CLEAN EFFECTIVELY CLEAN RESPONSIBLY Klarion sanitizer/disinfectant has demonstrated efficacy against human coronavirus and other viruses more resilient to disinfection than SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19. Use on pre-cleaned, hard, non-porous surfaces to kill a wide range of pathogens.*

Repeated exposure to harsh chemicals isn’t required for effective disinfection. Klarion solutions are non-irritating to eyes and skin and contain no fragrances. The solutions are produced in ready-to-use concentrations, eliminating the need for dangerous chemical dilution.

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MANUFACTURING INNOVATION

Plus, Hermes Boissons now has the unique capability to offer HPP juices and smoothies in packaging formats such as carton bricks, carton bottles, PET bottles, pouches, bag in box, and even glass bottles in the future to the European market. In fact, it is the first producer to supply HPP products filled into cartons, a renewable and sustainable packaging format, according to François.

Hermes Boissons works with HEV fruit suppliers recognized by France’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food for their environmental performance. HEV certification guarantees that these companies have a minimum impact on the environment in agricultural practices, such as biodiversity, conservation, plant protection strategy, fertilizer use, and water resource management.

“Our products are 100% pure fruits, nothing added, nothing retrieved. Nothing but the fruit makes the difference,” François states.

The in-bulk equipment’s capacity will also cut energy usage by more than 40% compared to traditional HPP in-pack machines. Plus, maintenance costs can be greatly reduced. In fact, the total cost of ownership of a Hiperbaric in-bulk HPP unit can be reduced by more than 50% compared to traditional HPP in-pack machines, states Tonello Samson.

Opportunity knocks With this major plant expansion completed, the processor is considering further investments. In order to offer customers a wider choice of packaging, Hermes Boissons also plans to install a Serac bottle filling machine with a capacity up to 6,000 bottles per hr. If undertaken, the project could represent the world’s most sustainable packaging alternative in the organic juice market when using rPET bottles, carton bricks, and carton bottles.

The current capacity of the Hiperbaric 525 Bulk installed at Hermes Boissons is 3,000+ L/h because the machine is equipped only with three doubleintensifiers (instead of five). This equates to a maximum annual production capacity of about 4 million gal. With the processor’s forecast for HPP beverages, full production volume should be reached in 2021.

In 2022, the company plans to expand HPP production capacity, likely with a two-stage investment. First, acquiring two more double-high-pressure intensifiers will help Hermes Boissons reach an annual production of 6.6 million gal with the machinery in place. After reaching this output, Hermes Boissons will need to expand its fruit squeezing line and invest in a second Hiperbaric 525 in-bulk. At that time, Hermes Boissons will install a Hiperbaric 1050 Bulk system (two Hiperbaric 525 Bulk

INTRODUCING HPP BULK TECHNOLOGY: Bulk liquid processing for the beverage market HPP In-Bulk Technology is a non-thermal processing technique ďLJ ǁŚŝĐŚ ďĞǀĞƌĂŐĞƐ ĂƌĞ ƉƌŽĐĞƐƐĞĚ ďĞĨŽƌĞ ďŽƩůŝŶŐ ĂůůŽǁŝŶŐ ĨŽƌ any type of packaging. It ĚĞůŝǀĞƌƐ ƵƉ ƚŽ Ϯ ϲϰϬ ŐĂů Ś ƚŚĞ ůĂƌŐĞƐƚ ƉƌŽĚƵĐƟǀŝƚLJ ŽĨ ĂŶLJ ,WW ĞƋƵŝƉŵĞŶƚ ǁŚŝĐŚ ŝŶ ƚƵƌŶ reduces energy and labor costs ďLJ ϱϬй ĂŶĚ ဒϬй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ /ŶĂĐƟǀĂƚĞƐ ĨŽŽĚ ďŽƌŶĞ pathogens

Maintains product quality & freshness

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HIPERBARIC, S.A. Condado de Trevno, 6 Pol. Ind. Villalonquejar 09001 Burgos | SPAIN +34 947 473 874

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© Hiperbaric 2020 - The rights are reserved.

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NEW GUIDELINES FOR HPP READY-TO-EAT DELI SALADS

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N JUNE 2, THE COLD PRESSURE COUNCIL (CPC) released new guidelines for wet salads, defined as ready-to-eat deli salads, approved to use working in tandem), providing the High Pressure Certified mark available exclusively from the council. up to 2,640 gal per hr.

These guidelines join a list that also includes juice products, protein products, and “We strongly believe that it sauces and dips. is our role as manufacturers to “Although thermal pasteurization remains a core technology in the food and bring innovative process and beverage industry, it may affect the appearance, flavor, and nutritional value of technologies with the aim of foods, and does not necessarily meet the demands of modern society for natural, fresh, and bringing better products to the aesthetically appealing foods,” according to the 2018 Global Trends Food and Beverage consumers,” says François. “We Processing report from PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies. have been looking for the difCPC’s mission is to lead, facilitate, and promote industry standardization, user education, and ferent ways we could address consumer awareness of high pressure processing. Learn more at https://coldpressurecouncil.org. the strong and increasing demand for fresher products coming from consumers and keeping ourselves informed about the many safety apply it to our product, the juice. HPP came out as a measures, while implementing them as quickly as posbreakthrough.” sible and communicating them with our teams. We The power of constant learning, always challenghave seen a great motivation among our employees, a ing oneself, and always being persistent were crucial strong sense of solidarity, and a lot of very constructo project success, according to François. “The project tive initiatives. I can say that I am proud of what we also challenged the status quo and habits we had and have done during this unprecedented period.” PFW was an opportunity to improve our agility, accountability, and team spirit.”

Hiperbaric Tetra Pak Bucher Unipektin Hermes Boissons was able to support its customers www.hiperbaric.com/en/ www.tetrapak.com www.bucherunipektin.com during the COVID-19 pandemic. “To do so, we had to provide the safest work conditions for our employees,” Serac Elopak www.serac-group.com www.elopak.com states François. “We spent an infinite amount of time

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Gentle Food Handling The FDS pumps the widest range of food products gently and reliably, from thick to thin, chunky to smooth, and fast to slow. Precision engineering allows for JUHDWHU HIÄ&#x;FLHQF\ :LWK VFUHZ FRQÄ&#x;JXUDWLRQV DFURVV Ä&#x;YH PRGHOV WKH )'6 can dial in to your exact processing needs.

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7/17/2020 7/29/208:53:34 12:16AM PM

TECH TODAY: PUMPS AND VALVES

CLEANER, EFFICIENT TECHNOLOGY

AT THE HEART OF PRODUCTION Clean in place is an important trend as pump and valve suppliers look to improve uptime for food and beverage producers. Smarter, more flexible products are also helping to meet product demands.

AARON HAND EDITOR AT LARGE

F

OR MANY TYPES of food and beverage processing plants, pumps and valves live as the heart of the operation. Take one down— whether because of malfunction or because of regular maintenance—and thousands of dollars of product could come to a halt.

Manufacturers are striving not only to keep operations more hygienic and sanitary than ever, but they’re trying to keep uptime at a maximum, struggling to maintain profits and viability in an increasingly competitive market. Suppliers are reacting to demands for cleanliness, more effective clean-in-place (CIP) processes, improved energy use, gentler handling, and increased uptime and optimization.

“Food and beverage manufacturing regulations are always being enhanced, modified, and improved, so

we have to stay abreast of any and all changes in the regulatory landscape, then be able to react with new or modified pumping technologies,” says Erik Solfelt, diaphragm pump product manager at PSG, a Dover Company.

“The trend in the food and beverage industry for modernization links to a growing demand for greater automation, more fl exibility, optimized uptime, enhanced product quality, and consistency,” says Chris Sinutko, global product manager – valves, food and beverage at SPX Flow. “Valves with increasingly sophisticated control tops and advances in mixproof technology add to the flexibility and uptime of a processing line. Pumps with wide flow and viscosity ranges can reduce the total number of pumps required for a process and increase flexibility and productivity.” www.profoodworld.com

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Noosa Yoghurt switched to a TrueClean CIP’able valve from Central States Industrial to improve cleaning efficiency. Photo courtesy of Central States Industrial.

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Smarter and more efficient The food and beverage industry is beginning to harness the benefits of the Internet of Things (IoT) and smart manufacturing. “With smart machines come data, which, with advanced analytics, offer insights into processes that can help to drive levels of efficiency and safety,” Sinutko says, pointing to SPX Flow’s CU4plus control unit for its D4 Series valves. “We see more sensors being added and greater communication capabilities coming soon for both pumps and valves.”

