Eliminating Contamination Risks with Premium Oil-Free Air in the Food and Drink Sector
Project Overview
Design Air recently completed the installation and commissioning of a high-performance compressed air system for a prominent client in the food and drink industry. To meet the facility’s exacting hygiene standards, our engineers supplied and integrated a state-of-the-art Atlas Copco ZR132VSD+ Premium oil-free rotary screw compressor.
This key infrastructure upgrade was designed to ensure a completely secure, highly efficient, and contaminant-free production environment.
The Challenge: Strict Compliance and Absolute Purity
In the food and beverage sector, compressed air frequently comes into direct contact with the product, ingredients, or automated packaging machinery. Even the microscopic presence of oil aerosols can lead to spoiled batches, costly product recalls, and severe damage to brand reputation.
The client required a robust utility solution that could guarantee absolute air purity. They needed a system capable of keeping up with continuous, high-volume production demands without exposing their downstream processes to any risk of contamination.
The Solution: The Atlas Copco ZR132VSD+ Premium
To provide the ultimate safeguard against downstream contamination, our engineering team specified and installed the Atlas Copco ZR132VSD+ Premium compressor.
100% Oil-Free Certification
The ZR range is engineered to deliver ISO 8573-1 Class 0 certified air. By eliminating oil from the compression chamber entirely, this technology removes any physical possibility of oil carrying over into the client’s sensitive food processing lines.
Variable Speed Drive (VSD+) Technology
Alongside unmatched purity, the unit features Atlas Copco’s advanced VSD+ motor. This intelligently tracks the facility’s fluctuating air demand, adjusting the motor speed seamlessly to minimize energy waste and significantly lower electrical running costs compared to fixed-speed alternatives.
Premium Rotary Screw Design
The highly efficient, two-stage rotary screw element ensures maximum reliability and continuous, stable output perfect for the rigorous operational hours expected in modern food manufacturing facilities.
The Results: Guaranteed Safety and Efficiency
The successful commissioning of the new ZR132VSD+ system provided the client with immediate operational peace of mind and measurable efficiency gains.
- Zero Risk of Contamination: The 100% oil-free air guarantees final product safety, ensuring the facility maintains full compliance with the most stringent food and drink industry regulations.
- Optimised Energy Consumption: The VSD+ technology ensures the plant only generates the exact amount of compressed air it needs at any given moment, actively reducing its carbon footprint and daily overheads.
- Protected Downstream Assets: By entirely removing oil from the air network, the lifespan of downstream pneumatic valves, cylinders, and sensitive production equipment is significantly extended.
The Design Air Standard
As Scotland’s compressed air specialists, we understand that certain manufacturing applications leave absolutely no margin for error. We don’t just supply equipment; we engineer highly regulated systems that protect your product, your consumers, and your bottom line.
If you have an application with stringent requirements for guaranteed oil-free air, get in touch with Design Air today to see how our engineering team can help safeguard your production and optimise your facility.