The challenge of finding pumps to cope with a range of food products

Wersing Feinkost GmbH, is one of the largest deli salads manufacturers worldwide, with production plants in seven countries and 4.000 employees overall.

One of its subsidiaries is Flensted Food Group in Jutland, Denmark which produces a large range of items which have increased hugely in popularity.

Coping with the different demands of these and other foods can be difficult. The food needs to be manufactured in high volumes, and due to the nature of the ingredients, shelf life is often relatively short. The wrong choice of pump can quickly result in interruptions and delays on the production line.

Picking with care

Rotary pumps, for example, can cause pulsation spikes that thwart the objective of a smooth and consistent flow profile.

Piston pumps can cause damage to solids, while air operated double diaphragm pumps have a pumping action that frequently ‘splits’ bases such as mayonnaise.

In its efforts to find a solution that ensured minimum of downtime and achieved optimum energy efficiency, Flensted turned to Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group’s MasoSine Certa pumps.

“To help pump ingredients such as coleslaw, chicken, mayonnaise, chickpeas, mustard spread and barbecue sauces, we rely on eight Certa pumps, which are located on small trolleys so they can be easily moved around the large production floor, and into different manufacturing halls,” explains maintenance manager Martin Kristensen.

The Certa products are able to cope with varying viscosities up to 8 million centipoise. The single rotor design of MasoSine pumps maintains constant volumetric displacement throughout the pumping cycle, providing the smooth and consistent flow profile the company sought. Flow rates can be adjusted to suit specific production requirements.

Energy bonus

Meanwhile, the low, shear gentle pumping action preserves the integrity of solids such as diced vegetables, fruit, nuts, coleslaw and eggs, as well as bases like mayonnaise and dressings, says WMFTG.

The single rotor design maintains constant volumetric displacement throughout the pumping cycle, providing smooth and consistent flow profile

Another benefit is cleanliness and ease of cleaning is another advantage of Certa pumps. Offering EHEDG Type EL Class I as well as  EHEDG Type EL Aseptic Class I and 3A certification, the pumps provide full CIP (clean-in-place) capability.

As well as minimising downtime, this quick cleaning procedure also ensures that chemical and water use is reduced, which in turn means that less wastewater requires disposal and the production uptime is increased. So the entire system can carry on manufacturing instead of losing time with cleaning cycles.

“The ease of pump cleaning is outstanding,” states Kristensen. “We have semi-CIP cleaning procedures in place, and the Certa pumps are always cleaned quickly, even after pumping very viscous mayonnaise at 20,000 cP.”

A final advantage, claims the supplier is that Certa pumps include up to 50% less energy consumption for the same flow in comparison with other pump types, plus suction that can eliminate cavitation.