Hygiene and packaging tech on display at PPMA 2021
New hygiene option from AVE UK
Ave UK attempted to address the dairy industry’s need for hygiene with the launch of the ‘ultra-hygienic’ rinser/filler/capper, the Unibloc.
Specifically designed to handle milk and drinking yogurt, the Unibloc boasts a 24-head rinsing turret featuring pre-rinse peracetic acid (PAA) bottle decontamination, a 24-valve non-contact electronic filler, a six-head pick & place screw capper, a top cover with HEPA filters to recreate a cleanroom environment throughout the entire system and high-intensity UV lamps for superior cap decontamination,
AVE UK sales director Steve Bradley said: “The Unibloc boasts ultra-clean properties at every stage of the process. Not only are bottles decontaminated before being rinsed, but the non-contact filler and hygienic capper preserve sterility throughout the entire operation.
“In addition, the cleanroom environment created by the enclosed top cover means dairy producers can be assured of an end-to-end commitment to total hygiene.”
Fortress Technology and Sparc Systems
Fortress Technology Europe unveiled its new Raptor X-Ray at this year’s PPMA show.
The system has a reported constant inspection throughput of 100ppm and is able to reliably inspect and reject packaged meat, cheese, chilled and confectionery products that present with metal, glass, wood, rubber, high density plastic, stone and calcified bones.
A single lane x-ray, available in two belt widths, 300mm and 400mm, one of the Raptor X-Ray’s key features is its full 1.7 metre enclosure which maximises contaminant detection sensitivity and reliability by dissipating any heat created by the HMI and generator – all accomplished without using an energy-intensive air conditioning unit.
Even after 24-hours of continuously inspecting food packs, operatives can place an un-gloved hand directly on the X-Ray generator and it is still cool to the touch, according to Fortress.
Clearmark labelling system
Digital coding provider Clearmark celebrated its 20th anniversary with the launch of a new ICE Vector Pallet Labelling System at this year’s show.
Designed to easily integrate with line and warehouse management systems, ICE Vector is powered by the ICE Vulcan print engine –reported to be the fastest in its class.
The system has a compact footprint of just 1,125mm x 875mm and operational speeds of up to 100 pallets an hour, able to perform up to four label applications per pallet, with two adjacent sides – to conform to GS1 specifications for SSCC pallet labelling – or three sides for customer specific applications.
The ICE Vector is designed as a robust, fully enclosed system, thanks to a pneumatic guard protecting the print engine from dust and environmental conditions. Optimum conditions within the enclosure are maintained via a thermostatically controlled heater (as standard) with the doors only opening at the point when the ICE Vector is ready to label.
Bespoke tray packing system from Brillopak
Brillopak showcased its work with carrot farmer Huntapac Produce to boost its automation packing efficiency at the PPMA Show 2021.
The automated systems provider developed a bespoke, vegetable case loading system to accumulate and present carrot packs in to neat layer formations in retail-ready crates.
Presenting up to 80 carrot packs per minute in to retail trays, Huntapac replaced one of its traditional rotary table, manual crate packing lines with the automated system earlier this year.
Operating 16 hours a day, five days a week, 1200 tons of carrots are graded, washed, polished, cooled, optically graded by size and quality, packed and checkweighed.
Previously reliant on manual labour to maintain a constant case-loading pace, now a disparate, unconnected bagging and checkweighing system has been fully integrated in to the BR2 case packing system.