PSG has created a remote performance monitoring and alert system for its air-operated doublediaphragm (AODD) pumps called Wilden SafeGuard.

IoT-enabled, it allows pumps to be monitored from anywhere 24/7 through a secure cloud connection.

“The new Wilden SafeGuard enables the plant operator to know the exact operating condition of every pump at any time of the day, which helps optimize performance and also provides a way to predict when preventive maintenance may be needed or a potential breakdown may occur,” Solfelt says. “Additionally, this new technology allows operators to immediately detect and mitigate a diaphragm rupture if one occurs, saving product from contamination.”

Energy efficiency has become a growing trend as well. And while some manufacturers might be just trying to check the green box (consumer perception is all part of branding, after all), improving pump energy efficiency can go a long way toward reducing carbon footprint as well as saving money.

Dairies make up a big part of the business for pump

maker Alfa Laval. And for dairies, more than 50% of a plant’s energy consumption actually comes from pumps, says Russell Jones, commercial pump manager for Alfa Laval. In large part, this is true of beverage and pharmaceutical plants as well. “Many people don’t think of pumps as a key energy consumer,” he says. “So we have a bit of an education task on our hands.”

It’s important to understand the best way to apply those pumps because the most efficient pumps in the world will not be efficient if they’re not applied correctly. The right pump needs to be put with the right application. “So that’s part of the education,” Jones adds.

With its application of about 300 pumps from Alfa Laval, Arla Foods was able to increase capacity in its mozzarella cheese production in Denmark by 25% while increasing energy consumption by only 2%. In the process, the dairy producer reduced CIP from seven to five times a week without having to make significant investments in new technologies.

“Turning 1,270 tons of raw milk into mozzarella every week requires keeping downtime to a minimum,” says Per Hansen, engineering manager for Arla Foods.

“We’re constantly looking for ways to find better, more reliable ways to meet 24/7 production operations and to make our production even more environmentally friendly. Alfa Laval pumps and processing technologies have played an important part in us being able to increase our production and energy performance.”

Although other features are being improved as well, energy is the No. 1 driver in all of Alfa Laval’s new designs, according to Jones. Alfa Laval recently launched the last model in its LKH Prime series, which brought a 60% improvement in efficiency through advanced air-screw technology.

Flexibility for product innovation

Ampco Pumps partnered with Bornemann to offer its SLH Series of sanitary twin screw pumps. Photo courtesy of Ampco Pumps.

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With changing consumer tastes, innovation is an important factor for food and beverage producers, Sinutko notes. This requires pump and valve makers to work closely with customers to meet their demands. It also requires that the pumps and valves themselves be more flexible to produce multiple products on a single process line.

Mixproof valves provide a high degree of flexibility because they are specifically designed to allow two different products to flow through the valve at the same time without risking cross-contamination. SPX Flow’s latest valves are the D4 Series double-seat mixproof valves. “To meet differing market needs, the range comes with a cost-effective base D4 model, offering safe separation with either seat lift or nonseat lift cleanability,” Sinutko says. Other valves are the ultra-hygienic DA4 for more critical applications and D4PMO, designed specifically for the U.S. dairy market in line with the latest 3-A sanitary standard

www.profoodworld.com

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85-02 for continuous processing Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO).

Looking to modernize its upstate New York plant for sour cream and yogurt, HP Hood looked to SPX Flow for its automated mixproof valve technology.

Objectives included minimizing operator intervention and risk of contamination, while increasing operational efficiency and productivity. A total of 27 D4PMO valves were installed, allowing the dairy company to continuously run production while simultaneously cleaning in place the opposite pipelines without fear of cross-contamination. “This has greatly increased the plant’s uptime and enhanced its flexibility in alternating between cleaning and production schedules on their tanks,” Sinutko says, adding that CU4plus control units were also used to automate the valve operation from a centralized control room.

A key technology that has been taking off in food processing to provide flexibility is twin screw technology, and every major pump manufacturer in the sanitary industry has released some version of this in recent years. “That’s a major shift,” says Bob Garner, lead engineer at Ampco Pumps.

Like positive displacement (PD) pumps in general, twin screw pumps can be used for the gentle conveyance of lumpy, shear-sensitive, and abrasive media.

But they offer an added level of flexibility for pumping liquids of different viscosities. They have the ability to pump large solids like meat slurries or fruit toppings, they’re efficient with shearing product, and they can pump CIP solutions as well as they pump product.

“It can handle solids well without damaging the solids—like yogurt with blueberries or ice cream with strawberries,” Garner says. “And it can be run at high speeds. So you pump your yogurt, then turn the speed up and pump cleaning solutions through. You don’t have to roll in a CIP pump system; you can pump product and then pump CIP at high speed.”

Versatility is the key for the Universal Twin Screw from SPX Flow. “It is designed for gentle product handling, low noise, easy maintenance, and wide operational speed range,” Sinutko says. “The pump works efficiently with everything from viscous product flows through to thin, CIP fluids, and handles high flow rates with low inlet pressures and bi-directional flows without modification.”

Fristam Pumps’ version of the twin screw is its FDS PD pump. “We’re able to eliminate a bunch of different pumps and use this one for pumping product and also as a CIP supply pump,” says Dan Johnson, application engineer for Fristam. “This pump can cover both high and low speeds and thick and thin product.”

GEA just launched a new twin screw pump in March as part of its Varipump line, which are pumps with a high degree of flexibility for optimum adaptation

The Universal Twin Screw from SPX Flow is an example of the increasingly popular twin screw pump technology, which can pump a variety of food products and CIP solutions. Photo courtesy of SPX Flow.

to individual customer requirements. The GEA Hilge Novatwin provides flexibility for a wide range of applications, enabling production and cleaning with one pump by variable speeds up to 3,000 rpm.

CIP’ability More pumps and valves are being geared toward improved CIP capabilities. PSG’s Wilden Saniflo HS Series AODD pumps, for example, not only result in a cleaner manufacturing process, Solfelt says, but also a more efficient one.

For a plant that’s switching more often from mango to orange juice, say, or Coke to Diet Coke to Cherry Coke, speed of cleaning can be a considerable factor.

“The effectiveness of the cleaning is fundamental,” Jones says. “But if you can do it faster, you can save tens of thousands of dollars an hour.”

Faced with significant cleaning efforts with each change in yogurt flavor, Noosa Yoghurt took a good look at its total downtime cost (TDC) and realized the savings it could achieve improving its cleaning process. For example, fruit line piping must be cleaned after each fruit flavor in a 40-minute changeover process that repeats 12-13 times per week. In addition to the TDC for CIP procedures, Noosa was losing hundreds of pounds of product each week there and in its honey-recirculation line and blending skid. This, along with the water and chemical rinses, amounted to a potential savings of thousands of dollars each month through better product recovery and system cleaning.

One way that Noosa looked to improve the evacuation of its product lines and increase product recovery was through check valves, which are used to push www.profoodworld.com

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TECH TODAY: PUMPS AND VALVES

The GEA Hilge Novatwin enables production and cleaning with one pump by variable speeds up to 3,000 rpm. Photo courtesy of GEA.

residual product downstream at the end of a process while preventing product backfill during cleaning. Nick Hansen, Noosa’s improvement engineer, set out to find a sanitary air blow check valve to do the job.

The downside of standard 3-A certified air blow check valves is that they must be cleaned out of place— a manual cleaning step that adds costly downtime and introduces the possibility of human error. Because food, dairy, and beverage products are intended for human consumption, sanitary standards for production are high, and a great deal of attention must be focused on valve cleaning. But every manual step added to the cleaning process creates a potential failure point.

The answer ended up being the TrueClean CIP’able valve from Central States Industrial. It’s the only sanitary air blow check valve approved by 3-A Sanitary Standards for cleaning in place. With an air blow check valve that wouldn’t need to be disassembled to clean, Noosa could increase cleaning efficiency while also maintaining product integrity. With increased levels of automation as well, Noosa operators could cut 40 minutes of work during a flavor changeover down to 45 seconds. (See “Noosa Yoghurt Cuts Downtime, Product Loss With Valve Upgrade” at https://bit.ly/NoosaCIP to learn more.)

