Product advantages and technical information POB 355/30XK:
The Customer:
A food manufacturer based in the United States of America. Since being established in 1891, the company has developed into a versatile food manufacturer offering a plethora of options including meat products, pasta, and edible oils. In 2016, the company generated revenue of $ 9.5 billion and has around twenty thousand employees worldwide.
The challenge
The food processing department utilises gondolas with mounted wheels to move product from different areas. These areas consisted of cool and damp environments, as this helps minimise food spoilage during the processing period. The customer desired a replacement product for the original polyurethane wheels with cast iron centers that were currently installed on the gondolas. These wheels were very heavy, had low durability, and were very susceptible to rust because of regular cleaning in soapy and high temp washdowns. Because the wheels would travel constantly on concrete floors and be washed down numerous times a day the customer sought a higher durability wheel that could withstand these issues and also take on the impact of heavy loads.
The solution
Choosing from numerous proposals, the customer decided to go with the Blickle solution. By combining a high-quality nylon wheel centre with the hydrolysis resistant polyurethane tread Blickle Besthane ® and added stainless ball bearings, the customer was very satisfied that this particular wheel could stand up to the rigorous routine of their gondolas. The wheel provided good resistance to high wash down temperatures as well as the cool operating temperature while processing the food. The high-quality Besthane® tread is casted, thus chemically bonded to the wheel centre for an inseparable connection, creating high tensile strength and durability.
The result
After testing the gondolas equipped with the new Blickle wheels, the customer was very satisfied. By using the corrosion resistant wheels, the food manufacturer now saves a lot of replacement costs due to higher durability and resistance to high temperatures and soaps. Furthermore, the comfort and ergonomics at the workplaces are increased as a result of the user-friendliness.
Source: This case study was supplied by our German partners and suppliers at Blickle