Industrial Vacuum Cleaners for Food Processing Factories
Not every industrial vacuum cleaner is suitable for every cleaning task. It is essential when evaluating a vacuum cleaner for particular cleaning tasks that consideration is given to the relevant hazards, and the equipment is specified appropriately.
Within food processing plants, hazards from dusts and spilled product fall into two distinct categories; the first is dusts that are hazardous to health. In other industries, this category includes obvious products such as silica dusts, but any dust that can be breathed in by the operator or other personnel in the workplace is likely to be hazardous to health to a degree, and hence good housekeeping and dust control is essential.
The second category is dusts that are hazardous in the environment. The obvious category is dusts that can potentially cause an explosive atmosphere, particularly organic
100 FDPP- www. fdpp. co. uk products like sugar, cereals and flour. Some products fall in to both categories and are both hazardous to health and potentially explosive.
Selecting an appropriate Industrial Vacuum Cleaner requires consideration of the potential hazards which then informs the specification of the machine. BVC – British Vacuum Cleaners is the leading brand of British manufactured industrial vacuum cleaners. Manufactured by Quirepace in Fareham, Hampshire the range includes both M-Class and H-Class machines for dusts hazardous to health and ATEX rated equipment suitable to operate in potentially explosive atmospheres. Some machines can be provided with certification for both categories.
BVC equipment is manufactured to order to match the specific requirements of individual customers. One of the principal considerations is the filter material used for the primary filter. This can be constructed from several different materials including PTFE coated, and anti-static materials in addition to standard filter materials. Within machines designed to recover hazardous materials there is always a second stage filter, usually a 3rd stage filter, and sometimes a 4th stage filter, with each stage designed for a specific purpose to ensure the hazardous product is collected safely and that the exhaust air is as clean as possible.
The Food and Drink industries present particular challenges regarding good housekeeping and cleanliness. Quirepace have engineered several special solutions for different customers to solve specific problems. Examples include converting standard machines to provide not just vacuum but also low pressure blown air to assist in dislodging inaccessible dust; high level cleaning equipment can be configured to match the surfaces