Clean pumps When designing a new pump, Alfa Laval’s engineers think about cleaning as much as they think about its ability to pump, Jones says. Not only does the pump need to be able to pump food through, it needs to be cleaned efficiently as well. “When you put cream through a pump or peanut butter, it’s going to get 40

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everywhere in that pump where it can go,” Jones says.

“When you flood water through that pump, those won’t necessarily go through the same parts.”

Cleanability can be a tricky subject, though, especially in the U.S., where cleanability standards are lacking. “There are lots of shades of gray,” Jones says.

The most applicable standard for the dairy industry, for example, is 3-A, but most people look to that as a minimum standard because it doesn’t have a cleanability test. “After you’ve pumped milk all day, you have to clean the system. And the pump is one of the hardest things to clean,” Jones notes. “With thin milk, you could have a relatively sanitary design, and you’ll still be OK. But in a more viscous environment, that starts to get tough.”

In the U.S., manufacturers have a tradition of PD pumps that have to be taken apart and cleaned by hand, Jones says. That won’t fly anymore, though, and customers are looking more and more for CIP’ability.

Cleanliness, of course, is of utmost important in food and beverage production. “These types of plants always strive to keep their processes as hygienic and sanitary as possible, knowing that any lapse in quality or taste will have far-reaching negative effects for consumers and the manufacturer itself,” Solfelt says.

PSG has noticed a considerable uptick in the number of customers upgrading to higher levels of cleanliness, including sanitary construction, such as clamped ports, stainless-steel components, and advanced surface finishes, Solfelt says.

Another recent advance from PSG is the Wilden Pure-Fuse Diaphragm, which has a one-piece design that eliminates trap areas between the outer piston and diaphragm where bacteria can grow.

Running hot and cold Hygienic pump manufacturers are seeing a substantial increase from the food industry in sales for hot oil, such as in fryers, according to Garner. Where industrial pumps used to be the norm, customers have started demanding cleaner sanitary pumps for this application, he says.

“We had to open up some of the clearances and provide special elastomers that can handle the temperatures.”

On the other end of the spectrum, there’s also more demand for cryogenic capabilities—in the -50 to -60°F range—for hemp oil and CBD oil. This also takes special seal materials and elastomers, Garner says. “As soon as we started getting requests for that, we came out with a special seal design, material-wise, that can handle low temperatures, as well as special elastomers,” he says, explaining that Ampco worked with its seal supplier to develop the new seals. Customers with cryogenic processing demands were trying to use pumps with standard seals, but they were failing all the time, he adds.

Overall, considerable focus has been put on seals—

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how long they last, how easy they are to change.

Customers want more maintenance friendly seal changes, Garner says, such as frontloading seals that can be changed without removing the piping or body of the pump. “The pump is the heart of that process room. When that pump goes down, everything else shuts down,” he states.

Looking at the cost of ownership—not just the purchase price, but the price of that pump over its lifetime—85% of that comes down to energy efficiency, according to Jones. A significant chunk of the remainder is maintenance. It can make a big difference in cost of downtime if that pump can be repaired faster. “If a pump goes down, it could cost a plant $10,000 an hour on a pump that only costs $2,000,” Jones notes.

One feature of Alfa Laval’s LKH line is that one seal fits over 16 different pump sizes. A really big plant that has lots of different pump sizes only has to stock one seal for repairs. “They’re quick to change, only one size, and it’s also a very long-lasting seal,” Jones says.

Some customers want to get rid of the elastomers in their pumps altogether. If an elastomer O-ring, for example, gets cuts into a batch of hotdog meat, that whole batch will have to be tossed—an expensive proposition. In this case, more customers are com-

pelled to demand metal O-rings, particularly in the meat industry, where they are pumping meat slurries.

If anything happens with that O-ring, the metal is more detectable and can be removed, Garner notes.

In one case cited by SPX Flow, a processor was using a PD pump to transfer yogurt containing seeds.

That pump had an O-ring seal that was quickly wearing out as seeds accumulated around it, meaning the process had to be stopped while the seal was replaced, impacting productivity and cost. “The pump was changed for a Universal 3 Series PD pump, which uses a flat, profiled gasket instead of an O-ring,” Sinutko says. “This stopped the seeds from accumulating, reducing maintenance overheads, increasing productivity, and providing a solution that was cleaned more thoroughly during CIP cycles.” PFW Alfa Laval www.alfalaval.com

GEA www.gea.com

Ampco Pumps www.ampcopumps.com

PSG www.psgdover.com

Central States Industrial www.csidesigns.com

SPX Flow www.spxflow.com

Fristam Pumps www.fristam.com

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MORE THAN JUST A MAGNET

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DRY PROCESSING SOLUTIONS

Cocoa Powder Processor Achieves Plant Hygiene and Efficiency A bulk bag discharger helps JB Cocoa create a dust-free environment and optimizes operations for its cocoa powder processing line. A high-integrity seal and top-mounted enclosure add to the equipment’s performance.

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OCOA POWDER PROCESSING can get messy and slow down production. But that’s not the case at JB Cocoa. The Malaysia-based manufacturer of cocoa butter, cocoa powder, and cocoa mass installed a bulk bag discharger at its East Java, Indonesia, facility that has been able to create an efficient, dust-free cocoa powder line.

JB Cocoa uses the Flexicon BULK-OUT BFC-C-X bulk bag discharger to handle and store loose cocoa presscakes, which are the crumbled solids that remain after creating cocoa butter. Before the presscakes are pulverized into cocoa powder, JB Cocoa puts them into storage. That’s when the bulk bag discharger comes in.

The Flexicon BULK-OUT BFC-C-X bulk bag discharger ensures constant and complete discharge of JB Cocoa’s presscakes with features including a telescoping tube and bag activators. Photo courtesy of Flexicon.

Rapid discharge The discharger is configured with an electric hoist and trolley that ride on a cantilevered I-beam, allowing bulk bags to be loaded into the frame without the need for a forklift. The operator slips the bag straps into four Z-Clip strap holders of the bag lifting frame and uses a pendant to hoist the bag into the discharger frame. The Tele-Tube telescoping tube pneumatically raises the Spout-Lock clamp ring, allowing the operator to make a highintegrity sealed connection between the clean side of the bag spout and the clean side of the equipment.

With the bag spout secured, the operator pulls its drawstring, letting the presscakes discharge into the 8-cu-ft surge hopper. Releasing the telescoping tube’s air pressure allows the clamp ring to maintain a constant downward tension by gravity as the bag empties and elongates to promote material flow. Additional flow promotion is provided by Flow-Flexer bag activators that raise and lower opposite sides of the bag bottom to promote complete discharge through the bag spout. A rotary valve at the hopper outlet meters the presscakes into a pneumatic conveying line that moves them to a storage silo. From there, the presscakes are mixed and milled into six recipes of cocoa powder and packed into 55-lb bags.

The hopper’s top-mounted enclosure is vented to a side-mounted Bag-Vac dust collector that creates

negative pressure within the sealed system to prevent displaced air and dust from escaping into the plant.

The enclosure also serves to contain spillage that might otherwise escape through seams in the bag and folds in the spout. In addition, the enclosure is equipped with a hinged access door and folding bag shelf for manual dumping of underfilled sacks.

“The use of the Flexicon bulk bag discharger provides a safe and hygienic way to unload cocoa cake from the bulk bags,” says Redi Koerniawan of JB Cocoa. “It ensures efficient unloading with little to no dust released into the processing environment.” PFW Flexicon www.flexicon.com www.profoodworld.com

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DRY PROCESSING SOLUTIONS Vacuum Conveying Systems Eliminate Dumping, Lifting, and Stair Climbing

Pneumatic Conveying System Sets Material in One Continuous Layer

VAC-U-MAX vacuum conveying systems can be used with powders, pellets, flakes, pastilles, nuts, seeds, and other granular food ingredients. Each Signature Series system includes a pick-up wand, convey hose, vacuum receiver with automatic pulse filter cleaning, a vacuum producer, and UL-listed controls.

Typical applications include source-to-destination conveying from totes, drums, bulk bags, and bag dump stations to feeders, mixers, blenders, screeners, food extruders, and packaging machines. The 3500 Series systems offer conveying rates up to 3,500 lb per hr, while the 1500 Series sanitary systems come in conveying rates from handfuls to 1,500 lb per hr.

