< PreviousALS launch world’s fastest labelapplicator rangeAdvanced Labelling Systems has an-nounced their launch of the FastPaQ Se-ries of ultra-high-speed self-adhesive labelapplicators. Designed and built in theUK, the FastPaQ series labellers are de-signed for applications that demand ex-tremely high labelling rates and highaccuracy requirements. The ALS FastPaQ series includesthe world’s fastest labeller, whichcan dispense at blistering speeds of375 metres/min and apply up to3,000 products per minute.With this new equipment thereis now the ability to place a self-adhesive labeller in-line with other fast manufacturing processes, such ascontinuous film, label webs, carton manufacturing and publication printing.All without slowing lines down, or having to label off-line as a secondaryprocess, offering new opportunities to increase production efficiency. Simple to use, install and operate, there is no need for pressurised air-sup-ply and virtually no wear parts, making the labeller series economical to bothoperate and maintain. Smurfit Kappa and Mirri form premium partnershipNew packaging product MirriNor combinesthe flexibility of Smurfit Kappa Sheetfeeding’sT-Flute with Mirri’s high quality, printablemetallic film, to produce premium sector cartons.The collaboration between Smurfit KappaNorboard and Mirri, a division of Celloglas, hasproduced a new range of metallised film lami-nated boards. The new range is based on Smur-fit Kappa’s super lightweight T-Flute, and hasbeen developed to offer a premium quality fin-ish. Developed with luxury goods and gift packsin mind, it is also applicable to a wide range ofFMCG products. T-Flute offers designers the ability to incorpo-rate “curvable” properties into their designs so that a carton no longer has to have regular geometry whilst thehigh quality metallic film from Mirri provides brand owners with the ability to differentiate their product.Arpac Europe offersshelf-ready versatilityArpac has been carrying out a develop-ment programme aimed at combining itswell-proven shrink wrapping technologywith a wide variety of automatic tray pack-ing machines. The aim of this programmeis to provide the ultimate shelf-ready packin terms of low cost, efficient shelf utilisa-tion and strong transit performance.Tony Hacker, General Manager of ArpacEurope, says, “It’s often assumed that whenreplacing a standard case with a shelf-ready format that a fully enclosed corrugated pack is still re-quired, whereas in fact a tray with shrink wrap is often perfectly acceptable and lower cost.”Arpac has used its experience in case and tray packing to ensure the designs of its shrink wrap-pers complement a wide range of tray packing machines, both its own and those of its OEM part-ners. This ensures that Arpac’s systems are more versatile, compact and user-friendly to givecustomers greater freedom to automate and reduce costs.10www.fdiforum.neton lineZero air tray heat sealerblows away competition Packaging Automation (PA) has revealed the nextevolution of its Eclipse range of high speed tray heatsealing machines as the first in the UK to operatewithout using any compressed air, providing foodmanufacturers with environmental benefits withoutraising costs or compromising reliability.Incorporating PA’s E-Seal technology, the EclipseSL4 requires zero air for operation while still achiev-ing high standards of reliability, versatility and per-formance the Eclipse range is renowned for.With all operations driven directly by small servo-mechanisms, running costs can be as low as 8% of anequivalent pneumatic system, resulting in significantannual savings and a reduction in carbon footprint.The SL4 is the first of the Eclipse range to benefitfrom in-tray sealing technology but, with the entirerange now being upgraded, food manufacturers canat last break free of reliance on expensive, inefficientand wasteful pneumatic systems. Bulgarian company choose Euroflex ‘One Press’KPG Europe has recently installeda Euroflex Dual-Pass Casing Press atExcellpack Bulgaria. Excellpak is a pro-ducer of printed polyamide food cas-ings, serving both domestic marketsEastern and Southern Europe. Kristo Karamanov, Managing Di-rector, concluded that the Euroflex notonly consistently produced the bestprint quality, but the standard of en-gineering ensured production reliabil-ity. Press stability at high operatingspeeds was also an important factor.The Euroflex performs with virtuallyzero vibration, enabling excellent printregistration, irrespective of print de-sign and speeds.The press can be specified for non-stop production, assuring minimaldown-time and waste and is designed to operate at high speeds.With only minor changes in specification, The Euroflex ‘One Press’ isideal for printing a range of products. This strategy enables maximum pressutilisation and return on investment. As well as polyamide food casings,polybags, ABL/PBL barrier laminates, films and labels can be printed on thesame press. 