Food & Drink Processing & Packaging Issue 43 2022 | Page 22

A UK Pet food Manufacturer contacted us requiring 4 easy clean high viscosity transfer pumps for the transfer of tallow in a pilot plant being used in a new blend of pet food . Tallow – an animal fat from Beef or Mutton which has had its moisture removed extending its shelf life , has a dry waxy texture , is solid at room temperature and is rich in vitamins and flavour .

Pilot plants are a smaller scale version of a newly designed production facility which are built for the testing of methods , procedures , ensuring the intended design produces the outcome or recipe they require and for proof of concept for investors before a much larger design is produced requiring heavy investment .

As the customer was trialing several recipes of pet food , they wanted to guarantee batch results , accelerate the speed of cleaning between differing blends as well ensure bacterial contamination was not incurred .

PET FOOD SAFETY STANDARDS

Pet food is subject food safety standards with requirements for producers to identify Risks , perform Hazard Analysis and ensure Critical Control Points known has HACCP are adhered to . Producers are required to undertake bacteriological sampling frequently as well as have a safety management system .

Typically in such plants , industrial stainless steel pumps are used which are constructed in standard stainless steel which are not easily cleanable .

The customer wanted a variable flow pump where flow could be reduced by up to two thirds , yet pressures remain consistent at up to 6 Bar . They also wanted a pump which was easily cleanable when mounted on a skid frame forming part of the plant design .

22 FDPP - www . fdpp . co . uk

Nominal Grit Size Standard BS 1449 Pt . 2

North Ridge specified and supplied 4 Hygienic Progressing Cavity Pumps for this pilot plant with well-polished internal parts to ensure parts could be cleaned and sanitized effectively in minimal time frames .

As the customer wanted to automate cleaning , ensure plant uptime was maximised and fully disinfect pumps between batches , the pump was manufactured from AISI316L then Polished to Ra1.6-3.2um ( a micron polishing level ).

Various polishing levels are available to buff pump internal parts with some of the most common standards listed above :

Polishing a pumps internal stainless steel parts enables internal parts to be easily sanitized , and ensure that pumped media is easily removed from the body or moving parts . It also ensures the pumps internal hygiene can be maintained via Cleaning in Place ( CIP ) or Sterilisation in Place ( SIP ) without dismantling of the

Standard EN 1088-2

pump for manual intervention .

Furthermore a hygienic Open pin joint ensures superior sanitation , with lubrication of this joint is provided by the pumped product , preventing the introduction of cross contamination from lubricants . It can be quickly maintained , assembled and dismantled without the need for tools .

This is important as pet food is subject to similar controls to that of feed for livestock in particular with additives , animal origin and bacteria levels to reduce the risk to public and animal health .

The unit was coupled to a geared motor as progressive cavity pumps require high starting torque , . this design of motor multiplies the output torque without increasing the power consumption of the motor .

The pumps were assembled on AISI304L baseplates , supplied and delivered within 6 weeks from order .

If you are looking to accelerate cleaning in place , automate pump cleaning or reduce risk visit

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www . northridgepumps . com or call 01773 302 660 to see how we can help . With over 100 application case studies , we know how to get it right .