Parallel Food Processing Line Cleaning for Downtime Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
In high temperature food processing lines, the need to clean the most contaminated equipment determines overall downtime, leading to unnecessary downtime and cleaning of other equipment, as the entire line must stop for maintenance, even if some equipment is minimally contaminated.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method where a high temperature food processing line operates with parallel sequences of process elements, allowing one sequence to be cleaned while the other continues operation, by valving off the contaminated sequence for cleaning-in-place procedures, thus reducing overall downtime and optimizing equipment utilization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the entire processing line stops for cleaning when the most contaminated equipment needs maintenance, then the most contaminated equipment can be cleaned thoroughly, but unnecessary downtime and cleaning of minimally contaminated equipment occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The processing line is divided into multiple parallel sequences (first sequence and second sequence), each capable of independent operation. This segmentation allows one sequence to be cleaned while the other continues processing, eliminating the need to stop the entire line for cleaning of the most contaminated equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically switches between parallel sequences based on cleaning needs. When one sequence requires cleaning, the system transitions to using the other sequence for processing, allowing continuous operation while maintaining cleaning schedules for contaminated equipment.
2Ease of manufacture
If the processing line stops for cleaning, then cleaning-in-place procedures can be performed on contaminated equipment, but equipment utilization decreases and efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the processing line into parallel sequences, the system enables cleaning-in-place procedures on one sequence without affecting the operational status of the other sequence, thus maintaining equipment utilization while providing access for cleaning.
Solution Approach 2:
The parallel sequence configuration ensures that useful processing action continues uninterrupted in one sequence while cleaning is performed on the other, eliminating downtime and maintaining continuous productivity.
3Reliability
If all equipment is cleaned together during line shutdown, then contamination control is maintained, but unnecessary cleaning of minimally contaminated equipment increases time and resource consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies different treatment to different sequences based on their contamination levels. The most contaminated sequence undergoes cleaning-in-place procedures while less contaminated sequences continue operating, allowing localized cleaning rather than blanket cleaning of all equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of cleaning all equipment to the same standard, the system performs partial cleaning on sequences that require it most, using cleaning-in-place procedures selectively on the most contaminated sequences while maintaining operation of others.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A high temperature food treatment method is disclosed wherein by alternatingly operating between a first final heater (13) and second final heater (23) arranged in parallel on a food processing line (30, 40, 50), it is possible to operate a continuous process, yet significantly reducing the overall downtime of the processing line (30, 40, 50), by performing a cleaning in place process on the final heater (13, 23), not currently being used in the high temperature food treatment process, thereby eliminating or significantly reducing the influence on the processing line ( 30, 40, 50) downtime by the process elements and/or processing equipment most easily contaminated.