10-11:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:05 Page 1Smurfit Kappa helpsGeneral Mills site wininternational awardGeneral Mills, the owners of brands includ-ing Jus-Rol, Green Giant, Häagen-Dazs andYoplait, is applauding the support it has re-ceived from Smurfit Kappa West Auckland inimproving its packing line efficiency over thelast six months. This was instrumental in theBerwick site winning the General Mills Inter-national Continuous Improvement Championof the Year award.At General Mills Berwick, Smurfit Kappa assisted with carton erector efficiency, which led to a reduction in downtime in the packaging area. Smurfit KappaMachine Systems also carried out a comprehensive survey to target the improvement areas both parties could focus on and Alan Newby, Smurfit Kappa’sTechnical Manager, received a certificate in recognition of his outstanding performance throughout the process.Marcus Jeffery, the General Mills Account Manager at Smurfit Kappa West Auckland, says, “With the unique offering of additional support systems andtechnical advice that Smurfit Kappa provides, we can help our customers sell more.”Videojet supporting beverage manufacturingacross the worldHP Bulmers’s Strongbow, Diageo’sBushmills Whisky and Sprecher Brewery’sPipers Scotch Ale are among the beveragebrands using Videojet Technologies to sup-port them with their production demandsThrough working closely with a largenumber of beverage manufacturers,Videojet has provided coding equipmentspecifically designed to meet their needs.High speed lines, rapid line changeovers,tough environments and no tolerance fordowntime are common cause forheadaches on the production line butVideojet’s 1000 Series inkjet printers andlaser marking systems can help removethese issues.HP Bulmer’s canning site in Hereford-shire use the VJ1610 inkjet printer which is specifically designed for high speedlines and 24/7 sites. John Lewis, Production Manager, was impressed withthe new printer as it was even more reliable and compact. He says, “TheVideojet 1610 is simple and easy to use. 80% of mistakes occur due to humanerror, and the intuitive operator interface reduces this.”Hanovia’s PureLine PQ UV system takes disinfection tonext levelDesigned to provide performance-qualifiedand chemical-free UV treatment of water inthe food and beverage industry, Hanovia’sPureLine PQ UV system takes disinfection toanother level.“The PureLine PQ is a kind of ‘policeman’,guarding your water process and offering peaceof mind,” says Halim Mirza, Hanovia’s globalbusiness manager for industrial applications. “This is because its disinfection perform-ance and dose calculation has been verified by a third party. The controller continuously calcu-lates the dose, responding to changes in water quality.”A revolutionary feature is the optimised intensity UV monitor, allowing the controller to correctdose calculation as UV transmittance varies. Smart controls ensure continuous monitoring and real-time display of the verified reductionequivalent dose and allow three levels of password-protected security and logging. Installation or retrofitting of systems into existing pipework and vessels is straightforward, re-quiring minimum disruption and preparation. on linewww.fdiforum.net11Prioskolie goes for fast, high-accuracypackingThe Meyn-Ishida al-liance has installed achicken processing andpacking plant in Russia’sBelgorod province forpoultry giant ZAOPrioskolie. The state-of-the-art plant includesIshida’s recently-developedweigh-batching technology, which has revolutionised the speed, accuracyand compactness of styling and packing operations. Prioskolie wished to reap the benefits of an integrated manufacturing ex-ecution system from a single supplier. The company was looking for aplant that could ensure the highest yield from each delivery of live birds,together with the most efficient use of manpower and automation, andthe fullest degree of control and traceability.In Meyn-Ishida’s integrated plant design, plucked and eviscerated birdsare automatically assessed for packing whole or for cut-up. Overall, about50% follow the whole-bird packing channel, while 50% are rehung andenter one of the two cut up