VAC-U-MAX vac-u-max.com

Built for a range of free-flowing to poor-flowing coarse and fine powders, the Gericke conveying system automatically sets material into a single layer for continuous, first-in-first-out transport at rates up to 88 cu ft per min with moderate gas velocities, at traveling distances up to 2,600 ft. The DenseFlow PHF dry material conveying system introduces the air or other transport gas from the pressure vessel and separately from a discharge elbow downstream to achieve air-to-material ratios averaging 88 lb of material per lb of conveying air. The system can be custom engineered for each installation.

Gericke USA, Inc. gerickegroup.com

Custom System Discharges Food Ingredients into Existing Processes The Material Transfer discharging system is FDA and USDA approved for areas of direct and indirect dry food contact. The custom MATERIAL MASTER bulk bag discharging system features an electric chain hoist and bag lifting frame, bulk bag massaging system to promote material flow, gate for partial bag discharge, round bag spout access chamber, and pneumatic bag spout clamping system.

Highly cross-linked film resists chemicals and solvents, and does not support the growth of mold, fungi, or other microorganisms. Systems can be custom designed for specific application requirements.

Material Transfer materialtransfer.com

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Screw Feeder Provides Highly Accurate Metering Engineered to meter powders in medium- and high-capacity applications, the Powder Process-Solutions volumetric screw feeder comes with 4- to 10-in. auger diameters and lengths for almost any application. The VSF 3-A model is available with ferrules, flanges, flexible sleeve fittings, and plain-tube stubs outlet options. Constructed of stainless steel with all product contact surfaces polished to a maximum 32Ra Îźin finish, the feeder meets 3-A sanitary standard 81-00.

Powder Process-Solutions powder-solutions.com

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System Is Designed for Continuous Feeding and Volumetric Dosing

Elevated Conveyor Provides Uninterrupted Shop Production Below

Built for safe product handling even in dust explosion environments, the Volkmann feeder system operates with 1 g of accuracy, depending on the product. All the product contact parts of the vibratory feeder dosing system are made of 316L or 304 stainless steel. Customizable to fit specific applications, variations include an open/closed U-beam/ tray, close pipe, clam connections, and diff erent lengths.

Options, such as a weighing frame, dust-tight connections, a combination with sieving, and a quick-release screener outlet, are available. The feeder can be used for loss-in-weight feeding, gainin-weight feeding into a target bin or container, blending, and sieving.

Volkmann, Inc. volkmannusa.com

Capable of speeds from 70 to 140 bags or 200 ft per min depending on product size, the Multi-Conveyor system transports bags of powder products from three separate bag filling machines to feed a single tray packer.

After the filled bags exit the bagging machines standing upright and with the narrow edges leading, the elevated conveyor system takes the three lanes and merges them into one, with a pneumatic traffic cop gate system. Then, the bags are knocked down on their faces with the wide edges leading and bumps turned so the narrow edges are leading. The system transports the bags above shop level through multiple curves, including table top and friction belt variations, and then back to shop level.

Multi-Conveyor LLC multi-conveyor.com

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DRY PROCESSING SOLUTIONS

Screw Feeder Operates Without Degradation or Attrition of Materials The Palamatic screw feeder is used to meter and dose powders and bulk materials at a controlled rate to downstream process equipment. The addition of load cells allows accurate dosing and control of the production process. Standard models D10, D11, D12, and D13 are offered with flow rates from 24 to 6,458 liters per hr.

Palamatic Process Inc. palamaticprocess.com

MANUFACTURED IN ROCKMART, GA

WE DON’T PUT YOUR EGGS IN ONE BASKET

When it comes to your steam generation needs, keeping all your eggs in one basket by relying on a single firetube boiler can be a huge risk, because if your boiler goes down, chances are you will lose production. Miura’s Modular, On-Demand steam solution is like having every egg in its own basket. Plus, Miura provides N+1 redundancy with less total installed horsepower, providing cost savings and unparalleled reliability and efficiency.

Turn-Key Boiler Room Solutions Full Steam in Under Five Minutes Optimum In-Service Efficiency Online Monitoring Systems

Miura’s LX-300 in M.I. configuration offers a range of advantages.

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us.info@miuraz.com 888.309.5574 miuraboiler.com

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Feeders Ensure Smooth, Gentle, Unrestricted Movement of Dry Solid Ingredients Acrison feeders have two flow-inducing augers/ agitators that counter-rotate at the same speed, plus a metering auger operating at a proportional, but dissimilar, speed. This combination, as well as increased gravity flow into the wide-throat inlet to the feed chamber, allows Model BDF feeders to eliminate any type of convergence that could impede product flow and feed.

Available options include sanitary construction to satisfy USDA and FDA codes, in addition to high-temperature and pressure construction.

Acrison, Inc. acrison.com

Vibratory Feeders Provide Gentle Handling of Bulk Solid Materials Coperion vibratory feeders feature a modular design, including a variety of quickchange tray options. Available in standard and hygienic models, the K-Tron K3 vibratory feeders are built for applications where uniform discharge is critical, especially at low rates. The units are suitable for feeding fragile ingredients, finished friable food products, ingredients, and coarse powders and granules.

Coperion K-Tron coperion.com 46

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PLANT FLOOR

New Products Nozzle Delivers Hollow Cone Spray Pattern of Uniform Particle Size

Tray Stacking System Eliminates Human Error and Reduces Risk of Injury The Apex Motion Control tray stacker features an integrated barcode scanner and label inspection function. Capable of handling up to 12 trays per min, the automated unit has a stack capacity of up to 500 lb and switches between different types of baskets in less than 1 minute. A safety light curtain is included.

APEX Motion Control apexmotion.com

Using self-locating swirl chamber technology, the Delavan nozzle offers flow rates certified to within +/-5% of rated capacity at 1,000 psi, operating temperatures to 700°F, and pressures as high as 10,000 psi. The SDX V spray-drying nozzle features a single inlet spiral swirl chamber, five-piece construction, and tungsten carbide wear parts with Viton or silicone O-rings. A 316L stainlesssteel body and adaptors come standard.

Delavan Ltd. delavan.com

Ball Valves Provide Durability and Economy Made with FDA-approved food-grade materials, APV ball valves feature stainless-steel construction, a full-port opening for unrestricted flow in the open position, reinforced PTFE seats, and high-temperature and pressure ratings.

The BLV1 Series ball valves are available with pneumatic actuators, a range of control units, and a lockable manual handle with or without position feedback. The valves come in a variety of inch and metric sizes.

SPX FLOW, Inc. spxflow.com

Reverse-lift Mixer Facilitates More Uniform Blade-to-vessel Clearances The ROSS double planetary mixer is available in a reverse-lift design that raises the vessel to the mixing position, rather than lowering the agitator assembly.

The DPM-100 mixer features a clean-in-place system with five ports with rotating spray nozzles directed at the gearbox, agitators, and vessel. The spray balls are piped to a central cleaning system manifold for single-point hook-up. Raw material feeding equipment can be hard-piped to the vacuum hood. Suitable for wet and dry applications, including semisolids (gels and dough-like materials), the explosion-proof, 100-gal mixer is controlled from a NEMA 4X stainless-steel purged panel (Class I, Div. 1, Group D).

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Solution Cooks and Vacuum Cools Fresh Foods The Allpax pressure cooker features stainless-steel construction, with swing-up orbital doors located on the load and unload sides to prevent cross-contamination between the processed and unprocessed areas of the production line. Offered in a variety of diameters with vessel lengths geared to optimal use of available space, the fresh-product pressure cooker includes FDA-compliant process controls and a vacuum cooling skid that can be designed to service one or more cookers.

Recipes are changed or added through the systemâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s touchscreen interface.

Allpax allpax.com

www.profoodworld.com

7/29/20 10:48 AM

FEATURED TOPIC

INTEGRATING “SMART” TECHNOLOGIES INTO YOUR DESIGN-BUILD IS A MUST

S

mart technologies that address the growing desire for decreased operating costs, a reduction in energy consumption, and improved equipment life cycles are essential as food processors pursue LEED-certification. Partnering with a design-build engineering firm can bring energy-efficiency options and alternatives to the table during the design phase, prior to facility construction.

“The knowledge and experience of a design team in integrating smart technologies at the forefront of the process is fundamental if the end-user is going to benefit from these technologies,” says Timothy Gibbons, Vice President of Design for ESI Group USA. “These technologies are relatively easy to integrate at the front end of a building project, and almost impossible to do once the building is constructed and operational. At that point, installing the necessary sensors, modules, and equipment is time consuming, expensive, and difficult. As a result, only smaller monitoring systems would be possible.”

