Cerberus guards the
food safety gates
Automation of inspection processes is
on the rise, particularly in High Care food
production environments where COP
compliance and food safety assurance
are integral to productivity. Driving down
production costs while ensuring an
accurate and reliable inspection process
results in time and cost savings. With
the Cerberus combination machine
from Sparc Systems, automated metal
detection and checkweighing, with the
option to integrate label verification, are
delivered in one space-saving unit.
The inspection machines market
is projected to rise at a CAGR of
5.5% between now and 2024, with
combination systems estimated to grow
the most during the forecast period.1
A number of factors are attributed to
the increasing adoption of integrated
technologies, from demand for inline
product inspection to growing need to
comply with GMP requirements. However,
the efficiency of integrated inspection
lines is yet to be realised by many UK
food manufacturers who continue to
monitor performance manually or by a
machine-by-machine basis.
To address the unique challenges posed
by the food manufacturing sector, Sparc
is one of the few global inspection
suppliers that offers cohesive reporting,
data capture and COP testing in a
combination system. Rather than slotting
two systems together, the Cerberus
provides complete mechanical and
electronic integration with single point
controls and trend feedback.
Specifically designed for High Care food
production environments, the Cerberus
ensures fast and accurate rejection of up
to 200 out-of-tolerance or contaminated
packs per minute. An integrated metal
detector identifies ferrous and nonferrous
particles down to 1.5mm, and
stainless steel down to 2.0mm in bags
weighing up to 60kg. Sparc’s European
Sales Manager Charlie Graham explains:
“Designed, engineered and constructed
to the highest High Care, Food Grade
engineering standards, no other
system in the world comes close to this
performance and sensitivity.”
DRIVING DOWN PRODUCTION
COSTS
Despite projected market growth, UK
food suppliers are facing increasing
pressure from all directions. With
volatile market fluctuations and input
costs squeezing already fragile margins,
increasing output and installing reliable
machinery are essential to drive down
manufacturing costs and ensure
productivity. The impact of machinery
downtime alone costs Britain’s
manufacturers more than £180bn every
year.2
20 FDPP - www.fdpp.co.uk
For checkweighing systems, reliability
and accuracy is paramount to minimise
downtime, false readings and food waste.