Hot spot: thermal monitoring technology

The food and drinks industry must employ countless technologies to monitor, analyse and understand every element of their manufacturing processes.

This is essential to ensure that their products are fit for human consumption throughout every stage of the production process.

We are trying to broaden our clients’ understanding of what you can use thermal imaging cameras for

Testo’s Warren Mansfield-Smith

The size and scope of the food processing market in the UK is substantial. At some point each week most people will consume food that has either been processed or pre-cooked within a food processing environment.

And figures taken from the government’s latest Food Statistics Pocketbook reveal that last year, UK exports of processed foods amassed to well over £17 billion worth of products.

This means simplicity and speed are often considered essential requirements when it comes sourcing process monitoring equipment.

Infrared thermometers, for instance, are commonly used in food manufacturing facilities because of their ease of use and speed of response, says Peter Webb, managing director at temperature measurement equipment firm Electronic Temperature Instruments.

“Infrared thermometers are great for checking the surface temperature of products…and typically give a reading in a fraction of a second, or the time it takes for the thermometer’s processor to perform the necessary calculations,” he says.

Infrared thermometers, however, do have their limitations.

Although fast, infrared thermometers are restricted because they only measure surface temperatures of food and materials, and not a product’s internal temperatures, Webb says.

More robust thermal monitoring equipment is used to conduct preventative maintenance on food manufacturing machinery such as industrial ovens, refrigerators and conveyor systems.

“A handheld thermal camera, for instance, will be able to detect where parts on a machine are getting worn because of high-heat or high-friction processes,” says Warren Mansfield- Smith, sales unit manager of Food and Drug, at thermal maintenance specialist Testo.

For Mansfield-Smith, a production manager’s worst-case scenario is machine breakdown without prior knowledge of the impending fault.

There are many different ways a camera can be used, which some process operators may be not aware of.

“We are trying to broaden our clients’ understanding of what you can use thermal imaging cameras for,” says Mansfield-Smith.

“If any bearings, chains, pumps or compressors need changing, for example, you can actually use thermal imaging technology to see what’s happening within the production process, thereby reducing downtime and limiting the possibility of failure within the machinery or the mechanics,” he says.

Mansfield-Smith also argues that the significantly lower cost of handheld devices over their fixed-camera counterparts makes them a far more appealing option for companies on a tighter budget.

“I think the discussion about putting a fixed system in a facility – which can cost anywhere between £20,000 and £100,000 – often stops early on because they do not give the customer the payback that a handheld device would,” Mansfield-Smith says.

“They are also not as flexible as handheld devices,” he adds.

Chris Brown, EMEA business development manager at thermal imaging technology provider Flir Systems, says fixed systems come into their own for companies that must conduct thermal monitoring on a 24/7 basis.

“Using handheld kit involves a cost that you do not encounter with a fixed system because, unlike a fixed system, you need an operator to stand there and physically operate a handheld thermal camera,” Brown says.

What’s more, Brown says that a handheld camera also requires an operator to interpret the thermal image and look for faults and discrepancies within the process.

“With a fixed system, clients can automate the entire process and configure a number of parameters that can be checked and analysed on a continuous basis.”

Automation is a major factor when choosing thermal monitoring technology, Brown says.

He says there is currently a trend towards removing the “human element” of thermal monitoring.

“Removing the human element removes the cost of employing a person and it removes human error,” Brown says.

An automated system, made up of multiple fixed thermal imaging cameras can, according to Brown, check both the product being manufactured and the kit being used to help create and transport that product.

“Today we see one or two cameras monitoring the product but there will be more underneath to monitor the technology that is being used to cook the product…it’s all about prevention rather than cure.”