Cleanliness and hygiene are fundamental requirements when manufacturing and packaging pharmaceutical products and foodstuffs.
However, the task of cleaning the equipment used in these processes often takes up a lot of time and requires considerable human effort.
By contrast, integrated cleaning systems that function without disassembling equipment parts increase ease-of-use and boost productivity.
One of the world's largest provider of packaging and process solutions, OYSTAR the Process & Packaging Group (Stutensee, Germany), integrates cleaning technologies in the manufacturing process.
The company and its subsidiaries OYSTAR Hassia (Ranstadt, Germany), OYSTAR Hüttlin (Schopfheim, Germany) and OYSTAR Manesty (Knowsley, Great Britain) meet both European standards for the hygienic design of food production equipment and the extensive requirements of the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in respect of pharmaceutical processes.
OYSTAR Hassia equips its form, filling and sealing machines, which are used in the dairy and food industries, with a CIP (Clean-in-Place) dosing system to enable fully automated cleaning without disassembly.
An SIP (Sterile-in-Place) version is also available, combining the CIP system with full sterilization of the equipment.
In developing a new membrane valve dosing system for OYSTAR Hassia ffs-equipment for cups, the main focus, besides enabling a wide variety of products to be handled, was on ensuring that cleaning would be easy.
The main dosing unit is positioned above the cup line and, alternating with a second dosing unit, ensures short product conversion times and optimum manufacturing efficiency.
The CIP cleaning tray, which is usually installed directly beneath the foil line, has been placed next to the dosing unit in this case. When it comes to cleaning, the cleaning tray moves into position above the cup line without impairing it in any way.
Compared with conventional systems, this approach can lead to considerable savings in terms of both time and costs (including no foil wastage).
With its Ultraclean CIP system, OYSTAR Hüttlin (Schopfheim, Germany) offers pharmaceutical companies optimum equipment cleaning efficiency coupled with significant cost, time, and energy savings.
Ultraclean works primarily with integrated metal filters that can be opened during cleaning so that the clean-gas side can be rinsed quickly.
The fully automated cleaning process cuts production times considerably and, with its innovative technology, overcomes the problems of conventional CIP concepts in which micron mesh screens and products that are prone to swelling make it difficult, if not impossible, for product residue to drain from the filter.
The cross-industry know-how and benchmarks within the OYSTAR Group ensure that solutions for sterile production and packaging technologies are continuously redefined.
Increased efficiency and flexibility lead to greater productivity, thereby presenting the pharmaceutical, food, and dairy industries with significant profit potential.
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