Mini Free Flow | Global Food Processor

MPI Mini Free-Flow

When raw materials arrive at a food plant, they can contain many types of contaminants, including metals. Metals find their way into raw materials from the time of harvest through the many material handling processes needed to turn them into a product ready for packaging. These metal contaminants, known as “tramp metals,” must be removed by using different types of magnetic separators throughout the production facility. Magnetic separators are installed on any product line where the removal of ferrous and weakly magnetic non-ferrous contaminants is necessary to ensure product purity, prevent damage to machinery and eliminate hazards associated with tramp metals. As the name implies, magnetic separators use high-strength magnets to attract, separate, capture and retain ferrous metals.

A well-known global food processor faced a challenge. As their cake-mix ingredients are processed, they pass through a chute and flow between several plate magnets (a type of magnetic separator) which are designed to trap and contain any tramp metals that have made their way into the mix. From there, safe ingredients move to the next operation. Plate magnets are commonly used in food plants because they are easy to integrate into existing chutes. Most plant equipment requires regular maintenance, and for magnetic separators, it is no different, that means regular cleaning. An “unclean” magnet can allow a build-up of tramp metal that diminishes the magnet’s effectiveness. Also, a magnet with significant build-up can plug a chute and hinder product flow.

Cleaning time was dramatically cut, resulting in an 85 percent reduction in labor costs.

Several of the food processor’s plate magnets had been installed in a tight and hard-to-reach area. Cleaning was difficult because of the magnets’ location, size, and weight. Production had to be stopped when the company’s maintenance personnel performed the scheduled daily cleaning. Tricky to reach and heavy to lift, cleaning was a distasteful, labor-intensive task for plant workers. But anything less than regular, thorough, proper cleaning would create risks unacceptable to a highly trusted and respected food manufacturer. Seeking a solution to this long-standing cleaning challenge, the food processor contacted MPI.

After visiting the plant, MPI proposed a solution that would solve the cleaning issue while improving tramp-metal capture rates. The two manually cleaned plate magnets would be replaced by one MPI automatic self-cleaning mini free-flow cylinder magnet. MPI’s exclusive self-cleaning mini free-flow magnet, available in both manually operated quick-clean and automatic self-clean designs, captures both large and small tramp metal from high-volume, vertical-gravity-fed product streams. The cake-mix ingredients would now flow directly into the magnet without restriction, resulting in higher tramp metal removal. The free-flow magnet’s six-sided rare-earth magnets provide a higher “reach out” magnetic field that attracts and retains large and small ferrous material.

The mini free-flow magnet is engineered to fit into tight spaces such as that at the manufacturing facility. No longer would maintenance personnel need to squeeze into uncomfortable positions to disassemble and clean magnets. The task would now fall to the machine operator who would simply flip a valve to clean the magnet. Cleaning time was dramatically cut, resulting in an 85 percent reduction in labor costs. An added benefit was increased tramp-metal retention.

Learn more about the MPI Quick-Clean or Self-Clean Free Flow Magnets.