lines. This versatile section can be programmedto cut to a number of different patterns, yielding a wide variety of pieces.FlexLink launch new modularwide belt conveyorEverything in the new modular plastic wide beltconveyor, from the smallest component to horizontalplain bends and fully functioning conveyor modules,is standardised for easy engineering, simple mainte-nance, and trouble-free operation. The modularity indesign makes assembly and modifications effortlessand the system can be adapted to any requirements. “This is what customers demanded,” says ProductManager at FlexLink Göran Abbestam. “A standard-ised, modular plastic belt conveyor that is quiet, sturdy,safe and reliable. Our assortment is allowing us to be aone-stop-supplier who also can guarantee spare partsand after sales service in over 60 countries.” Available as components, modules or a completesystem, the conveyor comes in three widths of 322,424 and 626mm, to better allow handling of cartons,bundles, bags or other large individual items. Verticalbends and lengths of up to 15m allow for efficient andsimple layouts in three dimensions without additionalelevators. 10-11:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:05 Page 2Yeo Valley launchesnew look for 2012Yeo Valley, the British family-rundairy company, has unveiled a newlook across its dairy range and intro-duced a host of new yogurts, all to beon shelf this March.The Somerset-based organic com-pany has introduced additional lines tothe collection, along with a brand newpremium range called Top Notch. The UK’s number one organic brand has also refreshed its pack-aging with new hand-illustrated design and refreshed brand logo. The new look has been designed to illustrate the delicious Yeo Valley taste and reflect the brand’s ethos as an independent family farming business fromthe West Country. Every product will also carry a 100% ‘Yeoganic’ message – Yeo Valley’s own description reflecting its total organic status and ethical farm-ing procedures, outlining the extra care and attention Yeo Valley takes to be sustainable and look after the land and livestock on the farm.Wonderful Pistachios introduces Sweet Chilli flavourIndulge in healthy snacking with the all newSweet Chilli Wonderful Pistachios, which of-fers a mix of sweetness, crunch and tangy chillipeppers, perfect for any snack occasion.“We know that Indians appreciate spicy,tangy flavour, which is why we’re excited to in-troduce this offering to our portfolio,” saidMilin Chatterjee, marketing manager for Para-mount Farms, producer of Wonderful Pista-chios. “This new flavour is delicious and willsoon be a favourite with snackers.”Grown in California, Wonderful Pistachiosare sun-ripened and dry roasted to meet highquality standards. The Sweet Chilli variantsare seasoned with natural ingredients and areoffered in packs of 15 grams, 80 grams and 200grams for Rs. 15, Rs. 90 and Rs. 200 at all leading outlets across New Delhi - NCR, Mumbai, Ban-galore and elsewhere. Wonderful Pistachios are also available in Roasted Salted, Roasted No Saltand Salt & Pepper varieties.on the shelfClassic Cuisine’s vegetarianmeals exceed expectationsClassic Cuisine are enjoying great success withtheir range of meals for the foodservice industry –including restaurant quality vegetarian dishes.Sales Director Mark Dean says, “At Classic Cui-sine we have seen significant increases in the popu-larity of vegetarian products over the past few years.The demand for our vegetarian options has risenfrom all our clients including branded national pubchains, hotel chains, in-store dining and high streetrestaurants. Not only that but our clients continue toexpress their desire for further exciting and innova-tive vegetarian creations which keep our NPD de-partment continuously busy.“We are particularly proud of our highly innova-tive savoury cheesecake. This has been received ex-tremely well by all our customers for its innovativecombination of textures and flavours all combiningtogether resulting in an outstanding product. Thisdish has also been entered into the British FrozenFood Federation Awards.”12www.fdiforum.netWelsh dairy farm takes on internationalexport marketA Pembrokeshire dairyfarm will introduce a tasteof Wales to overseas mar-kets with the launch of itsnew 200ml and 1ltr multi-lingual cartons of Daioni,the UK’s only organicflavoured milk drink. The new packaging,which has just gone intoproduction, will list the in-gredients and nutritionalinformation of Daioni’schocolate and strawberry flavoured drinks in a variety of languages in a bidto tap