The food and beverage industry in Australia is experiencing significant changes driven by evolving consumer behaviour, stringent hygiene standards, and anticipated legislative updates. A critical area impacted by these changes is the use of enclosures in food and beverage production facilities.
Investing in the appropriate food and beverage enclosures now can save businesses time, money, and ensure compliance with future regulations.
Food Grade vs. Non-Food Grade Enclosures
When selecting enclosures, the primary decision is whether to choose Food Grade or Non-Food Grade enclosures. While both may appear similar, Food Grade Enclosures are specifically engineered to meet the rigorous hygiene requirements of the food and beverage industry. Each component, from materials to design features, is optimised to maintain the highest standards of cleanliness and operational efficiency.
Key Features of Food Grade Enclosures:
- Seal Material: Utilise silicone seals, which have higher tolerance to heat and chemicals compared to polyurethane seals.
- Seal Positioning: External, joint-free seals cover all gaps, preventing contamination and facilitating easier cleaning.
- Seams: Enhanced, fully welded seams prevent the build-up of contaminants.
- Mounting Brackets: Unexposed mounting brackets allow for easier cleaning behind the enclosure.
- Hinges: Concealed hinges create smooth surfaces and eliminate external cavities where contaminants could accumulate.
- Seal Colour: Blue seals enhance visibility and aid in detecting contaminants.
- Roof Design: Sloped roofs ensure water and contaminants run off, reducing wash-down time.
- Steel Grade/Finish: 304-grade stainless steel with a 400-grain finish is more resilient to regular cleaning compared to 316-grade steel.
- IP Rating: IP69K rated food enclosures can handle frequent high pressure and high temperature washdowns.
Benefits of Investing in Food Grade Enclosures
Investing in Food Grade Enclosures enhances hygiene by streamlining the Cleaning-in-Place (CIP) process, reducing wash-down times and resource usage. Efficient cleaning processes save time, labour, and consumables, while durable materials extend the enclosures’ lifespan. Investing in compliant enclosures now will prevent costly upgrades and ensure ongoing compliance as regulations evolve. Features like concealed hinges and external seals enhance overall operational efficiency by simplifying maintenance and cleaning.
Optimising Food and Beverage Automation
Adopting Food Grade Enclosures is part of a broader strategy to optimise food and beverage automation. This includes implementing targeted cooling solutions to maintain optimal conditions, enhancing efficiency and reliability in power distribution systems, and integrating advanced automation to improve productivity and safety.
Rittal’s Hygienic Design range of Food Grade Enclosures provides robust solutions to meet the unique challenges of the Australian food and beverage industry. Investing in the right enclosures today ensures compliance with future regulations and helps maintain high hygiene standards.
Download Rittal’s brochure to learn more about how Rittal’s solutions – https://www.rittal.com/au-en/LandingPages/Comparison-Chart-Food-Grade-vs-Non-Food-Grade