Cables, connectors and cable glands play an important role in the process of maintaining hygiene in the F&B industry, says Marc Jarrault, Managing Director, Lapp India Pvt Ltd.

Hygiene is always at the top of the agenda wherever food is involved and the Food & Beverages (F&B) industry represents one of the most challenging industrial environments. With sanitation and product cleanliness on top priority, production facilities need to be produced according to the principles of Hygienic Design. Minimising downtime, ensuring quality and providing maximum safety is important in all industrial sectors, but particularly important in food production. In the F&B industry, a downtime in processing will lead not only to loss in profits but also high costs from waste disposal and recommencing production aspect. Quality is another critical factor in this industry – if the quality is inadequate; consumers are not only dissatisfied, but are also at a risk of developing health issues.

Regular cleaning of production facilities is crucial; when the cleaning crews use steam jets and acidic or alkaline cleaning agents to remove dirt and germs, the systems are subjected to high levels of strain. Another considerable burden is the process of dry cleaning with aggressive cleaning agents or dry ice. Therefore, all components need to be designed in a way that makes them permanently sealed and functional and be made from shapes and materials that do not provide a breeding ground for germs.

The first requirement to ensure hygienic processing is selecting the right components. Recommended three hygienic zones for F&B industry are:

* Hygienic Design Zones are areas that regularly come into contact with foodstuffs including stirrers, filling nozzles, blades and cutters

* Spray Zones are areas that come into contact with foodstuffs, for example through spraying, and

* Non-Product Zones include all areas and facilities in a factory, which do not come into direct contact with the foodstuffs. These areas are, however, are often cleaned with together with the more sensitive areas, which may in turn result in high chemical and mechanical stress.

In addition to sanitation and product cleanliness, other challenges of this industry include increased regulations governing production, processing, packaging and labelling; presence of extreme temperatures and humidity; and harsh processes of high pressure cleaning and sterilisation.

To meet the food and beverage challenges, factories must use products that perform well in these complex environments. And cables, connectors and cable glands play an important role in the process of maintaining hygiene in the F&B industry. The product requirements are:

* Chemical Resistant: Machine parts are likely to be corroded resulting from humid conditions often found in high pressure, chemical and steam cleaning areas. As most of the zones are cleaned frequently and thoroughly using strong cleaning agents such as corrosive agents, alkalis and dry ice, the materials used need to be suitable.

* Temperature Resistant: The F&B components include high temperature zones in baking areas, pasteurisation and sterilization and low temperature zones in refrigerated areas. These extreme temperatures can be especially hard on cables, glands and components and special temperature resistant materials need to be used to provide adequate protection.

* High IP Rating: Products that can withstand aggressive environments with high pressure, high temperature, daily cleaning with repeated connecting and disconnecting are needed to secure watertight connections.

* Easy Cleaning: As regular cleaning is a part of the daily process, products should be free of grooves or uneven surfaces where food/particles get trapped. The product also needs to be corrosion resistant and able to withstand wash downs.

* Flexibility: Flexibility is a major requirement as it is required for packing, vacuuming, weighing and dosing machines.

* Durability: Special cable jacket materials need to be used to provide protection for machines susceptible to being cut or sliced when installed in machines. The product needs to stay securely in place against applications where the machine is in constantly moving and face issues with vibration.

Lapp Group has a complete service portfolio for the F&B industry. Lapp’s product range for the sector includes highly resistant cables, hoses, cable glands and connectors, as well as accessories such as cable ties. The components meet strict international requirements, such as EHEDG design specifications or compatibility with Ecolab® cleaning agents. Some of the popular Lapp cables for F&B segment are Olflex® Robust – halogen free power and control cable and Unitronic® Robust – halogen free DATA and BUS cable both with high mechanical and chemical resistance.

Etherline® Robust offers resistance to weather, ozone and UV radiation. It is also free of halogen, and allows for regular cleaning with hot steam and acidic or alkaline cleaning agents. These properties make it particularly well suited for the food industry, as well as for medical engineering, laundries or car washes. The double screening ensures high transfer reliability in applications sensitive to electromagnetic interference. Cables in the Etherline® Robust FR configuration are available for increased flame retardance.

Epic® Ultra H-B protective cover makes the base of the connector water proof, even if the connections are separated during the cleaning process. It is made from blue plastic with stainless steel anti-corrosion locking elements, and is approved by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States.

Skintop® Hygienic meets the toughest hygiene standards thanks to its design and material. This cable gland is made from stainless steel, with FKM elastomer used for the seals. It has no corners and edges to which food residues could adhere. Skintop® Hygienic became the first product to undergo a test based on the new EHEDG certification guidelines – this was conducted by the Weihenstephan Institute in Freising, Germany.

Silvyn® Hygienic, the new, hygienically designed conduit gland, is suitable for use in the product zone when combined with the right Silvyn® Hygienic hose. There is, however, no universally applicable best solution; each case needs to be individually assessed. It is crucial for end users to also consider the interaction between components and choose suppliers that can offer competent counselling about all aspects of connection technology and a broad portfolio of connection solutions including cables, connectors and accessories which fulfil the requirements of hygienic design. Production facilities that are constructed according to the principles of Hygienic Design represent a huge step forward in terms of optimising quality, safety and ultimately efficiency, in the food and beverage industry.