into the international market. One version will be produced in Eng-lish, French, German, Spanish and Dutch, and another in Arabic, Mandarinand Greek. In the UK, the smaller 200ml unit size will make Daioni an in-creasingly attractive product for the schools and packed lunch markets, whilethe 1ltr cartons are ideal for drinking at home. Trioni, the parent company of Daioni, has already had success exportingto countries such as Malaysia, Dubai and Singapore and the new packagingwill make its products available across the globe.South CaernarfonCreameries slimsdown their DragonFollowing the phenomenal successof their Dragon brand, South Caernar-fon Creameries has developed a new‘reduced fat’ version of their maturecheese which was officially launchedin time for St David’s Day. The new range of cheese is 30%lower in fat than their standardDragon mature cheese range and willbe available in a variety of formats. Inkeeping with the reduced fat theme,the cheese will be available portioncontrolled in pre-packed slices as well as a grated pack and a 180g pre-packedblock. Lynne King, Commercial Director at South Caernarfon Creameries, says,“South Caernarfon Creameries has made a strategic decision to extend ourDragon range. This new reduced fat cheese is in direct response to the grow-ing consumer demand for healthier choices. The new products launched forSt David’s Day as this is the perfect time to bring another authentic Welshproduct to the market.”12:Layout 1 24/2/12 11:22 Page 1BARRY CALLEBAUTwww.fdiforum.net13Quality chocolate needsquality cocoa, and tomeet the growingdemand for chocolate,future cocoa suppliesneed to be safeguardedWith the Quality Partner Program,Barry Callebaut has made a long-termcommitment to do just that. BarryCallebaut works with farmer cooperativesand provides training to help enablecocoa farmers to improve the quality oftheir farms. By producing more andbetter quality cocoa in a sustainable andresponsible way, farmers can increasetheir incomes and improve theirlivelihoods. Today, Barry Callebautpartners with more than 58 cooperatives,which together represent some 42,000cocoa farmers in Ivory Coast. Cocoa farmers in West Africa facemany challenges. The productivity oftheir farms is declining due to aging trees,depleted soils, and poor farming practices,among other factors. This makesimproving the quality of farms an urgentissue. Through the Quality PartnerProgram, Barry Callebaut offers trainingto enable farmers to grow healthy,productive and robust cocoa crops.By participating in Farmer FieldSchools and other training activities,farmers can increase their knowledgeabout good agricultural practices as wellas sound labour practices. They learnhow to effectively manage pests anddiseases that can harm the fragile andsensitive cocoa trees, and about theimportance of ensuring biodiversity ontheir farms.High quality chocolate needs highquality cocoa beans. That’s why BarryCallebaut takes extra care to ensure thecocoa they buy from participating QPPcooperatives meets strict qualityrequirements. Before they join theprogramme, the cooperatives must meet aset of core criteria and agree to uphold acharter that outlines the QPP principles.In return, they get financing support toserve the needs of their farmer members,and business training. The cooperativesalso learn how to integrate qualitystandards for cocoa into their businessprocesses.Farmers receive training too. Byimproving their farms through properpruning, weeding and maintenance, andby carefully fermenting and drying theharvested beans, they can produce moreand higher quality cocoa. Barry Callebautpays the cooperatives a higher price forcocoa that meets specific quality grades.Bags of cocoa can be traced back to thepartner cooperatives who in turn keeptrack of their transactions with farmermembers.Cocoa is grown in a narrow beltaround the equator by mainly smallholderfarmers and their families in some of thepoorest areas of the world. There is oftena shortage of adequate schools, medicalfacilities, clean water, and energy sources.By producing higher quantities of betterquality cocoa, farmers can increase theirincomes and ultimately improve theirquality of life. Together with the QPPcooperatives, Barry Callebaut works toimprove access to education and basichealthcare services. They emphasise theimportance of schooling for children, andsupport sensitisation activities on childlabour issues. The goal is to ensure cocoaoffers a secure livelihood for farmers –now and for generations to come.For more information on Barry Callebaut’s Quality Partner