5 Ways a Blower and Vacuum Pump Can Help With Your Production
Industrial blowers and vacuums help regulate airflow in warehouses, factories, and other production facilities. One common application of blowers and vacuums is cleaning—using air to remove debris, dirt, water, and other contaminants. They also remove stale and contaminated air from industrial settings. But compressed air blowers and vacuums can serve other purposes, too.
Here are five ways a blower and vacuum can help with your production.
Applications of Blowers and Vacuums
Nitrogen Blanketing/Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP)
Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) technology helps extend the shelf life of fresh food. It involves removing the atmospheric air inside a package and replacing it with a protective gas mix. This gas—usually consisting of nitrogen—maximizes the freshness of the product.
Though both MAP and vacuum packaging require compressed air and vacuum pumps, MAP differs because it doesn’t always have to remove oxygen from the packaging. Instead, MAP involves adjusting oxygen and carbon dioxide levels within the package to the required values. The vacuum pump makes the final seal to ensure the gases remain intact in the container.
Filling and Closing Machines
Vacuum systems have a pivotal role in the beverage industry. They help evacuate air and other contaminants to ensure consumers receive quality goods. Vacuuming also prolongs the shelf life of various products. Filling and closing machines use vacuum systems to seal:
- Alcoholic drinks
- Bottled water
- Juices
- Sports drinks
- Nutritional supplements
Bottle Filling
The oxygen content in bottled beer must be kept low. That is why breweries employ different bottle-filling methods. They may flush the bottles with CO2 and fill them with beer using a long tube filler. However, this method uses a significant amount of CO2. Another method involves evacuating the bottles and flushing them with CO2, which minimizes CO2 consumption.
Packaging
Vacuum systems have a critical role in packaging. Generally, the pressure around a product has a mechanical impact on the product’s external shape. Therefore, the modified atmosphere packaging process is an ideal method across many applications, including food and beverage, pharmaceutical, and cosmetics processing. By packaging products in a modified atmosphere and removing oxygen, MAP encloses the product in a blister package, places it in a vacuum chamber, and evacuates it. After injecting it with the modified atmosphere, the package is sealed with a protective film.
Dairy Processing and Milking
Yogurt-filling machines require a vacuum pump to position the lids on multiple pre-filled yogurt containers at once. The machines have suction cups that pick up the lids, separate them, and place them in the right positions.
Milking systems have vacuums that attach to the cow udder and transport the milk. Compared to conventional oil-lubricated pumps, side channel blowers and liquid ring pumps do not use oil and thus have fewer maintenance needs. Side channel blowers in particular do not need water connections and are available with frequency converters.
Get the Right Blower and Vacuum for Your Application
Compressed air blowers and vacuum pumps are valuable devices that enhance or, in many cases, enable production. High-volume blowers and vacuum pumps are available in different varieties, so Compressed Air Systems is here to help you choose the right system(s) for your commercial or industrial application. Contact us today to learn more about our products and services.
