Automated cleaning safety
Strict health and safety standards in the food, beverage and pharmaceutical industries require all machinery used in the production process to be thoroughly sanitised at regular intervals to keep equipment clean and eliminate the risk of bacterial contamination.
This automated cleaning process, known as Cleaning in Place (CIP), uses a mix of chemicals, heat and water to clean machinery, vessels or pipework without having to dismantle plant.
Because of the high pressures, harsh chemicals and high temperatures used in CIP, an adequate safety system is needed to protect personnel. With this in mind, Fortress developed the amGardS40, a range of highly robust, IP69K-rated, stainless steel electro-mechanical safety interlocks and switches. Modular in design, they allow for many different configurations to satisfy almost any safeguarding application, allowing customers to purchase modules and build up their ideal safety system over a period of time.
Each module of the amGardS40 has a slim 40mm body allowing it to be easily fitted to a 50mm guarding section or other areas where space is limited. The range also enables users to incorporate basic machine control functionality into their interlocking devices. All control elements, including push buttons, lamps, selector switches and e-stops are IP69K-rated and can tolerate extreme CIP conditions. This minimises downtime while simplifying the access procedure as ‘gate release/ machine restart’ can be controlled at the point of entry.
