Platform for the food and beverage industry
"If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen." The saying applies not only to people, but at least as much to machines, materials and tools. It was at once the reason why a Dutch industrial bakery, producer of toast, rusk and rye bread, among other products, went looking for an alternative to the mineral oils that had been used for years as chain oil.
Originally, the chains of various ovens in industrial bakeries, among others, were lubricated with a mineral oil-based solution. However, temperatures easily rose above 200 °C in those applications. Combined with the lubricants used, this resulted in high evaporation losses and the deposition of residue. "The contamination accumulated on the individual chain links, with the result that they regularly jammed and had to be replaced," said Yves Lefevre of lubricant distributor Verolub. "This not only entailed significant costs, but of course also meant that production had to be shut down again and again."
In order to optimize the plant's efficiency, the manufacturer looked for a food-safe lubrication solution that was better suited to the high operating temperatures. They found it in Anderol's Chain Oil XL 220 FG. "The synthetic chain oil based on high-quality polyolester has several advantages in such applications," Lefevre said. "First, there are the low evaporation losses and minute residue deposits, even at high temperatures. Residue remaining after evaporation is smooth, flows nicely with the oil and dissolves easily in fresh oil. By the way, this solubility has been extensively tested with both a simple petri dish test and a panel coker test at 282 °C. Consequently, links will not block easily, require less replacement and the user can count on longer relubrication periods."
"Second, the Anderol Chain Oil XL 220 FG can enjoy both high thermal stability and an extremely high flashpoint. In fact, the latter is around 300 °C, making the risk of ignition virtually non-existent even in applications like this." Like other Anderol Food Grade solutions, the chain oil is NSF H1 registered and Kosher and Halal certified.
The industrial bakery has since switched completely to Anderol Chain Oil XL 220 FG. "The chains have not seen any contamination since then, and we estimate that the manufacturer has already saved about 20,000 euros on an annual basis on the overhaul and replacement of links. Add to this a week less downtime AND a longer life of the various machines, and we can speak of a significant increase in production capacity."
Verolub is a distributor of the entire Anderol Food Grade portfolio in both Belgium and Luxembourg. The Lummen-based company presents itself as a total partner for the food industry, offering solutions for all possible lubricant issues and applications. In addition to the full range of H1 and H2 lubricants, Verolub also provides the necessary tools and services for optimal processing and management of the products, including Verolub Fluid Analysis and Verolub Fluid Monitoring.