Program, visit www.Qualitypartnerprogram.com.Building partnerships with cocoa farmers13:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:10 Page 114www.fdiforum.netIMPORT AND EXPORTWith heavy duty equipment being usedto move vast amounts of product around,damage is an almost inevitable part of theprocess, particularly with delicateproducts or perishable goods. However,packaging these days addresses strengthissues at the design stage, so crumplingor denting is quite rare. What is required more than anythingwhen it comes to global transfer of goodsis temperature and moisture protection.With vast changes in temperature andthe night and day cycle that food anddrink will no doubt go through on its wayto its intended destination; condensation,damp or extreme changes between hotand cold can potentially ruin a largeproportion of your stock. The solutioncan be to use temperature-controlledstorage, but this can prove expensive andcan really cut into your profit margins.Previously unconsidered elements cancost you dear. For example, ‘cargo sweat’occurs when transporting cargo from acold or temperate climate to a warmerpart of the world. The moisture in the aircondenses out on to the cargo or itspackaging causing moisture damage.Closely wrapping a pallet and itscontents with shrink wrap will not stopmoisture problems occurring. Themoisture already present in the air,product and packaging inside the shrinkwrap can condense on to the product orinside of the wrapping. Leaving an airgap at the bottom and top of the palletcan allow air to circulate throughpreventing condensation. Also,positioning desiccant inside of thewrapping will also help avoidcondensation. As cold air holds lessmoisture than warm air, the temperatureinside the container greatly affects thebehaviour of the water present inside.Moisture will condense out of theatmosphere, increasing humidity levels,in the coldest parts of the container. Temperature levels are often differentwithin a container, resulting in differentlevels of humidity. This can causemoisture damage only in certain areas ofthe cargo. A densely packed cargo couldbe cooler in the centre than the exteriordue to the outside acclimatising at afaster rate than the inside. Moisture canbe drawn into the centre raising humiditylevels, the same way, a warm cargopacked in a cold climate could be cooleron the outside.These internal differences can run inContainers are good forprotecting cargo from mostelements, but can presenttheir own problems for foodand drink importers andexporters alike.Getting things movingWith a fluctuating import and export market for food and drink, we look at recentchanges in the sector as well as how to ensure quality of products during transit14-16:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:13 Page 1IMPORT AND EXPORTwww.fdiforum.net15cycles as the container itself heats upduring the day and night.To minimise this effect, it is often wiseto equalise the container and content’stemperature prior to packing. Packing awarm container with cold products cancause condensation, as can packing a coldcontainer with warm products. Container‘rain’ can also a prove a problem, wherecondensation forming on the ceilings ofcargo containers drips onto cargo, causingmoisture damage. This can result in acontainer being rejected by a receiver atthe port which could cost you dearly.Protection of pallets and stackedproducts is also worth looking into. Asimple step such as placing warning signsor stickers on the sides and tops of palletscan prevent products being crushed orflattened, which is particularly helpfulwhen dealing with fresh food or easilybroken products such as glass, brittleplastic or soft, malleable food productswhich cannot be saved once presseddown. There are products that exist toprotect your products further, ideas assimple as cardboard warning structures inthe form of small pyramids or squaresplaced or wrapped into place on top ofpallets can act as a warning to even themost inattentive processing plant. Forklift drivers will see these warnings andnot inadvertently ruin your product.It really pays to take care of yourproduct, or at least provide failsafes forprotection after it leaves your care if it istravelling abroad. To take the initialpackaging steps to protection, it seemslike a grave mistake to leave yourproducts’ condition to chance once itleaves your immediate care. Investing alittle in damage control can mean lesswaste, so it’s worth investigating.New hopes for exporting nationalfoodsTraditional products are playing a keyrole in the import and export fortunes