One smart technology that is drawing attention from the food industry is a Building Management System (BMS) or also called a Building Automation System (BAS). Research

and Markets experts predict the global market for this technology will reach $155 billion by 2026, up from $58 billion just three years ago. While both involve hardware and software, a BMS is a computer-based control system that monitors and controls a building’s mechanical and electrical equipment such as power systems, ventilation, security, elevators, lighting, and fire systems.

The Savings Add Up

These integration systems come with upfront costs for installing the hardware and software and the potential to add time to the construction schedule. However, integrated smart technologies can provide convenience by providing a onestop-shop for building control and systems monitoring. “For example, rather than having to monitor each HVAC unit, integration of all units into one platform for control and monitoring is exceptionally efficient, leading to a reduction in energy usage, maintenance, and potential staff,” says Gibbons.

As a critical component of managing energy demand, systems (i.e., HVAC, water heaters, and space heating systems) linked to a BMS typically represent 40% of a building’s ener-

The global Building Management System (BMS) market could reach $155 billion by 2026.

Systems linked to a BMS typically represent 40% of a building’s energy use.

A BMS can save about 36% for cooling, ventilation, space heating, and water heating; and 23% for lighting.

gy usage; if the lighting is included, this number reaches upwards to 70%. MarketWatch reported that the average net energy savings per installation of these systems in 2016 was about 36% for cooling, ventilation, space heating, and water heating; and 23% for lighting. This reduced energy consumption is also beneficial toward achieving LEED certification.

BMS can also be part of a proactive maintenance tracking program. The systems can monitor how a piece of equipment is operating, alert to performance degradation, provide diagnostic information, and track the maintenance record for

a particular piece of equipment. “Typically, the convenience and ease of maintaining the building systems for the life of the building outweighs the initial upfront costs associated with the planning and installation. All of these advantages add to life of building cost savings,” says Gibbons.

ESI can help clients run a cost-benefit analysis to determine the return on investment of implementing a BMS. Experienced mechanical and electrical engineers who are knowledgeable about these systems can offer guidance on how best to integrate a BMS for an individual project.

“We are pleased to have partnered with a firm that shares similar values and a vision to be THE LEADER in customer service. To date, this is our second project with ESI Group USA and I look forward to working together for our future facility needs.”

– William Feld, D&G Transportation

FEATURED PROJECT

BMS KEEPS HVAC OPERATING AT PEAK EFFICIENCY AT US FOODS

A

n HVAC system can account for 44% of a commercial office building’s energy consumption. So, the potential of saving an average of 30% was part of the reason US Foods (USF)-Manassas chose to integrate its HVAC system with a Building Management System (BMS).

The USF Manassas, VA, location has been operational since 1986, employing 500 people. The decision was made to expand and renovate its existing facility because of business growth and increased demand in the Washington DC metro area. This includes approximately 173,000 sq. ft. of -10°F of freezer/cooler space, conversion of the current freezer to coolers, renovation of the dry storage area, expansion of the dry storage area, renovation of the office, and expansion of the office. Additionally, a CO2/NH3 hybrid central refrigeration system is being installed to improve energy efficiency, along with new interior insulated metal panels designed to maintain temperatures in the controlled interior environments.

The existing office HVAC systems have been upgraded to meet the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code. And, the new office area has high-efficiency HVAC equipment, which includes a new BMS. “A BMS facilitates system operation and maintenance of the HVAC systems,” explains Amy Koch, PE, mechanical design engineer, ESI Group USA. “The HVAC systems are controlled by the BMS to allow the owner a single point of access to view the status of their comfort systems, ad-

CONTACT ESI Group:

just setpoints and schedules, and monitor system alarms. Additionally, the BMS allows maintenance personnel to view any alarms or temperature issues from a single web-based program that is accessible via a password-protected web interface.”

The new BMS allows maintenance staff to monitor trends for space temperature, operating mode, fan speed, etc., to allow the HVAC systems to operate most efficiently. The BMS notifies maintenance staff of equipment alarms on mobile devices and via email to ensure that staff are dispatched to immediately address the issue.

“Having a BMS that detects areas that are not operating at peak efficiency and signals maintenance personnel of these issues in real-time gives USF-Manassas the opportunity to save time and money,” says Koch.

Find us at an event: esigroupusa.com/about-esi/events/

Analyzer Helps Monitor and Manage Energy Costs

Grate in Housing Magnet Is Easy to Clean The Eriez grate magnet has a dust-tight construction that enables it to handle fine powders and some head velocity pressure while maintaining a positive seal. The standard housing is sanitary on the interior. Combining a state-ofthe-art modular design with an Eriez Xtreme RE7 magnet circuit, the DSC grate in housing magnet is available with customized options, such as sanitarywelded tie bars. A manual cleaning unit can later be upgraded to an automatic cleaning unit with simple hand tools and a bolt-on kit.

Eriez eriez.com

The CARLO GAVAZZI energy analyzer can be used for single-, two-, and threephase systems, as well as wild-leg systems. Featuring Modbus RTU and BACnet MS/TP communications, the EM50 energy analyzer can be used with standard current transformers, Rogowski coils, 333 mV current sensors, and 80 mA current sensors. Features include voltage input up to 600V L-L, static output (pulse transmission) and relay output (alarm or remote control), and a backlit LCD display with seven-digit readout. The analyzer is cULus listed.

CARLO GAVAZZI Inc. gavazzionline.com

Covers Eliminate Odors in Food and Beverage Industry Custom engineered for each application, Anue Water Technologies geomembrane coverings remove all odors, including those from sulfide and ammonia. Fitted with carbon filters, they are suitable for a range of applications, such as tanks, sludge pits, open channels, vessels, fowl offal, truck bays, vertical vents, and fugitive emissions from vent covers.

Anue Water Technologies anuewater.com

X-ray Machine Performs Even in Challenging Cold and High-moisture Environments Deployed at critical control points in the production and packaging processes, the Eagle X-ray machine utilizes dual-energy technology, which measures the ratio of two different sets of X-ray energies that pass through a product, enabling the discrimination between organic and inorganic materials. Built for midsized packaged products, the Pack 430 X-ray machine is capable of high-speed, multi-lane inspection. It removes difficult-to-find inorganic contaminants, such as glass and small pieces of rocks, dense rubber, and plastic, in a variety of product applications, including multi-textured foods and those with high variations in density.

Eagle Product Inspection eaglepi.com

Oil Filtration System Makes Food Manufacturing Lines Safer and More Efficient The Heat and Control filtration system preserves frying oil quality by removing solids, such as coating and crumbs, during production. Compatible with any fryer, the OilSaver system accommodates up to 60 gal per min in a small area. The dry cake discharge recovers large quantities of oil and returns it to the fryer. The system is suitable for coated protein products, peanuts, snack foods, appetizers, and other fried foods.

Heat and Control Inc. heatandcontrol.com www.profoodworld.com

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PLANT FLOOR PRODUCTS

Washdown Station Maintains Safe, Clean Environments

MAP Technology Preserves Product Quality Inside Packaging Engineered for flexible intermediate bulk containers (FIBC), Masterpack Group technology uses a fluorescence signal to measure the oxygen level inside modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), eliminating the need for openings to be made to the packaging material. The oxygen measurements can be repeated as often as needed without damaging the packaging. Leaving the packaging intact using nondestructive Sensor Spot technology protects products from pests and contamination. All Masterpack FIBC packaging is produced in Class 10,000 to 100,000 cleanrooms.

Masterpack Group masterpackgroup.com

The ThermOmegaTech washdown station utilizes a silent-type Venturi mixing valve to mix steam and cold water inlet flow to produce hot water washdowns. If the output temperature exceeds the factory setpoint, an actuator will begin to reduce flow and completely shut down 15°F above it. Flow resumes once the output temperature falls below the shutoff temperature. If the cold water supply is interrupted, the STVM washdown station will automatically shut off and stop flow to prevent steam-only operation and resume flow once cold water has been restored.

