Connectors for the food & beverage industries: easy cleaning is the key

Hygienic safety is priority number one in the food and beverage industries – a factor which has far-reaching effects on the entire production system. This article shows how the choice of interconnection devices for control equipment is affected by the regulations governing cleanliness in the industry, and describes a new generation of connectors featuring optimised design and material selection to achieve ease of cleaning under the most stringent conditions.                

Regulatory requirements
The food industry imposes extremely demanding requirements, administered by a number of organisations. For regulatory purposes, the food production and packaging environment is divided into three zones: the product contact area, the splash zone, and the product-free zone. The product-free zone is the area of the plant where products are already packed and as a result are protected against contamination. As a result, there are no restrictions with respect to plant and system design, and HARTING standard connectivity products can be used here. 

However, the same does not apply for the product contact area and the splash zone. In these areas, all surfaces must be designed to be as flat as possible and must have no gaps or spaces in which dirt pockets could develop and food residues might become trapped: situations which could create unacceptable bacterial contamination in the plant.

In addition to these design specifications, daily cleaning is mandatory. Plants are often cleaned with high-pressure hoses or steam cleaners containing aggressive acid or alkaline-based cleaning agents, which means that standard components are not suitable for use.

Special-purpose connectors
In order to address the stringent challenges of this environment, HARTING has developed a new range of connectors, the Han® F+B range, which have been designed in an environmentally optimised manner for the vicinity surrounding the splash area. The patented design is characterised by a large radius and smooth surfaces, in accordance with EHEDG guidelines, making it easy to clean to the standards specified in ISO 14 159 and DIN EN 1672-2.

The plastic material used in these connectors is polypropylene plastic, which is resistant to ECOLAB-certified detergents and is FDA 21 approved. It is resistant to high and low temperatures ranging from -40°C to +125°C, allowing for application in a range of environments. All soft product components are coloured blue, which enables quality monitoring camera systems to consistently and reliably detect detached sub-components. Both the IP67 and IP69K protection classes and surface properties of the HARTING Han® F+B connector can withstand the long-term impact of daily cleaning agents.

Versatility of use
The central advantage of the Han® F+B connector lies in its versatility in the number and type of contacts available. HARTING offers more than 25 different contact inserts (including the popular 3A standard version) for the transmission of bus systems, signals and power with current ratings up to 40 A. This large portfolio is rounded out by additional modules for electrical transmission, each with different termination techniques. Straight and angled housing for bulkhead mounting are also available.

The versatility provided by this modular approach opens up completely new possibilities in the design of previously hard-wired plant components. Equipment such as film winders, exhaust systems, and heating/cooling units can be produced as plug-in units. As a result, plant machinery units will be able to be designed on a modular basis, with the use of “plug and play” units offering additional benefits in terms of reduced downtime, faster commissioning and ease of maintenance.

Discover more here.