Using the Right Connection in Food and Beverage Industries

Manufacturing is a fast-paced environment where every company faces the challenge to ramp up production as demand increases. The challenge becomes critically important in the food and beverage industry where complying with Food and Drug Administration standards while increasing production is a necessity. There are many ways to help production meet demand; adding people, extra shifts and equipment to name a few. At a plant producing edible goods, the finish process line must be cleaned at predetermined intervals or when the process is complete. Two methods are commonly used for cleaning. The Clean In Place (CIP) method runs a hot soapy solution through the system with all components, including hoses, in place, followed with a hot water rinse. In the Clean Out of Place (COP) system all the component pieces are removed and cleaned in a wash tank or with steam. Occasionally newly added start-up shifts are understaffed and overwhelmed with the task of keeping all the components in a hose assembly in excellent operating condition. In one instance where workers were instructed to replace a failed hose assembly there was no replacement assembly to be found in the storeroom. Workers did uncover couplings that had the same connection as those on the failed assembly and further searching uncovered clamps they had seen in other parts of the plant and a tool to install them. Under pressure to get production up and running, and assuming one coupling is the same as another, they replaced the leaking coupling with the “new” ones they had found. The repaired assembly was put in place, the valves opened and production resumed.

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