Industry:
Food processing
Application:
Frosted breakfast pastries
Product:
FGP Food Grade Precleaner
Objectives:
Extend belt life
Remove frosting from belt
Reduce maintenance costs and downtime
Conveyor Detail:
51" wide urethane belting, endless splices
1" nosebar with 2 7/8" pulley
Problem:
The frosting on breakfast pastries was a major conveyor belt carryback concern for a leading food manufacturer in the U.S. The frosting was adhering to the belt and, in turn, adhering to the rollers and other conveyor components as it was carried back. The build-up was causing the belt to the mistrack, and the abrasive quality of the sugar in the frosting was causing premature wear of the belt and the conveyor. The sticky nature of the frosting also created a sanitation and cleaning nightmare for maintenance crews. The homemade belt cleaner was not effective as the manufacturer was replacing its belts every two weeks because of the damage.
Solution:
Hoping to avoid purchasing new belting every few weeks, as well as the downtime involved in replacing the belts, the production supervisor decided to test the FGP Food Grade Precleaner from Flexco. The blade-to-belt contact and easy tensioning made the FGP an obvious choice for removal of the frosting. The cleaner can also be disassembled in less than a minute for regular cleaning and sanitation.
Result:
The production supervisor is happy with the performance and the ease of maintenance of the cleaner. The FGP cleaner extends the life of the belting by removing carryback that would have otherwise accumulated on the rollers and other conveyor components, causing excessive wear and belt mistracking. The maintenance team also finds the snap-in-place design of the blade to be convenient as there is no need to remove the cleaner from the structure for cleaning, sanitizing, and blade changes.