ofmany countries at the moment. Theproud heritage many countries have fortheir national dishes or products theyhave become known for really plays apart in reputation and development oftrading internationally. Scotland, forexample, is known for several traditionalfoodstuffs as well as malt whisky in thealcoholic drinks market. Recently,promoting their wares to an internationalaudience as well as domestic andneighbouring markets has been a priority. Gulfood, one of the largest food anddrink expos in the world, recently tookplace in Dubai, hosting hundreds ofexhibitors and thousands of visitingdelegates. Most countries of the worldwere represented in Pavilions,showcasing the best in that countriesproduce. The Scottish Pavilion forinstance featured Scottish Salmon, whichproved a hit with the visitors to theshow. It is this kind of pride thatcountries need to focus on to develop aworldwide reputation. David Cameron recently welcomed thecreation of thirty new jobs at PepsiCo’sQuaker Oats factory in Cupar in Fife.The expansion of £14.4 million to thesite comes as a reaction to great exportdemand built up recently. Oat exportshave risen 18% over the last few years,with much of that due to demand fromthe Middle East. The UK porridgemarket is also worth a healthy £157million too, thanks to an increase indemand from the hot cereal and healthfoods market. The sales to the MiddleEast are also fuelling estimates from theScottish Government that exports couldScottish salmon is world-famous, but other countriesare also pushing their ownnational specialities to aglobal market all the time.16 14-16:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:13 Page 216www.fdiforum.netIMPORT AND EXPORTreach £12.5 billion in just five years.It’s not just Scotland that is developing a reputation forcertain products. Turkey is increasing its push of dried fruitsand nuts, particularly to Asian countries where the quality andhealth benefits evident in that particular produce are having abooming effect on sales. Competitive prices, along withexclusive products like dried dates are giving Japanesewholesalers reason to do business. The reliability of delivery andquality over other countries is also having a great effect. Japanspends around $60 billion a year on food imports per year,representing 40% of its annual food consumption, so Turkey isdoing well to remain competitive in a tough market.In South America, Peru is reportedly putting together a planto become a strategic food supplier to the rest of the world.Looking to the Middle East too, they are pushing Peruviangrapes and raw coffee beans to South Korea in particular, buttheir appeal could well be global. Increasing its profile throughattending food fairs such as South Korea’s Foods & Hotel 2012should help it on its way and could provide inspiration for bothcountries to work together in the future.Making inroads to new markets seems to be the key tosuccess in the export sector. How each country does that willdiffer, but perhaps now is the time to shout about nationalproduce in a more meaningful way.Desiccants like thesefrom J S Desiccantscan help preventmoisture or ‘containerrain’ in global transit,saving you costlywastage.Oats have seen a massive increasein exports for Scotland over the lastfive years.14-16:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:14 Page 3LOADING BAYS & DOORSwww.fdiforum.net17At first glance loading bays and doorsmay seem one of the less interesting facetof a an operation. But, such an assumptioncan be costly. The first and most likely concern is thatof safety, in the litigious world we live inthese days, any accident can soon reapdisastrous consequences for a business.And, statistics show that 12% of the mostserious accidents occur during the loadingand unloading process. This can comeabout for a variety of different reasons,from lack of care or attention on the part ofemployees, through to poor planning onthe part of the employer. Though onecannot fully eliminate the former, it’simportant to make sure the risk of thelatter is completely minimised. Despite this, the industry has had a longtime to grow and become successful, and itis becoming less common that a businessdoes not already have a very strict healthand safety plan in place. Work by theHealth and Safety Executive has gone along way towards ensuring this, withregular checks having been carried out. Sowith most companies now having nominallytaken control of the health and safetyissues, what left can be improved upon?The simple answer is efficiency. Howmuch can we cut the time of loading