Shell lubricant offers canners cleaner sealing
human health and will not affect product odour and taste should it
come into contact with food.
The development of the oil - Shell FM Gear Oil TLS 150 - comes in response to the fact that food manufacturing plants are obliged more than ever to ensure that there is no risk to food when changing the oil in processing equipment.
The food industry consistently provides some of the harshest environmental conditions for machinery. The effective lubrication of expensive and varied machinery is a constant problem for food processing plants that often run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Greases must be able to resist moisture, high & low temperatures, shock loading, high speeds as well as attack by acids, alkalines and cleaners. But most of all they must often be H1 or H2 approved by the NSF and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
In Europe, there is the Commission Directive 90/128/EEC, which relates to materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs. Shell says that its new oil meets all necessary regulatory requirements.
First and foremost then, Shell's new oil is designed to ensure optimum performance, but should it come into contact with food during the production process, it will not pose a physiological hazard to the consumer or affect the food's odour or taste. This should help can seamers better manage food safety risks at the can seamer.
Incidental contact with NSF H1 registered food grade lubricants is considered acceptable at levels up to 10 parts per million (ppm) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
As oil in total loss lubrication can seamers stays in the machine for only a relatively short period of time, the formulation for www.shell-lubricants.com/FoodBev Shell FM Gear Oil TLS 150 is based on technical white oil.
Using a similar additive technology to that used in synthetic Shell Cassida Fluid GLE 150 for recirculating can seamers, Shell FM Gear Oil TLS 150 is specially formulated to provide good lubrication even when operating in conditions where contamination with water, juice, and food can occur.
Because these fluids are held in suspension, Shell FM Gear Oil TLS 150 protects metal surfaces from wear and corrosion.
Good plant maintenance is vital to efficient food processing. Significant cost savings can be made through regular servicing and the use of modern analytical techniques - while a break down in machinery can lead to impressive losses.
Indeed, a recent report from Dow Corning claimed that billions of euros are lost each year because of unnecessary repair work, which has to be carried out on processing equipment that has not been sufficiently lubricated.
The food industry, said the report, is especially vulnerable. Given the wet nature of much of the manufacturing process, the constant need for wash downs, and the dramatic temperature variations from freezers to ovens, the food industry must pay particular attention to the lubricants they use.
Shell Lubricants collectively refers to the companies of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group engaged in the lubricants business. Shell lubricants companies are global leaders in lubricants and operate in over 120 countries worldwide.
