Meat + Poultry - May 2004 - 41

The dilemma facing many meat and poultry processors, accord- can also collect fluid samples from machines that can then be lab tested
ing to Drew Troyer, vice president of Tulsa, Okla.-based Noria Reli- to gauge their effectiveness and check for abnormal wear.
ability Solutions, is deciding what kind of lubricants to use in the difToday's technology gives maintenance managers the ability to
ferent locations throughout a facility. There are three prevailing strat- maximize both equipment protection and food safety. Striking a balegies, says Troyer. The first is using food-grade lubricants exclusively, ance is the key, and McClean says, finding that mix is more feasible
throughout the plant, regardless of whether there is a chance of food now than ever. "Food-grade lubricant performance has come a long
contact risk. This "shotgun approach" is broad, but eliminates risk. way," he says.
M&P
"This severely limits lubricant choice and performance options, but
We would like to hear from you-
requires little or no process control to manage risk," Troyer says.
your comments and questions
about this article are welcome.
Another option is to use food-grade lubricants in those areas
E-mail the author at: jcrews@sosland.com
where the risk of food contact is high and
use non-food-grade products in auxiliary
areas. "This significantly limits lubricant
performance options and requires limited
lubrication process control to manage risk,"
says Troyer.
Still a third, higher-maintenance, approach is to use food-grade lubricants only
Supplying high-quality meat and poultry shrink
on machines where the risk is high and nonfilms to the North American packaging industry
food-grade lubricants in other machines,
even if they are operating near a machine
that requires food-grade oils. Troyer says
that while this strategy minimizes limitations
on lubricant choice and performance, it "requires aggressive management of the lubri®
cation process to minimize exposure risk."
Because of the refinement processes
involved in manufacturing food-grade lubricants, their cost is inherently higher than
the sundry variety of non-food-grade prod* For wrapping fresh or
ucts. But for many plant operators, price is
frozen meat and poultry
not a factor if it means eliminating risk.
"It comes down to balancing safety with
* Especially well suited for
cost," says McClean. "A lot of processors
wrapping meat and
that are going to 100-percent food grade
poultry trays
say it's just not worth the risk."
However, in many cases a lubricating
* Tamper evident,
fluid designed for a specific application
"Remembers" its shape
ensures optimal operation. They can be as
once wrapped
specific as vacuum pump oils, gear oils,
compressor fluids, heat transfer fluids, hy* Available in 60, 75 and
draulic fluids, greases, chain fluids, aero100 gauge
sol lubricants and mineral oils.
* Available in center
To find out what the best friction fighters
are for a specific plant, operators can work
folded or in a single line
with lubricant suppliers to conduct audits to
* Contains no CFCs or
assess whether or not current programs
are effective. Basic audits may involve visuheavy metals
All Syfan films are approved for food contact.
ally checking lubricant levels and machine
ISO 9002 certified.
wear. Or auditors can attempt to streamline
the variety of lubricants stocked in a plant to
simplify ordering and storage.
For more in-depth analysis, audits can include tracking and collecting data on lubri9900 Stirling Road, Suite 302 * Cooper City, Florida 33024 * 954-430-5391
cants used in machines by utilizing infrared
SyfanSales@SyfanUSA.com * www.syfanusa.com
heat guns. Software is also available to monitor fluid routes throughout a plant. Specialists

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MAY 2004

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Meat + Poultry - May 2004

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