Flour Mill uses NIR analysers for complete product control
Flour Mill uses NIR analysers for complete product control
A tour of the Castle Mill facility demonstrates the control and efficiency that can be obtained by using NRI technology. The industrial spectrometers from NIR-Online oversee product quality from initial intake through to final flour. The main target is consistency and by monitoring all the grain coming in (not just a random lab sample) the process gets of to a flying start.
On intake most mills take small average samples of grain for testing via the laboratory. This was a worry to Castle Mill due to the fact that it only delivers selective information and there could always be quality doubts.
Castle Mill now tests everything at intake when vehicles discharge their grain. The grain is checked by a NIR-Online spectrometer system using near infrared light. Reflected light varies according to the consistency of the grain. A read-out is done by a diode-array spectrometer and data is analysed by the SX-Center software. The resulting data is shown as curves on a monitor in which protein, moisture and other ingredients can be easily read.
In addition to the spectrometers Castle Mill uses a high definition camera to measure the external appearance of the grain therefore delivery can be checked on ergot contamination or different grain mixes.
Conditioning and Wheat Blending
Water is added to the wheat blend in a process called conditioning or tempering. The amount added is usually between 4–6%, depending on the initial moisture content of the grain and the type of wheat being milled. The wheat is then allowed to lie in the conditioning bins for between 10 and 20 hours. At this stage, depending on flour type required, different wheat’s can be blended together and transferred to the milling process.
Most mills are limited to control samples in this step of the process. Control samples are traditionally controlled manually in the laboratory and deliver only scant information about the quality of the grain about to be milled.
Castle Mill however, has installed a second NIR-Online system before milling which also consists of a spectrometer and colour camera. This enables the grain mixtures to be controlled seamlessly in real-time.
Final Focus
At Castle Mill the NIR-Online analysis has final say in control. A process analyser with colour camera controls the quality of light and dark flour, which in real time can be altered by different hatches falling into a worm gear. Additionally the spectrometer measures the lightness (ash value) of the flour. If the flour is found to be darker than set point a dosing worm gear will automatically add light flour until the ideal ash value is reached.
This means that Castle Mill can control all flour types and be responsive to individual customer demands.
In the Laboratory
By using NIR-Online in the laboratory special mixes can be formulated and resulting values used to programme the spectrometers whilst in full production. A customer mix can be analysed and reverse engineered for matching during production. This data is then held within the system for future production requirements. The advantage with having NIR-Online in the laboratory means that the same technology and calibrations are used throughout the production process.
New grain grades
Last but not least the NIR-Online system measures new grain grades. By statistical calculation and auto calibration the results are integrated automatically within the existing measurement settings.
All devices are equipped with modern reporting functions, which deliver extensive data and information.
Heinrich Matthes the owner of the Castle Mill comments:
“Seamless online measurements give us high security and transparency of our processes. Manufacturing errors, downtimes and rejections are minimised. The stable quality of our flour pays off in hard cash, we receive about one Euro more than our competitors for a quintal of flour”.
“The NIR-Online system also offers a broad range of documentation possibilities and we can meet the legal demands of traceability. Through the automatic adjustment of ash we can guarantee our customers that will only receive flour type 550 which is in accordance with DIN rules”.
“Bakers and Pastry Cooks need consistent flour quality in order to produce high quality bakery products. Mills have to check their grain mixes carefully and with NIR-Online we know we are on the safe side”.
Summary of NIR-Online
NIR-Online process analysers are the world’s first pre-calibrated, optical system for online analysis and control of organic and non-organic substances in production and processing. Due to their special configuration, NIR-Online systems can be integrated within nearly every production environment. The costs of traditional laboratory analysis are no longer required and instead of this random examination a continuous real time insight into the process is provided. Quality variations in production can be adjusted in seconds making long delays for laboratory results a thing of the past.
For non-organic products like metals or minerals the NIR-online system with an additional high-resolution camera is recommended. The camera is able to measure the external features of the product even minimal differences in colour, structure and size allowing analysis of the chemical ingredients with results shown graphically.
Suffolk Automation is the sole UK Distributor for NIR-Online
Telephone 01473 829188
www.suffolk-automation.co.uk