Thermal Image Monitoring :
Your strategic ingredient in strategic food and beverage production
By Antoine Billardello , Food & Beverage Industry Specialist , FLIR
In the food industry , it ’ s essential to carefully control the temperature of perishable goods throughout production , transportation , storage , and sales . Safe , consistent , reliable production at speed and scale is critical . Failure of production assets and processes don ’ t just hit operations but can impact public safety , brand reputation and credibility .
Frequent warnings about illnesses caused by contaminated or improperly prepared foods emphasize the urgent need for stronger process controls .
10 FDPP - www . fdpp . co . uk
Given that human error is often a contributing factor , food processors must implement strategic , real-time response tools that automate critical operations . This approach minimizes human factors , reduces risk while managing costs effectively .
Thermal imaging cameras are such a tool . Using FLIR thermal imaging cameras , you can make automated non-contact temperature measurements in many food processing applications . Analog video outputs can be viewed on video monitors , and digital temperature data , including MPEG4 video outputs , can be routed to a computer via Ethernet .
How It Works
The main elements doing non-contact temperature measurements in the food processing industry are a thermal imaging camera and associated software . They act as “ smart ” non-contact sensors to perform 100 % inspections , measuring the temperature of equipment , refrigerated products , and cooked foods as they exit the cooking process . These are not only give you real-time visibility of your production processes and assets but they ’ re also offering proactive insights .
Thermal imaging cameras are easy to use , small , and can be positioned