Platform for the food and beverage industry
Production lines in food companies are under constant pressure. On the one hand, to produce more to keep up with rising demand in supermarkets. On the other, to deliver everything in the right quantities and quality. Presa responds to this trend with a combination device from Pen-Tec that combines check weighing and X-ray technology in one. With a minimum loss of space, you are thus assured that your products contain no contaminations and that you produce the correct doses. Twice the profit.
The best possible quality control in the smallest possible area. That is the promise that Presa pursues with its PresaControl range. Product Specialist Control & Inspection Joeri Luypaert: "The quality requirements imposed by supermarkets are increasing. After all, they cannot afford the costs and reputational damage associated with a recall. The same goes for food companies. They have therefore been investing for years in additional technology to monitor food safety, such as metal detectors. However, these do not detect pieces of glass or plastic. That's why we have now added X-ray technology to the range. As a stand-alone machine, but also integrated in one model with control pathways, which saves a lot of space on the production floor. Something that most food companies do not have a surplus of. This makes us unique in the market."
To do so, Presa counts on technology from Pen-Tec, an Italian manufacturer specializing in quality inspection. "The beauty of these machines is that simplicity is paramount in their construction. For our combination machine check weighing and X-ray, for example, that means they have the same motherboard, the same CPU ... Consequently, fewer spare parts to keep in stock for the maintenance team. In addition, it meets all hygienic requirements thanks to its rounded corners and rounded legs where no dust can accumulate. The machines are standard IP65 and also exist in wash-down version. When you open the cabinet and look at how carefully the cable management has been done, you immediately realize that Pen-Tec understands the needs of manufacturing companies. After all, they cannot afford to lose time looking for the right cable. In these machines, everything has really become plug-and-play," Luypaert assures.
The fact that Presa has only recently added this technology to its product line has everything to do with the support the company strives for. To initially prove black-and-white on the basis of tests at what speeds and tolerances the machine can detect contaminations for your specific company. In addition, Presa also illuminates the preparatory work. "The X-ray beams used to check for contaminations in food products are perfectly safe. Nevertheless, because it involves nuclear energy, however small, there is a lot of administration involved that food companies do not always find their way around easily." Luypaert has immersed himself fully in it over the past few months. Anyone who purchases a Presa X-ray machine will find that the bulk of the preparatory work has already been done. "To make it as efficient as possible for our customers. Of course, they still have to submit the file themselves and have an employee undergo training in radiation protection at a recognized inspection body. We provide them with that info as well," Luypaert adds.
Despite these efforts, it certainly pays for food companies to invest in X-ray technology. Luypaert: "You detect a much broader range of contaminations much more precisely than with other inspection technology. It is also possible, for example, to start accurately detecting whether the packaging contains the right numbers. There are many more possibilities depending on the products and packaging, and we look at the customer's site to see how we can optimize the inspection process. Compared to metal detectors, for example, fewer errors happen when emitting, precisely because the accuracy is a lot higher. That also saves on production costs. While the investment in X-ray technology is higher, one wrong lot that would slip through the cracks anyway is enough to justify it. Moreover, supermarkets will become increasingly strict in the coming years ..."
