Compressor for the food industry

In a food processing plant, compressed air drives bagging machines and packaging lines, operates cylinders, valves and reject ejectors, moves products by pneumatic conveying and is used to clean equipment. It often comes close to the food, and that is what sets your requirements.

Air quality comes first

AIRSTAHL compressors are oil-lubricated. The air they deliver contains water, particles and traces of oil, so it must be treated before it reaches the points of use. The quality you need depends on contact with the food:

• No contact with the product (cylinders, valves, tools): a refrigerated dryer and general-purpose filtration are usually enough.
• Indirect contact (blowing out empty packaging, bagging): finer filtration, to be defined point by point.
• Direct contact with the food (blowing or conveying the product): the strictest requirements, with additional filtration at the point of use.

This quality is expressed in classes under ISO 8573-1 (particles, water, oil). It is up to you, with your quality manager and your customers' specifications, to set the target class for each point of use. Our guide to air quality under ISO 8573-1 explains how to read these classes. We then size the air treatment with you.

What else matters

• Continuity. A bagging machine at a standstill blocks the whole line. A screw compressor is built to run over one or more shifts.
• The environment. Washdowns, humidity, flour or powders: install the compressor in a clean, dry, ventilated room away from washdown areas.
• Condensate. It contains oil: collect it and have it treated.

Our advice: a screw compressor with air treatment

For a packaging area, the K series (screw compressor, air receiver, refrigerated dryer and filtration on one frame) is a practical starting point, in 7.5 kW or 11 kW depending on air flow. For a larger site, the stand-alone Screw compressor 11 kW fits into a network with an air receiver, dryer and filters chosen for your quality classes. Where needed, add extra filtration as close as possible to sensitive points of use.

Maintenance and monitoring

Air quality also depends on maintenance: compressor filters, air/oil separator, line filter elements and condensate drains. AIRSTAHL service kits are in stock in France and parts remain available for 15 years.

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