Peristaltic Pump Technology
St Helens-based Lea Green Foods is using innovative peristaltic pump technology from the Watson-Marlow Pumps Group to dose oil into vegetable trays with both precision and cleanliness.
Lea Green Foods was founded in 1997 with the objective of providing a range of pastes and purees to the food service and manufacturing markets. In just 12 years the site at St Helens has grown to 9,000 sq ft and is home to 14 employees.
Last year the company wanted to introduce a new process that entailed repeatable, accurate and hygienic dosing of vegetable oil into trays of produce such as tomatoes and roasted peppers.
“It was a fairly new concept to be honest and we were unsure of how much demand there would be,” says the company’s engineering manager Barry Rushton. “For these reasons we didn’t want to outlay excessive capital designing and building a new production process.”
With this in mind, Mr Rushton decided to try replicating the required process using a trial 520 series pump from Watson-Marlow, a model designed specifically to meet the needs of the process and science sectors.
“We took a 520 series pump on trial for a month beginning in October 2008,” says Mr Rushton. “We needed a pump which could operate at a variable flow rate depending on volume, speed and time. We tried it using a selection of different oils and it performed very well. I was particularly interested in achieving accurate dosing of each 300ml volume as we have to declare a given weight for the product within ±2%.”
Watson-Marlow’s 520 series pumps are fitted as standard with the 520R pumphead, which accepts up to 9.6mm bore tubing for flow rates up to 3.5 litres/min. The 520R continues Watson-Marlow”s low shear, high reliability pumphead design for high accuracy delivery and long tube life. Sprung stainless steel rollers, low rotational speeds and a large swept volume make the 520R Watson-Marlow’s gentlest, most powerful pumphead yet. A key feature of the 520 series pump is its Memo Dose facility, which has helped Lea Green to benefit from accurate and repeatable dosing capability.
Another factor that impressed the team at Lea Green Foods was the design of the nozzle delivery point. Here, a fold of material goes back up into the tube to prevent any drips after dosing. “The fact that we have no drips not only means less product waste, but also creates a clean process, something that is pretty important in the food industry,” says Mr Rushton. “We also specified food-safe 9.6mm bore Marprene as a tubing material.”
Manufacturing processes at Lea Green Foods comply with stringent food hygiene standards. For over six years the company has continually achieved EFSIS Higher Level BRC standards. When linked to its own HACCP System and other control systems, it means the company has an excellently managed food manufacturing site that regularly pleases customer auditing teams.
With demand beginning to rise for the new products, Lea Green Foods requested an extension to the pump trial period, keeping the Watson-Marlow 520 series model through to January 2009.
“The success of the product meant we committed to buying the pump in January,” says concludes Rushton. “Since then it’s been fabulous for us. It now runs for a few hours at least four days a week, with demand for the products continuing to grow.”
Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Solutions
- 01326370370
- info@wmftg.co.uk
- https://www.wmfts.com/
- Bicklandwater Road, Falmouth Business Park, Falmouth, Cornwall, TR11 4RU GB
About us
Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group (WMFTG) peristaltic tube and hose pumps meet requirements including: value for money; low cost of ownership; reliability and ease of maintenance to the food and beverage, chemical, pharmaceutical, mining and many other industries.
We demonstrate how pumps deliver significant process efficiencies over the lifetime of the equipment. Whether performing flavouring addition in food processing, chemical metering in water treatment or mineral recovery, we have a solution which can cut pump downtime and reduce costs through higher accuracy metering and transfer. WMFTG has dedicated application engineers available to help customers make the right pump and tubing choice from a range providing microlitres per minute to 80 cubic metres per hour flow rates.
The only part of the pump to come into contact with the product is the tube or hose. This means there are no seals or valves that can wear or fail. Replacing the tube or hose can be performed quickly and safely. Peristaltic pump benefits include:
Total fluid containment with no seals No ancillaries Handle viscous and abrasive slurries and sludge Self-priming capability Dry running without damage to the pump In addition to their range of positive displacement pumps, Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group has added PTFE-lined chemical and industrial hoses to their range. Aflex hoses are reinforced to withstand the most severe conditions and use.
Where we supply to
Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, South America, North America
Industries we supply to
Automation, Chemicals, Consultants, Components Electronics, Energy and Power, Food and Beverage, Glass Ceramics Cement, Metals and Minerals, OEM, Paper and Pulp, Pharmaceutical Cosmetics Toiletries, Plastics and Rubber, Recycling, Textiles, Tobacco, Water and Wastewater
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