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24.02.2016

Speciality lubricants for the bakery industry

The industrial mass production of baked goods places highest demands both on the internal company process operations and on the production plants of modern industrial bakeries.
 

OKS Speciality lubricants for the baking industry

Consumer safety and process reliability through certified high-performance lubricants

The industrial mass production of baked goods places highest demands both on the internal company process operations and on the production plants of modern industrial bakeries. Stable operation in 24-hour 7-day mode, extreme production conditions, strict hygiene standards and brief cleaning and maintenance periods are the main challenges for machines and plants in baking industry production sites.

Production process in industrial bakeries

In view of the systematic process workflows in modern industrial bakeries these are mostly automated to a high degree. Conveyor and roller belts and other transporting devices transport raw materials, dough, semi-finished and finished baked goods automatically between the individual production stages within the baking plant. This means that such production plants often have mechanical components such as chains, roller bearings and sliding bearings in addition to such classical plant components such as pumps, gears, blowers, air compressors and hydraulic systems.

Lubricants for industrial bakeries

Speciality lubricants tailored especially to these components and applications, which do not only fulfil the technical demands but also the statutory requirements for lubricants for the food processing industry, contribute decisively to an efficient production workflow during the production of baked goods.

High humidity and dust levels, very high and very low operating temperatures stress the production plants in daily operation. Therefore reliable lubrication of all the moving mechanical parts is indispensable in these plants in particular in order to avoid wear and corrosion.

A lack of lubrication or insufficient lubrication results not only in unplanned standstill of the plants and sudden production breakdowns, but through higher wear, energy consumption and maintenance requirements in higher production costs as well.

In addition, the baked goods should not contain any lubricant residues, e.g. through dripping lubricating points. In the case of unforeseen contact with the food, it has to be ensured that only physiologically harmless lubricants are used in the production and further processing of foods.

Physiologically harmless lubricants

In accordance with ISO 21469 the most important criterion for the selection of lubricants to be used in food producing and processing companies is the approval of the lubricant by the American NSF (National Sanitation Foundation). NSF H1 certified lubricants may be used when contact with food cannot be excluded in the event of failure. NSF H2 lubricants may be used when contact with food is technically excluded.

Technical selection criteria

The further selection depends on the type of machine components and plants to be lubricated and the operating and ambient conditions arising such as the operating temperatures, throughput speeds, moisture, humidity and dust influences.

Because of the high demands particularly in the temperature operating range and under consideration of the physiological harmlessness, lubricants for food processing technology are often based on high-quality synthetic base oils that were adapted to the special application field with special additives.

Optimal cleaning of machines and plant components

As a rule, cleaning is carried out dry in production areas with flour and at plants sensitive to water such as ovens. By contrast, wet cleaning is carried in highly soiled production areas with dough caking, grease and coating residues, as well as at watertight machines and plants.

Cleaning agents for use in food processing are subject to the approval criteria of NSF A1. Cleaning agents containing solvents which are to be used outside the production area for food, for example in the context of maintenance and servicing work, are certified in accordance with NSF K1 or NSF K3 respectively.

OKS speciality lubricants for food processing technology

OKS provides of the right speciality lubricants for operation of your plants in compliance with regulations for all fields of application in the food processing technology. OKS speciality lubricants, chemo-technical maintenance products and cleaning agents contribute towards increasing your process reliability, avoiding downtimes and increasing the efficiency of your machines and plants.

The enclosed selection table provides a selection of NSF H1 and H2 lubricants and NSF A1 and K1/K3 cleaning agents for use in the baking industry.

In order to achieve the maximum of process reliability and thus consumer safety no other field of lubrication is ass strongly regulated by law as the use of operating and auxiliary materials in the production and processing of foods.

Our Technical Service team is available to answer any further questions you may have on the subject of lubricants for the food processing industry

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