Vacuum transport in a poultry processing plant

Are you still manually handling containers around the plant to discharge your by-products? There’s no more need for loose containers which must be washed each time they are emptied. Automatic vacuum transport systems do away with that. They are totally enclosed and smell-free. Most importantly in our warming world where water is becoming an increasingly scarce resource: the systems use none of it. All transport piping from collection points to their destinations can be in the roof, so they do not take up valuable floor space either.

JBT Marel has developed a modern vacuum transport system. Recently, such a vacuum transport system in its most comprehensive configuration was installed at a multiple-line greenfield processing plant. it includes 18 separate systems, collecting material from a total of over 100 locations.

Ready for the future

JBT Marel developed the modern vacuum system with four goals in mind: better energy efficiency, easier operation, greater transparency, and higher capacity. it is designed to handle the large volumes processed in today's and tomorrow's high-throughput, multi-shift plants.

A user-friendly HMI display

JBT Marel's vacuum system includes advanced  control panels for the vacuum transport itself and for its CIP system. Each control panel features a user-friendly HMI touchscreen, bringing great benefits for the customer. 

For each system in an installation, the HMI screen presents a clear dashboard of pressure values, pump speed and the current step in the process. A system of alarms, color-coded for severity, warns of operational problems such as too much material at a given collection point. Errors can be traced quickly, avoiding costly excessive downtime.

The HMI display also identifies those collection points where little or no material accumulates and automatically adapt its program to these changes. More time is therefore available for busier collection points, increasing overall operating efficiency and potentially reducing energy inputs.

The capacity of the CIP tank has increased from 1000 liters to 1800 liters. This saves floor space in large installations where previously two tanks would have been needed. For smaller systems, the maximum level can be set at 900 liters to save water. For increased robustness, all connection boxes and dosing pumps are mounted on the tank. A tank height of 1.4m means that its filter can be cleaned from above and does not have to be dismantled.

A further advantage of the tank is that the diameter of fill and drain pipework is larger, meaning that both these operations take less time. On a standard system, where draining can take place up to four times, this saves over half an hour. This is a particular benefit in multi-shift plants, where cleaning time is of the essence.

Cleaning progress

The display on the CIP control panel clearly indicates the progression of cleaning operations through their various stages. At all times, plant management will know exactly the stage in the program reached. If for some reason, cleaning operations are interrupted, once the program is restarted, it will resume where it left off. Until now, interruption meant starting the program all over again. A daily generated report gives an overview of values such as water temperature and concentrations of soap and disinfectant for each step in the process. In this way, plant technical management can verify how the system is functioning and check exactly what it needs.

As with the main control panel, faults can be traced quickly and, if necessary, the plant’s engineer can call on the remote help of a JBT Marel specialist via the VPN internet connection.

Robust cyclones

The cyclones are extremely robust to handle almost continuous operation at the highest hourly throughputs. They incorporate thicker material and additional bracing at the top of the unit and a larger diameter cylinder and improved hinge at its bottom. Apart from offering improved durability, the cyclones also make for a more air-tight operation.

Existing owners of JBT Marel vacuum transport systems can upgrade their installations to the latest requirements and technical standards by fitting additional sensors, replacing the main control panel, cyclones and, if applicable, the CIP system only. The main benefits will be maximized uptime and improved operational efficiency.