Easy Clean Pumps improve Lecithin and Cream transfer at a UK food manufacturing plant
Key points
In our latest case study, we’re discussing three new hygienic progressing cavity pumps we supplied to a UK food manufacturer.
They needed proven, reliable food grade pumps for the smooth and uninterrupted transfer of lecithin and cream in their production facility.
So what is Lecithin?
Lecithin is a generic term which is used to describe any type of yellow-brownish fatty substances which are found in both animal and plant tissues. They are amphiphilic which means that they attract both water and fatty materials.
It occurs naturally and comes from egg yolks, corn, marine foods, milk, rapeseed, cottonseed, soybeans and sunflowers.
In the human body, it’s a mixture of fats which are essential to many of our body’s processes. Lecithin is used in the metabolic process and to move fats around our bodies. In our diet, Lecithin is the main source of choline, a nutrient similar to the various B vitamins. It’s converted into acetylcholine, a substance that transmits nerve impulses.
Where is it used commercially?
In food manufacturing, Lecithin is commonly used as a food additive to combine foods. It’s also a natural emulsifier that's often used in many everyday foods, it keeps flavour in mixtures and is an antioxidant.
More specifically, Lecithin also plays a big part in animal feed, pharmaceuticals, paints, and other industrial applications.
How is it made?
Lecithin is a mixture of phospholipids which is found in plant and animal tissues and is vital for proper biological function. In fact, phospholipids are a major part of all cell membranes.
Commercial lecithin is made from vegetable oils, usually soybean oil, through a production process that starts with degumming. Here, the crude soybean oil is mixed with up to 3% water or steam and slowly agitated to add water to the lecithin.
Next, the hydrated gums are taken out by being spun in a centrifuge, and the wet gums are dried by batch or film drying. Finally, the lecithin is filtered, deodorised, and divided up, and the oil residues are taken out.
Our specification for this project
Here at North Ridge Pumps, we’re not restricted to just one type of pump technology.
We use our wide-ranging expertise to provide a tailor-made solution, not something straight off the shelf. We choose the best pump for each specific client and job – and offering the lowest lifetime cost.
For this demanding application, we specified three of our DX range of hygienic progressing cavity pumps.
Our DX sanitary progressing cavity pump series are state-of-the-art units specifically designed to meet the exacting requirements of the food, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and cosmetics industries.
The whole pump design complies with EHEDG and 3A hygiene standards to ensure the highest levels of sanitisation.
High hygiene standards
The geometry of the pumps is designed precisely to provide the best sanitisation characteristics thanks to the design of the casing and the rotating parts. These allow maximum drainage, and avoid dead zones and stagnation where bacteria can accumulate.
In addition, we manufacture every component to the highest level of finish and utmost cleanliness. All parts have excellent finishes, and the casings are polished to make sure that the surfaces are completely sanitised.
The parts in contact with the product being transferred can be constructed from AISI 304 or AISI 316 stainless steel. As well as the parts that touch the liquid, the block and base plate too are made of stainless steel AISI 304.
This all means that all these pumps are top rated for adhering to Clean-in-Place (CIP) and Sterilisation-in-Place (SIP) automated processes. These mean that units can be cleaned and sterilised without the need for disassembly. These systems are widely used in the food and pharmaceuticals industry to ensure total hygiene and sterilisation of critical processes.
Why this pump was selected
The brief from our client was to specify a pump which would smoothly transfer the cream and lecithin at a range of flows from 10l an hour to 10m³h at pressures up to 8 bar.
We chose these pumps because of their low pulsating, shear-sensitive flow and high hygiene rating. In addition, they will consistently transfer the product at the flow rates the client required regardless of changes in viscosity or pressure.
In short, using our DX sanitary progressing cavity pumps will ensure that the fats in the cream and lecithin will remain suspended, spread evenly and that the mixtures will remain unchanged from source right through to delivery.
Have an application needing the transfer, circulation or injection of any liquid of any viscosity and need help and advice? Contact North Ridge Pumps to see how we can help.
North Ridge Pumps
- 01773302660
- sales@northridgepumps.com
- http://www.northridgepumps.com
- North Ridge House 3 Chrysalis Way Eastwood Nottinghamshire NG16 3RY GB
About us
North Ridge Pumps are an independent manufacturer and distributor of pumps. Having been established since 1998, we have a vast array of experience having become accustomed to supplying pumps for most processes.
We work within a range of industries both UK and Internationally, specifying pumps for a wide variety of applications from the transfer of corrosive and aggressive chemicals, to dewatered sludge, viscous grease, resin, glues, food and Seawater.
Our pumps range from standard centrifugal and multistage pumps, to immersed and process overhung solid handling pumps. We also supply a wide range of positive displacement pumps including Vane, Piston, Progressing Cavity and Peristaltic enabling us to specify more than one solution for your application, but also ensuring the majority of applications remain within our reach.
We offer the following services:
Technical support – We know at times pump selection is difficult. Pump selections are made with confidence by technical sales engineers who understand your process, ensuring equipment is engineered beyond your needs.
To select the correct technical solution for your requirement, longevity of design is prioritised. If there are existing issues you need assistance with, we work with you to solve these which could be high maintenance costs, frequent service periods, repeated equipment breakdown leading to lost revenue, inconsistent flow rates, clogging or where pumped product is inconsistent.
Application experience – Due to our 20 years of application experience we work with you to ensure our pumps operate according to your desired application. Our experience means we have most likely provided a solution for a similar process previously. With proven results, we know how to achieve your outcome sooner.
As our pumps are completely configurable, we design pumps with materials according to your requirement, and to your required duty point. Pumps are engineered specifically for your process whether they be baseplate mounted, within a mobile frame or in kit form with couplings, hoses, and dispensing nozzle.
Industry knowledge – We have a thorough understanding of a range of industries through experience from supplying the offshore oil and gas market, to paper mills, chemical plants and food manufacturers to name a few.
We not only understand the importance of downtime but also what each process requires and how small design improvements specific to the nature of your industry and application can reduce downtime, facilitate maintenance and improve longevity.
If you have a process or application you require a pump for, or a process which requires improving, get in touch to see how we can help.
What we do in a nutshell
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Easy Clean Pumps improve Lecithin and Cream transfer at a UK food manufacturing plant
In our latest case study, we’re discussing three new hygienic progressing cavity pumps we supplied to a UK food manufacturer....
