The Vacuum Skin Packaging systems to preserve the product
Thanks to the know-how gained through 50 years of experience in designing heaters, temperature probes and heating systems, the Bologna-based company Crei has supported an important food company in the application of modern automatic “Vacuum Skin Packaging” systems, allowing it to combine the perfect preservation of the product in the absence of oxygen with a realistic and pleasant presentation of the packaged part.
The company complained about the inefficiency of its system of armoured round section heaters, unable to guarantee uniform heating of the dome moulds. This limitation led to a sub-optimal thermoforming and sealing of the plastic film which negatively affected the integrity of the product to be packaged, altering its basic characteristics and significantly reducing its shelf life. Such defects were not admissible for a company constantly engaged in the search for the best solutions to preserve the physical, chemical, aesthetic and organoleptic characteristics of its products.
The optimisation of diffusion for amount of power
Starting from a thorough technical analysis, Crei highlighted the need to replace the large section armoured heating element with other less bulky heaters, so ductile and flexible that they could be moulded according to the shape to be packaged and such as to bring the heat in the quantity and in the area where it was needed. The goal was achieved thanks to the insertion of 4×6 and 3.3×3.3 mm quadrangular section elements of the HMC series, housed with suitable shapes in thermoforming moulds, thanks to extremely simple and economical mechanical processing. Instead of a single armoured heater, Crei has optimised the diffusion of the same amount of power in two microtubular heaters, applied both along the perimeter and in the central area, reducing the temperature gap from 24°C to only 7°C.
Crei’s intervention proved to be decisive from several points of view. First of all, it made righteous a process that previously saw a useless and harmful waste of heat, especially in applications where, for the correct conservation of the products to be processed, it is necessary to maintain temperatures very close to zero (Celsius scale).
Energy efficiency and further advantages from Crei solutions
In addition, the modification introduced has made it possible to obtain further advantages: a 70% reduction in the thermal gap, a 44% reduction in the time required to reach the correct working temperatures, the optimisation of energy efficiency with the same nominal power and, finally, a reduction in active heating times.
Crei was founded in Bologna in 1969 developing heaters, temperature probes and heating systems, through highly technological manufacturing system. Over the years Crei has acquired experience by collaborating with the most important manufacturers of automatic packaging and wrapping machines which, together with the company, make up the wealth of Packaging Valley.
Crei catalogue includes, among others, high power density cartridge heaters, spiral heaters (microtubular), tubular heaters, conventional and mineral oxide temperature probes.
