The integrity of production within the food and beverage industry is a constant source of advancement. Processing operations necessitate on-going scrutiny to ensure best practices to reduce contamination. Historically, one such source of contamination is the introduction of particles from one of the smallest components of production equipment – that of degrading seals and gaskets.
Such an occurrence leads to costly product recalls, risk of litigation, not to mention hospitalisations and, in a worst-case scenario, consumer death if consummation of toxic particles causes a severe adverse reaction.
A novel solution to address this ongoing issue is that of metal detectable seals.
What are Metal Detectable Seals?
As the name suggests, these are seals and gaskets produced from materials that can be identified by metal detector systems, magnetic separator equipment and x-ray. They’re created from a variety of elements suitable for use in the food and beverage industries, such as:
- Polyurethane (PU)
- Acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR)
- Ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber (EPDM)
- Fluoroelastomer (FKM)
These seals can be produced in a wide variety of shapes, sizes and grades, making them suitable for virtually any food production line application.
The Case for Utilising Metal Detectable Seals
Seals undergo constant stress from various sources. These include volatile temperatures, vibrations and exposure to corrosive chemicals. The nature of their environment they operate in means they degrade over time. Undetected breakdown leads to a risk of particles shearing away and moving through the system, eventually making their way into the product stream.
When this occurs a time-consuming inspection, process is required to determine the source of failure. It will also require product discard, loss of production and associated loss of revenue. If this isn’t discovered before the products have entered the supply chain, further disruption occurs. This may require product recall and could cause the potential for litigation, should anyone have an adverse reaction to consuming a contaminated product.
When metal detectable seals are used, such events have a far higher likelihood of being detected at an early stage. Metal detection systems mean that products and packaging are constantly scanned to identify such issues, sounding an alarm that instructs the system to instantly reject any contaminated products. These can then be removed by magnetic separators (or manually) to ensure integrity.
Advantages of Using Metal Detectable Seals?
The rise of the metal detectable seal brings a multitude of benefits:
- Easy and early detection of elastomer fragment contamination
- Preventing the distribution of contaminated products
- Higher compliance for quality commitments
- Reduction of product failure and/or recall
- Can be used in a wide range of operating temperatures
- Reduces the likelihood of unplanned downtime
The use of metal detectable seals within the food and beverage industry provides increased confidence in product safety, as well as dramatically reducing avoidable overheads
Chesterton Customseal is at the Forefront of Innovative Sealing Solutions
Sealing experts, Chesterton Customseal, are industry leaders providing the ultimate sealing solutions. Their range of metal detectable seals for the food, beverage and pharmaceutical industry is cutting-edge. They provide an extensive selection that can be utilised in a diverse array of production line applications.
Their range of seals are produced in a variety of metal detectable materials, each specifically conforming with food, beverage, dairy and pharmaceutical safety requirements. Thanks to being designed to work with magnetic separator equipment, metal detection and x-ray equipment, manufacturers can take full advantage of immediate contamination alerts.
To find out more visit https://www.chestertoncustomseal.com.au/who-we-serve/
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