The proposed tightening of Australia’s food production safety standards already has forced manufacturers and processors to undertake critical assessments of their current production lines and hygiene practices.
And moves by the powerful Australian and New Zealand Food Authority (ANZFA) to persuade the Federal Government to take over the regulation and enforcement of food safety standards from the States and Territories – plus the current review of food safety standards by the European Commission - have increased Australian awareness of issues facing existing production and handling facilities.
“ANZFA already has warned that compliance costs could rise even though centralised enforcement costs initially could fall,” says the Manager, Conveyor Products, of Dotmar EPP, Chris Padman.
He suggested that manufacturers would be wise to prepare for potential change by undertaking an expert review of their current machinery and practices before replacing or upgrading equipment.
“For example, food conveying lines that cannot be easily disassembled, maintained or sterilised might only require belting replacement with a product like Dotmar’s Eurobelt – a strong plastic belting with smooth surfaces that are easily cleaned,” he said, “There’s a growing inventory of economic products like this that can meet or exceed any regulatory standard.”
Australia’s food industry already has discovered the advantages of the Eurobelt modular conveyor systems.
Being a far more durable and hygienic alternative to fabric based belts, it has a vastly high resistance to cuts and abrasions and fat, oil and chemical penetration is minimal.
Eurobelt’s modular, polypropylene advanced design is based on more than 25 years of performance in demanding applications often involving caustic washes.
Eurobelt especially facilitates the handling of meat, fish, fruit, vegetables and other primary products and both the Eurobelt series 80 and 24 have smooth surfaces on both sides enhancing their ability to remain clean and hygienic during production runs.
The series 93 Eurobelt is even stronger and, having 8mm rods is ideal for curve and spiral conveyors. In addition, metal detectable material is available for even greater food safety when necessary.
“Because we assemble Eurobelt products locally, delivery is fast and technical assistance is always available and, adding to Dotmar EPP’s technology mix, is the System Plast range of conveyor components, conveyor chains and bearing housings” Padman added.
Having acquired Malco Industrial Products, Dotmar EPP is a specialist in the provision of high performance engineering plastics, materials handling and product processing solutions.
“The established international expertise and recognised materials handling systems such as System Plast (Flexon) and Eurobelt are reinforced by Dotmar’s national network of hands-on knowledge of Australia’s food processing, product packaging, manufacturing and mining,” Padman added.
“From design to local machining, fabrication, installation and maintenance using the best plastic and metal products the world has to offer, Dotmar EPP offers manufacturers, processors and packaging specialists a complete range of unique, robust, custom-made systems guaranteed to economically boost production and minimise downtime.
Dotmar EPP’s Australia-wide network provides a complete service from expert consultation to installation and testing.
Dotmar can design the appropriate system for the task and fabricate it without delay from the fine international and custom-machined components.
“On top of this, we provide ongoing technical advice and a fast repair and expert maintenance service,” Padman added.
The widely-respected Eurobelt range of modular conveyor belts and System Plast conveyor components perfectly dovetails with Dotmar EPP’s own products and hard-won reputation for providing solutions to major industries using wide-ranging engineering disciplines.