Easy and clean weighing

EASY CLEAN LOAD CELLS A machine that makes just one food product is made up of hundreds of components, among which up to 60 load cells. In order not to compromise the hygiene of the entire prodouction chain it is crucial that every component meet specific cleaning regulations. This is the case with HBM load cells*.

Is it possible to design an easy clean load cell that is certified to comply with EU directives, but which, at the same time, is capable of weighing with speed and precision? Bernd Knöll, HBM Product Manager for platform load cells, is convinced that it is: «About eight years ago, our customers in the food sector began to show interest for aseptic load cells, whose cleaning and sterilization processes keep them free from contamination by microorganisms. For this reason, we developed an easy clean cylindrical cell, with no corners or edges: and so the PW27 and PW25 were born, load cells dedicated to filling and dosage systems and the packaging industry».
Knöll continues (accompanied by the new load cell’s designers): «Machine builders were also involved in the development work from the beginnings, and the “pilot customer” of this new solution is a major international producer of filling machinery».

PW27: certified safety HBM’s PW27 is the first load cell for low and high capacities officially approved by the European Hygienic Engineering & Design Group (EHEDG) for open food processes, in line with the EU directive on machinery (which, it should be kept in mind, takes into consideration surface finishes, materials quality and the shape and structure of components).
«This certification indicates that the product in question fully complies with all requirements on our very long control list and, at the same time, guarantees machine builders and food product manufacturers concerning the possibility of using it in applications with strict hygiene standards».

New design methods    
 «A hygiene compatible design begins with selecting the right components» explains Jürgen Hofmann, food technology expert at the Technische Universität München (TUM)’s Institute of Hygienic Design. «Not all weighing technology producers think and design with easy cleaning in mind - Hoffmann continues - because this involves a totally new approach to the creation of load cells, analogous to that adopted for the HBM PW27; in this case, we worked to enhance the system’s potential use in areas that require frequent cleaning and in which strict hygiene standards apply, such as in the production of microbiologically sensitive foods. It’s also important that conventional load cells require longer times, and so, considering the necessity for frequent maintenance operations, the PW27 brings further economic advantages, thanks to the net reduction of machine stops. The long-term savings deriving from the use of easy clean machinery - Hoffmann concludes - factor into the parameters that a food goods manufacturer should consider when making preliminary TCO calculations».