The new RotaVac system seamlessly integrates ILAPAK’s Delta 6000 flow-wrapper with an innovative rotary vacuum chamber that is optimised for applications - whether fresh primal meat cuts, retail, food service or cheese products.
This has created a highly efficient and labour saving solution for replacing more expensive pre-made shrink bags with lower cost film from a reel - ILAPAK's system can reduce labour by 60% versus a pre-made bag solution, as total integration eliminates the need for any manual intervention.
"Whilst a line using pre-made shrink bags will typically be manned by eight operators, with our RotaVac system, the number of operators can potentially be cut to three. This has a massive impact on the bottom line - six figure savings in real terms in most cases," says Conrad Graham, ILAPAK's Meat Industry Manager.
Rival systems do exist for vacuum packing meat from rollstock, but none are fully integrated by design like the ILAPAK Delta RotaVac.
"Now, rather than having to worry about linking machines from different suppliers, meat firms can simply 'plug and play' one or all of ILAPAK's modular Delta RotaVac pre-made bag replacement solutions via an Ethernet based control platform. That means fewer operators and simplified installation, maintenance and support," says Conrad.
The ILAPAK system is also faster than the competition, thanks to the product-specific design - a feature which is unique to ILAPAK. Whilst rival rotary vacuum packing systems use a general equipment design to cover multiple product types, ILAPAK offers industry-specific modules; depending on whether customers want to pack pork, beef or lamb, for example. Modules can be changed without purchasing a completely new system.
The ILAPAK system also consumes around 5% less packaging than rival rollstock fed systems, thanks to more accurate product management throughout the integrated system.
The RotaVac's integrated control platform introduces opportunities for users to maximise OEE (overall equipment effectiveness) through system monitoring, diagnostic and data reporting capabilities that aren't readily available with rival systems. Features include seal and vacuum monitoring. When levels move outside safe parameters, the operator will be notified via the HMI.
Hygiene is a top priority globally for meat processors and packers, and this is reflected in the sanitary design and full washdown capabilities of the open frame Delta RotaVac. The chassis is a free draining open channel design to prevent ingress of water into the machine, and the absence of any closed channel profiles eliminates the possibility of internal bacteria growth. All critical components and assemblies are constructed from high grade stainless steel or high impacted composite plastics.
The Delta RotaVac has been validated with all of the shrink films that are commonly used by the meat industry, which means users are not tied to a single film supplier, and remain free to choose the film partner that best suits their needs.
