SPX Corp secures $10m contract and eyes further dairy successes
The US-based company announced its Flow Technology division had won a contract worth more than $10m to design and install a fully automated continuous margarine and butter system for the dairy company in southwest Norway. Tine BA, a co-operative with more than 15,000 farmers, is Norway’s largest producer, distributor and exporter of dairy products.
Water and energy savings
SPX said the processing system would optimise both water and energy consumption. Designed by Gerstenberg Schroder, the ‘end-to-end’ equipment would minimise operational water consumption on the butter maker.
“The system will be built to capture most of the fluids used during the cleaning-in-place process, and thus reduce the costs and disruption of the disposal process versus systems that do not capture most fluids,” said a SPX statement.
The system will cut cleaning time – and therefore downtime - by preconditioning fluids to the required temperature prior to the sanitising of pipes and other processing equipment. This equipment will also have electric motors that are “often controlled” by a frequency converter. Both features are expected to “help minimise the plant's overall energy consumption”, said the company.
SPX segment president Don Canterna said the company planned to target the dairy sector in future for further expansion.
Turnkey, scaleable systems
The company hailed the contribution the acquisition of Gerstenberg Schroder had made in securing the Tine deal and declared food processors were increasingly seeking turnkey solutions.
"This contract also helps demonstrate and validate the added value Gerstenberg Schroder brings to the SPX portfolio of food processing offerings and capabilities," said Ken Rodi, President, Flow Technology EMEA.
The company announced it had completed the takeover of the Denmark-based firm in February 2010 as part of its bid to expand its global share of the markets for food processing technology, equipment offerings and systems capabilities.
Speaking in February, SPX forecast the acquisition of Gerstenberg Schroder would boost their ability to provide turnkey, scalable food processing systems.
“Food manufacturers are increasingly seeking these kinds of systems to help optimise the production quality, efficiency, reliability and scale of their operations," said company chairman, president and CEO Christopher J. Kearney.
