Week 5 of the Credo Online Petfood School (OPS) commenced today. The programme is jointly organised by Progressus Agrischools and Perendale Publishers, and sponsored by Agentis Innovations, Tietjen, Andritz, Wenger, PLP Systems and International Milling Directory.
This weeks topics covered Coating, Final Cooling, Conveying, and Quality control.
Starting off the session was Joe Kearns, School Moderator and in-house trainer. He gave a presentation on ‘Coating and cooling of Petfoods’, which covered areas such as:
- Recall In the Bag Temperatures
- Conveyor Beds, Keep it in Dryer and Cooler
- Spreading, horizontal cooling, vertical coolers, Counterflow coolers
- Coating; atmospheric and vacuum, reel coating
- The Coating system, cell structure, fat absorption
The next presentation was given by Marco Prati, CEO of PLP Systems, in Italy.
He gave an interesting presentation on the development of this innovative Italian-based company and its unique coating technologies.
A particular highlight of the presentation is the detailed information on how to realise the perfect continuous coating process. He emphasised that dosing should be done using gravimetric weighing and the importance of achieving a homogeneous mixture during the coating process. He also highlighted the challenges of the spraying process and the SMOG technology offered by PLP. He also referred to the three different machines PLP Systems uses for gravimetric dosing and emphasised that the “MT COATER” coating machine can meet all the main requirements. This machine offers a range of advantages, from gentle mixing of products, to the addition of large amounts of oil and the use of liquids of different viscosities.
The presentation also introduced PLP’s speciality products, such as the automatic holding lid and the stepped second coating machine. The automatic holding lid helps to prevent product build-up, while the staggered second coating machine enables products to be coated at different stages. He also presented solutions such as the DOSAMIX unit for liquid dosing.
Next Joe Kearns gave a presentation on ‘Quality control Pet foods in the line and on line’, which encapsulated:
- Quality control in the plant
- Effect of raw material protein quality
- Causes of white build-up on screws and die orifices
- Screws, dust free downspout
- Product temperature, extruder moisture, pressure regulating valves
- Ingredient flow, stem flow, water flow
- Steam traps, bucket traps, thermostatic traps
- Pneumatic systems, in line analysis
He also presented on ‘Lab analysis’, which touched upon:
- Product analysis and laboratory tests for pet foods
- Moisture, NIR, Water Activity, PH, Particle size analysis
- Bulk density, starch gelatinization, Fat absorption, pellet durability
- Rapid Visco Analyser (RVA)
- Sample collection, analysis and results
Catch the last Online Petfood School, broadcasting this week, September 28. The session will cover Computer Controlled Plants, Plant Sanitation and Troubleshooting Discussions.
CLICK HERE to access the Session 6, on September 28 (9am CET).