andunloading, without compromising the safetywe have earlier achieved, is the questionwhich is no doubt important to many. Timeis money, after all, and the faster one canmanage a turn out with food products thebetter, particularly for perishable or timesensitive goods. One of the most obvioussolutions to reducing time spent is to cutout the human element where possible.Though we’re yet to live in a world withcompletely automated forklifts, we’regetting closer every day. Databases andsoftware can help to reduce time a humanoperator would otherwise spend thinking ofwhere an item needs to be placed. What’smore, computer software does not oftensuffer from injury.System Logistics offers software that cancalculate what workforce is available andeven allocate those individuals to tasks thatare the most important, increasingproductivity without the need for previousplanning. There are also a number of18 Castell Safety’s newSCP+ uses clear, visualkeys to direct driversLessloadingtimesHow far can we push efficiency in regards toloading and unloading?17-19:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:16 Page 118www.fdiforum.netLOADING BAYS & DOORSbespoke additions that can be incorporated into this software, includingpallet conveyors to remove the need for the employees to lift dangerouslyheavy items, and laser-guided vehicles! Not only does this reduce the chancesof an accident or injury by the staff members, but frees them up to handleother tasks in the warehouse, allowing the drivers to leave sooner. The software also remembers routes and times provided by drivers andplans for stock that must be available to be loaded at any given time,ensuring that everything is kept on schedule, further reducing the risk oftime being wasted. It’s not just the software that can be of importance to the speed of theoperation, however. The access methods themselves need to be carefullyconsidered, many companies now are incorporating various dockmanagement systems, to ensure that the vehicles are guided to the correctaccess points as they are needed. A mistake here can cause serious hold ups,so it’s important that the drivers know the full procedures of the loadingprocess before they attempt to actually execute them. Visual keys are helpful here - visible from a greater distance and easilyunderstood with little training, they help to reduce load times considerably.Castell Safety International’s new Salvo Control Panel + helps in this regard,using clear and distinctive traffic light style LED’s to warn drivers when it issafe to approach the docking bay, and which bays are in operation on anygiven day. To further cut down time the SCP+ comes with an illuminatedlock, useful in those companies who operate through the night, and even aninternal heater to make sure extreme weather conditions do not cause acomplete halt in productivity. Docking bays can often have veryclear and obvious safety hazardsinvolved with them17-19:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:16 Page 2LOADING BAYS & DOORS - TM PEDANEwww.fdiforum.net19At the moment, the possible choicesfor controlled temperature and coldstorage warehouses used by food industryare wide and full of great solutions tokeep work areas in perfect health andhygiene conditions, but loading bays anddock equipment are still the weakest part.Choice in this area is restricted to twomain options – spending a fortune for astainless steel leveller or choosing a cheapgalvanised steel dock leveller, but thisleads to two main consequences.Rust - the destiny of iron affectsfunctionality of the ramp and hygiene ofthe loading point, causing also a consistentloss of image of the company itselfToxicity - a surface treatment, being itpainting or galvanising, is a potentialtoxic agent together with rust itself, beingdetached by usageTM PEDANE has engineered andtested the perfect solution for all theseproblems – the ALUMINUMELECTROHYDRAULIC DOCKLEVELER. It is in pure aluminium,without surface treatments, meaning norust and no toxic agents. It’s in an eco-friendly and recyclable material, and hasthe same capacity of a classic steel rampwith longer and stronger durability. Thisproduct has been tested and soldsuccessfully all over Europe and Asia ineight years, with great feedback by foodindustry in particular.The final solutionfor food industryloading baysWith better quality and durability atvery cheap costs, the revolution of dockequipment has just started. For more information, call +39 (0)734873010,email info@tmpedanesrl.com orvisit www.tmpedanesrl.com.17-19:Layout 1 23/2/12 12:16 Page 3Next >