ThermOmegaTech, Inc. thermomegatech.com

Cleaning Modules Provide Continuous Cleansing for Conveyors Designed for FlexMove conveyors, Dorner cleaning modules continuously clean conveyor chains while the machines are in operation. The drycleaning module is used for applications involving powder, dust, and other dry contaminants, while the wet-cleaning module is suitable for applications with liquids, product overfill, or package breakage. The modules blow air or water onto the conveyor belt through a closed housing system located on the frame underneath the conveyor. A slave-driven brush scrubs chain surfaces. Both modules are completely mechanical, and neither requires electrical components, programming, or secondary motors.

Dorner Mfg. Corp. dornerconveyors.com

Scale Parts Washers Process up to 10 Cycles per Hour

Fill-seal Unit Provides Highly Flexible, User-friendly Operations

Designed for the food industry, Douglas Machines washers feature two stainless-steel tanks heated using electric, gas, or steam.

One tank is used to recirculate detergent wash water, while the other dispenses sanitized rinse water. Wash cycle times are pre-programmed at four to eight minutes, each followed by a 30-second sanitizing rinse and a 60-second steam exhaust cycle. Available with a left- or righthand door swing, the scale parts washers feature stainless-steel, continuous-weld construction; a sanitary, sloped roof design; and an external washdown hose and spray gun. They can be used with weigh hoppers, chutes, buckets, grinders, sorters, augers, troughs, and feeder pans.

Douglas Machines Corp. dougmac.com

The Erca fill-seal machine features a format-flexible indexing platform; chainless drive; and UVC, pulse light, and H2O2 hygiene options. Modular in design with stainless-steel construction and servo operations, the EFS-L fill-seal machine can fill, pre-fill, and post-fill both wet and dry ingredients. Capable of filling preformed cups up to 130 mm in diameter, the machine is suitable for a variety of products, such as yogurt, fresh cheese, cottage cheese, single and multilayer desserts, mousse, salads, dips, dressings, hot-filled sauces, soups, jams, baby food, and pet food.

IMA Dairy & Food USA imadairyfood.com/us/

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PLANT FLOOR PRODUCTS

Catchweigher Eliminates Need for Additional Strain Gauges The WIPOTEC-OCS catchweigher features a single central straingauge sensor in the scaleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s weigh bridge to simplify the weighing process. Designed for a weighing range up to 110 lb, the HC-Warehouse catchweigher delivers weighing results at transport speeds up to 4 ft per sec. The unit records in real time all maintenance-relevant data, which is stored, analyzed, and evaluated to calculate the probability for maintenance-centric events. A variety of weighing belt lengths and widths enables integration into existing transport systems. The scale meets protection class IP44 and is prepared for Ethernet/IP, Profinet, and Profibus communication protocols.

WIPOTEC-OCS, Inc. wipotec-ocs.com/us/

Spray Nozzles Reduce Waste and Help Maintain Clean, Safe Environment BETE nozzles spray precise volumes of expensive ingredients and compounds directly onto processing targets. Pulse-width modulation enables varying the liquid spray flow rate at constant supply pressure by adjusting the duty cycle. Hygienically designed, the electric-actuated HydroPulse spray nozzles do not require a compressed air source and can cycle on/off up to 150 cycles per sec.

BETE Fog Nozzle, Inc. bete.com

Compression Latch Combines Many Practical Functions into One Unit

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Intended to hold doors, covers, and hatches closed, the JW Winco compression latch is operated in two steps with an ergonomic, powder-coated T-handle.

When the handle is folded in or out, a 5-mm stroke is initiated on the rotating Lift and Turn EN 5630 compression latch to generate the required pressure against a door seal. In the folded-out position, the handle can be turned to the left or right, moving the rotating latch 90 deg behind the cover or door, allowing it to be opened. The rotating latch can be adjusted for frames between 13- and 75-mm thick, depending on the application. It has a polyamide closure housing with a permanently integrated silicone seal for protection class IP65.

JW Winco, Inc. jwwinco.com 52

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CASE STUDY

Vegetable Processor Boosts Quality and Production with Digital Sorters A combination of next-generation cameras, sensors, and pixel-level detection allows for all-sided surface inspection.

A

NTARCTIC FOODS has grown about 25% annually over the last few years selling frozen vegetables to baby food processors and others throughout Europe. The Roselare, Belgium-based company plans to maintain that growth in part by optimizing its inspection line. Antarctic installed two advanced digital sorters that not only remove foreign materials and defects from products, but maximize the efficiency of its production process and elevate food safety.

Antarctic uses two VERYX digital sorters from Key Technology at its plant in Ychoux, France, to prepare carrots, green beans, and salsify of different types and various cut shapes and sizes. The belt-fed VERYX B140 sorter is located on the wet end of its processing line, while the chute-fed VERYX C140 is used for final inspection.

All-around inspection Both VERYX sorters feature technology that provide all-sided surface inspection. Top- and bottom-mounted off-axis, four-channel cameras recognize colors, sizes, and shapes. Two-sided high-resolution laser sensors detect structural properties, including the presence of chlorophyll. Key Technology’s Pixel Fusion detection module combines pixel-level input from the cameras and laser sensors, producing higher contrasts to find the most-difficult-to-detect foreign materials and defects without false rejects.

According to Key Technology, the VERYX B140 is the world’s only belt-fed sorter that inspects product entirely in the air with top and bottom sensors. In addition, the bottom-mounted sensors on the VERYX B140 are positioned away from product splatter so full surface inspection is sustained throughout long production cycles without operator intervention.

With the cameras, lasers, and Pixel Fusion technology, the sorters remove foreign material, including insects, animal parts, paperboard, wood, rocks, plastics, and glass, as well as extraneous vegetative matter, such as weeds from the product stream. They also find and remove product defects to make grade.

“Weeds like nightshade and datura are a much bigger problem than they used to be. With farmers using

fewer pesticides and herbicides on conventional crops and, of course, the enormous growth of organic farming, we see a lot more weeds coming into our factory with raw product,” says Herwig Dejonghe, director general of Antarctic. “We work hard to be sure we get all the extraneous vegetative matter out. We use mechanical systems to remove as much as we can, and then we rely on our optical sorters to remove what the mechanical systems miss.”

Efficient processing The VERYX sorters have also helped Antarctic maximize production efficiency. Because Antarctic processes multiple seasonal products, the company needed a sorter that could handle product changeover quickly. THE VERYX sorters store recipes with sorting criteria unique to each product that allow changeover to occur in seconds with each new product that comes on the line. “Saving sort recipes to VERYX’s memory eases use and helps us produce consistent results,” Dejonghe says. www.profoodworld.com

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The VERYX B140 belt-fed sorter is equipped with top and bottom sensors that allow for in-air inspection of products. Photo courtesy of Key Technology.

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Antarctic Foods uses the VERYX C140 sorter for final inspection of products. Photo courtesy of Key Technology.

In addition, the VERYX sorters remove foreign material and defects from products before they reach the blanching and freezing stations, ensuring that the facility only consumes energy and processes on highquality products.

The belt-fed VERYX sorter also improves sort accuracy with three-way sorting. In addition to having one reject stream that leads to waste and an accept stream that moves product forward in the production process, the VERYX B140 has a third stream that diverts belowgrade product that needs rework. â&#x20AC;&#x153;By separating

this third stream prior to blanching, it has more value because we can do more with raw product,â&#x20AC;? Dejonghe explains. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Of course, the final primary objective of sorting frozen product immediately prior to packaging is to ensure final product quality.â&#x20AC;?

According to Antarctic, the VERYX sorters have not only improved its product quality and production process, but have also set the company apart from its competition. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Because we sell our frozen vegetables as ingredients to other food processors, many of our customers also use digital sorters, so they know the technology,â&#x20AC;? says Dejonghe. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Having two VERYX sorters on one line differentiates us. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re demonstrating our commitment to producing top-quality product.â&#x20AC;?

Since Antarctic installed the VERYX sorters, the company has seen a vast overall improvement in the quality of the final product. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We measure the goodto-bad ratio and the defect removal rate in addition to tracking customer complaints,â&#x20AC;? Dejonghe says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;These sorters enable us to achieve our quality objectives virtually regardless of the quality of the incoming material.

That level of quality controlâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;that improvement in qualityâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;would be impossible without this technology.â&#x20AC;? PFW Key Technology www.key.net

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CASE STUDY

Cobot Automates Icing Process A collaborative robot takes on the repetitive task of icing gourmet cookies, delivering speed and efficiency while easing workers’ ergonomic discomfort.

