Schönberg, Bavaria – S+S Separation and Sorting Technology, of Schönberg, Bavaria, is inviting visitors to IFFA 2007 in Frankfurt (hall 9.1, stand C47), to take a look at their range of sophisticated metal and contaminant separators designed for the meat industry. As well as the LIQUISCAN VF, a well-respected and proven metal separator for filler applications, and the UNICON and VARICON (metal detection systems with an integral conveyor belt), S+S is exhibiting the next generation RAYCON product inspection system.
Product liability and the International Food Standard compel food industry producers to inspect their products for contaminants. For every processing stage and Critical Control Point (CCP), in the meat production process (e.g. inspecting raw meat, sausage meat, packaged product, etc.), S+S has a machine to do the job. Metal and contaminant separators ensure that IFS standards are fully maintained and they are specially designed and constructed to meet the exacting hygiene standards of the food industry. Another advantage is that they can be connected to a WLAN.
RAW MATERIAL, SAUSAGE MEAT AND FINISHED PRODUCT INSPECTION
The UNICON metal detection system inspects fresh meat in E1/E2 containers and deep frozen blocks of meat for metal contaminants such as meat hooks, slaughtering tools and broken knives. When a contaminated container passes through the metal detector it is identified and removed, thus protecting downstream processing equipment (e.g. cutters). This also prevents larger pieces of metal from being shredded and further contaminating the production process. VARICON metal detection systems are often installed at weighing or labelling stations to provide a final check for metal after the product has been packed.
LIQUISCAN METAL SEPARATOR
The LIQUISCAN metal separator is specially designed for inspecting sausage meats and similar paste products. Its compact construction enables it to be installed between the vacuum filler outlet (Handtmann, Vernag, Karl Schnell, etc.), and the clipper. When metal is detected a pneumatic valve automatically diverts the contaminated sausage meat into a reject container. A choice of flange systems means that it can be connected to the full range of meat industry standard filling machines, and various pipe diameters and sizes of detector are available to meet a wide variety of throughputs.
RAYCON PRODUCT INSPECTION SYSTEM
The RAYCON product inspection system is primarily used for the final inspection of packaged product. Aluminium coated or metallised film packaging presents no problem at all. The RAYCON provides simultaneous inspection of diverse products and packages with no requirement to reset the machine. A one-off ‘image learn’ of the products is all that is required. Valid products lying diagonally across the belt or out of position do not trigger a false reject. It is even possible to simultaneously inspect parallel product lines running completely different products.
A pusher or air-blast unit reject mechanism with a lockable container is available, and recording and archiving of data is fully compliant with IFS and HACCP. Even at increased throughput speeds of up to 600 units per minute, the RAYCON maintains excellent image processing. It operates a very low power X-ray source of 50kV or 80kV, meets EC directive 1999/29EC for machines inspecting foods and food ingredients and requires no special precautions for installation.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION METAL DETECTION SYSTEMS
All three metal detection systems – the UNICON, VARICON and LIQUISCAN – can be connected to any network via INSIGHT, the central data-management system. Processing, simulation software display and recording of all product and equipment data meets HACCP requirements. INSIGHT is simple to operate, easy to view and user friendly, and any machine changes, archiving or data evaluation can be carried out remotely.
A number of important factors guarantee the high availability of these metal detectors; machines on the network can be viewed centrally, connection to a higher level management system is a simple process and remote diagnosis via modem is available as an option. Wireless transmission of data, as shown on the S+S stand, is particularly suitable for the meat industry, as it eliminates the need for plug connectors and is unaffected by high-pressure cleaning (IP65).
