Conserve Italia and Procomac Industries, two group leaders in their
sectors, meet to start an important project based on innovative
technologies.
A vast facility of the Group Conserve Italia
with cutting-edge production technologies was recently opened in Codigoro, near
Ferrara. It is extended on a surface of 300.000 sqm with a production capacity
of 480.000 tons per year of several kinds of products: tomatoes, pears,
peaches, green peas, beans and French beans. Conserve Italia, leader of the
market of the red sauces, with brands such as Valfrutta and Jolly Colombiani,
is the biggest cooperative of Europe in the field of vegetable transformation
and treatments. An outstanding aspect of the company is that the management of
the company is composed by its cooperative members. Conserve Italia is made up
of 57 companies which gather together about 17.000 farmers, mainly in Emilia
Romagna and Tuscany regions in northern Italy.
Tebaldo Bernardi,
Operations Director of Conserve Italia, explains how his company is present
with sister companies and sales agencies in all European countries: "Abroad the
company operates with four production facilities in France through its sister
company Conserves France S.A., one in Spain through the company Juver and one
in Poland through the sister company Konserwa Polska So.zo.o.. The
commercialization of the products is guaranteed by a network of companies and
agencies organized for the different geographical areas: Conserve France S.a.
for France and Benelux, Mediterranean Growers Ltd. for Great Britain and
Ireland, Warburg GmbH for Germany, Austria, Holland and e Scandinavia, Konserwa
Polka Sp.zo.o. for Poland, Ukraine and Russia and Juver for Spain. Conserve
Italia talks to the European market, with 450 million potential consumers".
A new project, started in 2003, has gathered together Conserve Italia and
the companies within Procomac Group, to obtain the highest quality and safety
of the final products by using a pioneering approach to line engineering. This
project revolves around the installation of one complete aseptic filling line
for fruit juices in innovative PET containers and two lines for the filling of
tomato cubes, sauces and fruit marmalade in glass containers with the
introduction of a new volumetric/mechanical filler designed and built by
Procomac. "Conserve Italia has found in Procomac Industries a unique reference
able to supply several technologies for filling, sterilizing, container
handling and end of the line, coupled with the experience needed to manage the
entire project, both in the drink and food sector" - this is how Teobaldo
Bernardi explains the reasons that led its company to choose Procomac
Industries.
High acid aseptic bottling line for fruit juices
Procomac, leader in the aseptic filling sector, with a total of 53 lines
installed world wide, conquers the trust of Conserve Italia with the supply of
a complete aseptic filling line. The installation of the line is almost
finished at the plant in Barbiano di Cotignola, near Ravenna.
"The choice
has been made for a PET aseptic line for two different reasons: first of all
the consumer prefers a lighter and easier to transport packaging, this is why
we decided to go from glass to PET. Then the cold aseptic filling guarantees
the quality of the product leaving unchanged the inner characteristics" says
Teobaldo Bernardi.
The aseptic line supplied to Conserve Italia will bottle
the famous fruit juices carrying the Derby trademark.
The aseptic filling
bloc is composed of a Procomac Gripstar GX 65.13 sterilizer, a rinser with the
same characteristics, a Procomac Fillstar FX 50.10.113 volumetric electronic
filler and a capper. The feeding to the bloc is guaranteed by Procomac
Packaging air conveyors Convair 2000. The bloc is completed by the
contamination control system with microbiological isolator.
The line will
treat basically the 1.5 and 1 lt formats, with the future possibility of
bottling also the 0.5 lt format. The filler reaches a speed of 12.000 bph on
the 1.5 lt format, while with the other sizes of the containers it reaches a
speed of 18.000 bph.
The process system supporting the filling bloc is
composed of a microfiltration unit Uniflux, a system for the preparation of the
sterilizing solution Unidox, a system for the pasteurization of the sterile
water Unitherm H, a C.I.P. unit Uniclean and a unit for the production and
distribution of the washing foam Unifoam. A peculiar feature of this line as
far as process technology is concerned is the presence of a Unitherm P, product
pasteuriser with thermal treatment, with a two-phases heat exchanger, degaser
and homogenizer; this unit keeps the product in overpressure compared to
utilities as a guarantee against product contamination.
The end of the
line, managed by Procomac Packaging, is composed of conveyors for bottles and
packs and of an Opera 2000 palletiser with double infeed from the bottom.
New piston filler for tomato cubes, sauces and fruit marmelade
Together with the aseptic line installed in Barbiano di Cotignola, other
three lines will be installed in the new plant in Codigoro: two of them with
the new Piston Filler technology by Procomac. This project gathers the
experiences of Procomac, in the beverage sector, and Levati Food Tech, in the
food sector.
From the synergy of these two companies comes the new patented
filler, extremely versatile, that can execute volumetric/mechanical filling
cycles, as well as hot fill filling cycles with only the substitution of a
component in the filling head.
Engineer Teobaldo Bernardi indicates the key
points in this project: "The possibility to fill two different kinds of
products on the same line represents a big saving in terms of money, space and
time. Without this technology you would need two filling blocs, one with a
piston filler and one for a hot aseptic filling. Now we can fill tomato cubes,
sauces and marmalades on the same line".
The Fillstar PF, volumetric filler
with a piston for each filling head, allows to dose liquid and thick products
in any kind of container: glass, PET or pouch. With this technology it is
possible to obtain the highest production versatility: both lines installed can
fill different kinds of products.
Line 1, dedicated to the filling of
tomato based products, can reach a speed of 30.000 containers per hour on the
0.72 lt format with a Procomac Fillstar PF 70 filler.
The formats treated
on this line will be 300, 580, 720 and 730 ml bottles and jars. The feeding of
the line is guaranteed by a VELOX depalletiser; a PADSTAR washing system
ensures the hygiene of the containers. Once the containers are filled, they go
through the RAINSTAR C cooler system; then a Drystar tunnel dries the
containers before the labelling.
The end of the line is composed of an
AGILIS 2000 palletiser with double infeed from the top.
Line 3, based on
the same technologies from Procomac Industries, is composed of a Procomac
Fillstar PF 40 filler, that guarantees a production of 15.000 containers per
hour on the 400 g formats. This line will treat several kinds of products:
tomato based sauces and fruit marmalades. The project is completed with the
upgrade of line 2. The existing filler has been updated with new washing and
cooling systems for the containers and a complete restyling of the conveyors,
with a new line automation.
An Uniclean Multi 3 washing system is installed
in the Codigoro plant and it allows to have automatic CIP cycles for all the
lines.