New control panel ensures hygienic operation, says Bilwinco

A new touch screen control panel (HMI) ensures easy and hygienic operation of multihead weighers for the handling of wet food products including fresh, frozen and prepared meat products as well as ready meals, claims Bilwinco.

Margit Simonsen, marketing manager at Bilwinco, said that the optional web camera on its new control panel enables the operator zoom in to have a detailed view of critical areas and observe the behaviour of food products as they pass through such as meat cubes.

During operation, she continued, the display screen illustrates, by means of graphs, all necessary information about the performance of the weigher such as production output, number of portions per channel or weight of weighed portions.

She told FoodProductionDaily.com that the Bilwinco control panel (HMI) has been trialled with leading Danish food processors and it is a replacement of the manufacturer’s previous model which proved a challenge in terms of hygiene.

The display screen of the new version, she continued, has a touch sensitive surface meaning so that all buttons are now integrated into the graphics.

Simonsen explained that the HMI has been designed and adapted for wet environments with frequent cleaning, and as such it is built into a stainless steel frame with sealing class IP65. Furthermore, she said, its surface has only a few seams and edges with a view to optimizing hygienic conditions.

She added that the control board has a clear menu system, with large, easily read text providing the operator with easy access to start, stop and adjustments of the weigher.

The touch screen control panel (HMI) will be launched at the upcoming meat processing trade fair, the IFFA in Frankfurt, and Simonsen said the company will also be showcasing its weighing and packaging system consisting of a multihead weigher type BW114W, which is mounted on mobile frame with a lifting/lowering function.

The company claims that mobile solutions such as this provide food processors flexibility as the equipment can be moved between the packing machines or processing lines according to need, and the design enables easy removal of the weigher for cleaning.

Bilwinco said that the packaging line also has a reciprocating filling tool that is especially well suited for the weighing and positioning of ready meals in trays and ready meal plates.