MAYA NORRIS MANAGING EDITOR

N

OMS BAKE SHOP is in the midst of a growth spurt. The growing demand for its gourmet cookies prompted the Tempe, Ariz.-based upstart to take its operations to the next level by installing a collaborative robot that applies icing consistently and quickly to the sweet treats. The company credits the cobot for boosting throughput and efficiency on its production line while easing the aches and pains of its cookie decorators.

Since it was founded in 2015, Noms has grown 350% year over year selling premium cookies online in the corporate gifting sector.

To prepare the company for expansion, co-owner and CEO Trevor Martin has been automating parts of Noms’ manufacturing facility in Phoenix to eliminate production bottlenecks in making 10,000 cookies a day. In addition to installing new roll-in rack ovens and dough depositors, Noms purchased a cobot from Apex Motion Control called the Baker-Bot for icing its berry shortbread and lemon poppy seed cookies with speed and precision.

The cookies are drizzled with icing in a curvy zig-zag pattern in one continuous swirl, a signature element featured in the Noms logo. Prior to using the Baker-Bot, 10 employees squeezed piping bags to ice each cookie by hand. But icing thousands of cookies a day caused pain and discomfort for the workers’ backs, hands, and wrists. As a result of the body strain, the workers could apply icing to only 5,000 cookies a day—half the amount of product the plant produces daily. The next morning employees had to finish icing those remaining 5,000 cookies from the previous day, wait for the icing to dry, and package them before moving on to carry out the production process scheduled for that day. The ergonomic pain got so dire that workers frequently called in sick when they were slated to ice the berry shortbread or lemon poppy seed cookies.

“We typically have 10 people on shift, and each ices 1,000 cookies. When someone calls out, that only amplifies the problem,” Martin says. “If two people don’t show up, now those eight people have even more to do in the same amount of time. So by adding robotics to automate the icing process, we’ve solved the problems with production and staff pain.”

Installed in November 2019 at Noms, the Baker-Bot

plays a critical role in increasing production efficiency.

After the cookies are baked and cooled, a worker rolls a rack with 20 trays of cookies to the Baker-Bot. He or she fills the hopper with icing and then selects the icing design programmed in the human machine interface, which also includes the specs of the rolling racks and trays. From there, the cobot operates autonomously.

Equipped with a 10 kg payload capacity, the robotic arm pulls a tray lined with 24 cookies from the rack and places it underneath the piston filler nozzle, where a camera sensor is located. The cobot uses the camera images to determine where each cookie is located in the tray.

The robotic arm moves the tray back and forth and side to side under the piston filler nozzle, which dispenses a precise application of icing to each cookie. Once the entire tray of cookies is decorated with icing, the robotic arm loads the tray back on the rack and pulls the next tray of cookies out of the rack for icing.

Speedy results The Baker-Bot ices a full rack of 480 cookies in about 40 to 45 minutes, averaging about six seconds a cookie, according Martin. “Our fastest bakers can ice a rack of www.profoodworld.com

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The Baker-Bot ices a full rack of 480 cookies in about 40 to 45 minutes, averaging about six seconds a cookie at Noms Bake Shop. Photo courtesy of Noms Bake Shop.

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CASE STUDY

cookies right around the same time, but they would also have to take breaks after four or five trays, which could add 20 minutes to the icing process [per rack],” he says.

Currently Noms is using the cobot to only ice 5,000 cookies during an eight-hour shift, while five employees ice the remaining 5,000 cookies during that shift.

Because only half the number of workers are now needed to ice cookies, Noms can rotate employees to ensure they are not icing cookies every week. This has helped to ease their body pain and discomfort, reduce employee absenteeism, and prevent bottlenecks in the production process, according to Martin.

Noms eventually plans to have the Baker-Bot ice all 10,000 cookies that require icing. Because the COVID19 pandemic has limited Noms’ operational hours, the company is currently only running one eight-hour shift a week that uses the Baker-Bot. In August, the company plans to extend the shift of the Baker-Bot to 10 hours a week. Once the coronavirus crisis is over, Noms will add two more weekday shifts and institute weekend shifts.

“In 16 hours, the Baker-Bot can ice 10,000 cookies without taking a break,” Martin says. “That would take 25 hours of staff time.”

The cobot is equipped with a scanner that allows Noms to designate safety zones around the cobot. If an

employee wanders past those zones, the cobot either slows down or stops functioning altogether and triggers an audible alarm or flashing lights. In addition, the BakerBot has servo motors in its joints that are programmed to carry or manipulate a certain amount of weight and exert a specific amount of force. If employees or objects stand in its way, the cobot will recognize that it is exceeding its threshold for force or weight and simply stop functioning. “No one’s been hurt at our facility,” Martin says. “[Apex] has really gone to great lengths to make sure all the safety precautions are there.”

After seeing how the Baker-Bot has enhanced its icing process, Noms is considering other applications for the cobot. For example, the company plans to use the Baker-Bot to launch brownies and bars in the third quarter. It will program the cobot to deposit batter into individual silicone trays in preparation for baking.

“Our plant has the capacity to produce 50,000 cookies a day. We’re doing 10,000 a day now. So we’ve got room to grow,” Martin says. “If we’re growing at the same rate that we are, I’d say that we’d probably have to purchase another Baker-Bot in the next 24 months.” PFW Apex Motion Control https://apexmotion.com/

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AD INDEX COMPANY

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Air Products and Chemicals, Inc./ProFood World http://pwgo.to/WebinarAP

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Heat and Control, Inc. www.heatandcontrol.com/alwaysinnovating

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ProFood World ® (ISSN 2476-06760, USPS 22310) is a registered trademark of PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies. ProFood World ® is published 6x a year (February, April, June, August, October, December) by PMMI Media Group, 401 North Michigan Avenue Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60611; 312.222.1010; Fax: 312.222.1310.

Periodical postage paid at Chicago, IL, and additional mailing offices. Copyright 2020 by PMMI. All rights reserved. Materials in this publication must not be reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher. Applications for a free subscription may be made online at www.profoodworld.com. Paid subscription rates per year are $55 in the U.S., $80 Canada and Mexico by surface mail; $130 Europe and South America. $200 in all other areas. To subscribe or manage your subscription to ProFood World, visit ProFoodWorld.com/subscribe. Free digital edition available to qualified individuals. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to: ProFood World, 401 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60611. PRINTED IN USA

by Quad Graphics. The opinions expressed in articles are those of the authors and not necessarily those of PMMI. Comments, questions and letters to the editor are welcome and can be sent to: jfassl@pmmimediagroup.com. We make a portion of our mailing list available to reputable firms. If you would prefer that we don’t include your name, please write us at the Chicago, IL address. Volume 4, Number 4. www.profoodworld.com

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OPX INTEL: REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

You Can Always Get What You Want From RFPs The OpX Leadership Network’s RFP Guidelines for the CPG Industry and its accompanying RFP Process Template give CPGs a consistent preparation process that enhances the clarity of customer expectations while minimizing important information omissions. Plus, complete and timely responses from OEMs now have greater clarity and more precise quotes.

MATT SWANSON CORPORATE PROJECT DELIVERY MANAGER, CAMPBELL SOUP COMPANY JOHN UBER HEAD OF COMPLIANCE, METTLER TOLEDO – PRODUCT INSPECTION DIVISION STEPHEN SCHLEGEL CO-FOUNDER AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, FSO INSTITUTE

Case in Point: Campbell Soup and Mettler Toledo TWO OF THE LEADING contributors and co-authors of the RFP Guidelines for the CPG Industry and its accompanying RFP Process Template are Matt Swanson of Campbell Soup Company and John Uber of Mettler Toledo’s Product Inspection Division. Through unselfish sharing of their subject matter expertise and each company’s support, the CPG industry and OEMs have the tools to more effectively manage their CapEx projects and achieve vertical startups.

Matt Swanson

FSO Institute: Matt, in your opinion, what are the biggest challenges in your RFP process?

Swanson: RFPs are time consuming. Not including the time it takes to write the RFP, but the amount of work required for clarifications and updates can be very excessive. The endless calls, long email chains, and meetings, in my opinion, can be minimized through a better John Uber process. Also, the lack of expertise is often a big challenge. Engineers who lack experience or are new to the industry sometimes fail to provide critical data on RFPs. Without oversight and RFP reviews from experienced engineers, these RFPs may cause major issues with equipment purchases. The OEM may not pick up on the missing data or

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assume otherwise, causing inaccuracy or misleading proposals. The proposal may get rejected because of a poorly written RFP, and potentially the optimal solution was not chosen.

