Food Grade Screw Conveyor for Beef Processing Plant Central Michigan

General Description

Meat processing is an industry that has grown over the decades as population and demand grows. Beef is one of the largest divisions of this industry, producing everything from ground beef to steaks.

Screw conveyors are often used to convey ground beef from grinders to packaging lines. Due to strict sanitary requirements, these conveyors are far from CEMA standard design and construction. KWS understands the requirements of the meat processing industry and has provided equipment to the industry for over 45 years. Conveying and processing equipment must be free of any area where food can accumulate and bacteria can form. Also, any pit or crevice that could potentially provide a home for bacteria must be eliminated. In this specific application, beef has passed through a series of grinders to produce ground meat that many of us regularly purchase at the grocery store. KWS provided a solution that exceeded the expectations of the personnel at the beef processing plant.

Design Parameters

1. Product Type – Ground Beef
2. Material Density – 50 Lbs. per Cubic Foot
3. Conveyor Capacity – 50,000 Lbs. per Hour
4. Duty – 24 Hours per Day, 7 Days per Week

KWS Advantages

The beef processing plant had an existing screw conveyor that needed replacement. The installation was unique because the screw conveyor was almost 60-feet long and constructed with one continuous screw section made by welding several screw sections together. Since the screw conveyor was used to convey ground beef for human consumption, any surface pits or crevices, where food could accumulate, had to be eliminated. Because food industry regulations require that the screw conveyor must be washed down and cleaned out on a regular basis, CEMA standard bolted connections were not allowed and all joints had to be seal welded.

Manufacturing, shipping and installing a 60-foot long screw would be quite a challenge, but the Customer trusted the engineering and problem solving capabilities of KWS to provide a viable solution. The final design utilized three 20-foot long sections of screw prepped for field installation and welding. Always willing to go a step farther, the KWS Quality Manager that is a Certified Weld Inspector (CWI) went to the job site to supervise the installation and welding. The KWS Quality Manager provided guidance to the installation crew concerning the welding and finishing of the final screw assembly. KWS is always more than willing to go the extra mile to ensure a positive Customer experience.

Special Features

Screw conveyors designed to convey ground beef that is intended for human consumption, require special finishes on all product contact surfaces. KWS provided a 150-grit finish on all surfaces of the 60-foot long screw. As can be seen in the pictures, the welds are completely smooth with no ridges, pits or crevices that could impede flow or provide a haven for bacteria. The screws were completely polished by KWS prior to shipment to allow the installation crew to focus on installing and welding the screw sections together and then polishing the weld joints.

All the welds on the screw sections were continuous and the drive shaft was seal welded in place. The center screw section had a projecting shaft welded in each end that would connect it to the drive and tail screw sections. Holes were drilled in the shafts so that all the installers needed to do was slide the screw sections together, rotate them as needed and drop in pins to ensure a proper connection. Then, the pins and joints could be seal welded and polished as required. Special intermediate hanger bearings were designed to support the 60-foot long screw on approximately 12-foot intervals.