Making the right decision between competing vendors is also difficult if you cannot get apples-to-apples proposals from OEMs. We very rarely award bids based just on cost or delivery. Many factors need to be considered when choosing solutions. It’s important to prepare a comprehensive RFP to allow the OEM to prepare a well-written proposal. To that point, new vendors often struggle to gain our business because they lack the experience with our very elaborate standards and specifications. We may miss out on an optimal solution from a new vendor based solely on how the RFP was written and how the specifications were presented.

FSO Institute: Matt, you have been directly involved in the development of the Request for Proposal Guidelines for the CPG Industry as a best practice. Please share how you and others have integrated this into the Campbell’s capital procurement process.

Swanson: Our procurement group utilized the OpX Leadership Network guidelines to create our new RFP template. So far, it has been a big improvement and well-received by our procurement team. Our engineers are fielding fewer questions for clarifications, and we are issuing purchase orders (PO) more quickly. The proposals also seem to be returned much sooner and require us to ask for revisions. In the past, almost each individual engineer created his or her own RFP template, and it was very inconsistent. This led to frustrations both from the OEMs and our stakeholders. We do require OEMs to build equipment to a long list of standards and requirements. Without the proper instructions and guidance on the RFP, it often causes a lot of issues. The new template has improved the understanding of the required standards and specifications.

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F y p

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As a result, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) were too often making assumptions in response to RFPs. Therefore, CPGs were not getting what they wanted, when they wanted it, or at the price they wanted. Project turmoil and rework resulted, leading to many unsuccessful projects, much less achieving vertical startups.

In the spring of 2018, PMMI’s OpX Leadership Network published the long-awaited RFP Guidelines for the CPG Industry and its accompanying RFP Process Template. These documents have proven invaluable to both CPGs and OEMs. For the CPG, having a consistent preparation process has enhanced the clarity of customer expectations and requirements while minimizing important information omissions.

SUMMER 2018

A

CHIEVING VERTICAL STARTUPS of packaging and processing equipment more consistently and effectively is no longer aspirational. It is a necessity. The request-for-proposal (RFP) process, from its inception through completion and evaluation, is the foundation of success in the project-delivery process and essential for achieving a vertical startup.

Consider the importance of vertical startups to the consumer packaged goods (CPG) manufacturer: Time is money. The sooner a CPG is operating new equipment at optimal performance, the more production time it has to meet marketplace opportunities.

The RFP has historically been well-intended, conveying the CPG’s vital requirements. Too often, however, the RFP process lacked consistency, clarity, and a thorough explanation of required critical expectations. It is both an intracompany and an industrywide issue.

RFP GUIDELINES FOR CPG INDUSTRY

FSO Institute: Would you share some lessons learned during your journey of driving excellence in Campbell’s capital-delivery process?

Swanson: Our engineering leadership has strongly emphasized a strict adherence to a formalized project-delivery process as a high priority and imperative to project success. The equipmentprocurement process is a major area within our project-delivery process that was significantly improved. I can also share some lessons I have learned over the years related to RFPs. Often, we press OEMs to provide equipment costs without issuing a formal RFP or the needed details that would be reflected in an RFP. These quick, over-the-top estimates are very much needed to help make decisions or form direction. But if they are underestimated, they could cause major issues in the capital-delivery process. The checklist in the OpX guidelines allows the user to easily populate critical information quickly and should be used prior to the project’s submittal. Often, hidden costs are uncovered after the equipment is purchased. These costs are generally the cause of the vendor receiving new information after the issuance of the PO. Again, the details that are outlined in the checklist should minimize these surprises. Building long-term relationships with OEMs is a key to success. Having the alignment and full understanding of the requirements improves the chances of success for both parties.

FSO Institute: As head of compliance for Mettler Toledo Product Inspection, please share how you drive consistent utilization within your company of the OpX industry best practices, particularly the use of the RFP Guidelines for the CPG Industry.

Uber: First, here’s a bit of background on compliance. From the OEM perspective, compliance generally means meeting the statutory and normative requirements for your machine product in the market where the machinery is applied. These

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

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different requirements documents (statutes, directives, norms, regulations, standards) vary by jurisdiction, and it is no surprise that they often do not agree in structure or content. In addition to making sure that the machinery is compliant, most CPGs also have compliance requirements for their products, and many machine products are viewed as tools to assist in that compliance effort.

Continued on Page 60

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OPX INTEL: REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Complete and timely responses from the OEMs with greater clarity are now resulting in more precise quotes.

CPGs now have the resources, through the OpX best practices for capitalexpenditure (CapEx) projects (RFP, total cost of ownership, factory acceptance test) plus other OpX technical guideline publications, to improve consistency in communicating their project requirements, thus buying and installing what they want, when they want it. PFW

About the Case in Point Series

Case in Point continued from Page 59 As a machine builder, we work to break down these complex requirements documents into simpler, individual requirements, and then work to meet those different requirements.

All of this is good, but not much value unless your customer wants your machine, and that is where the OpX RFP guidelines come in. These guidelines provide the industry’s view of what is most critical to our customers and a consistent way to organize the critical information for our customers. We can’t expect the EU, U.S., Brazil, China, etc., to agree on their different requirements, but as an industry, we can agree on the method to collect and present requirements and capabilities.

When the supplier and user both follow the RFP guidelines structure, the time required to produce a set of bid requirements and a proposed solution decrease. Almost all machine builders have automated the information gathering for their products, and consideration of the content in the guidelines should be an absolute requirement when creating those automation tools.

I personally review several user-requirements documents each month. What is observed is a lack of consistency in structure, redundancy, and conflict in requirements. Each organization has its own experts in different subject areas, and each expert has an opinion on what the machine requirements are. This is no surprise. Unless you require organization, you should expect disorganization. The OpX product makes it easier for both OEMs and CPG organizations to strike a new center line and establish common framework and language. This can prevent a good deal of issues that are “lost in translation.” The structure also aligns with quality practices taught throughout our industry. It can be viewed as a 5S approach for this document area.

OpX documents help a great deal to establish consistency in structure and content. It is already seen that some CPG companies are steering their document organization to align with the RFP structure, and language of the hygienic requirements paper is beginning to appear as well.

FSO Institute: During the coming months and years, how do

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N THE PAST FEW YEARS, PMMI’s OpX Leadership Network has produced more than 20 manufactur™ ing process-improvement documents for CPGs and OEMs. More recently, the FSO Institute has facilitated the adoption and implementation of these documents, especially for food and beverage manufacturers. In this 2020 Case in Point series with the FSO Institute, ProFood World presents actual cases to show just how CPGs are using OpX documents to improve their overall manufacturing health and their collaboration with OEMs and other suppliers. Learn more at www.opxleadershipnetwork.org and www.fsoinstitute.com.

you see using the RFP guidelines, as well as other OpX tools, in bringing added value to your full range of clients—regardless of size or industry sector?

Uber: The OpX tools are “benchmarking” tools, and each have a specific purpose. For example, you use certain tools to evaluate legal and normative requirements for your product. As you work through these documents, you also keep an eye on how your customers are reflecting the requirements in their RFP documents. This tells you what parts of these requirements documents are most important to your customers. The OpX tools give you a 10,000-ft view of the situation. For each RFP, you still need to understand what that specific customer needs, but you can address many of the concerns from the higher elevation.

We will continue to use the OpX work products as evaluation tools for our methods and products, and as learning tools to improve our products. The OpX work products are not only an effective assessment of the industry’s position, but they also teach us the best way to communicate with our customers. OpX papers are written from the CPG perspective. It is important to speak the local language.

For the area of product compliance, change is not only expected, it is built in. Reviewing the OpX tools created over the past few years, you find few that did not have a compliance requirement behind them. Most are safety related, either for personnel safety (worker safety), or the public (hygienic, allergens, sustainability, remote access). Even the [overall equipment effectiveness] work product—which directs to performance optimization—requires a standardization of the quantities applied to provide comparable information. Most third-party standards have a revision cycle of five years. This means that every year you should expect updates of 20% of the standards and norms that you apply in your practice. We will look to OpX to grow this set of guidance documents and to maintain a state-of-the-art approach with their publications. This is to ensure that the guidance provided in year one is still valid in year five of a document’s life.

www.profoodworld.com

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