Mariani has led the dried fruit industry for 115 years by focusing on product quality along with production efficiency. Last year, they decided to integrate grading and sorting on one prune processing line at their Marysville, California facility and began searching for the ideal sorter for this application. Mariani selected a state-of-the-art VERYX\u00ae optical sorter from Key Technology to find and remove all kinds of foreign material (FM) and the right amount of product defects to make grade while maximizing yield.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWe needed a new sorter to replace a 12-year-old standalone sorter that required us to size-grade prunes before sorting \u2013 it was an inefficient process, to say the least,\u201d said Andrew Kennedy, Director of Grower Relations at Mariani. \u201cWe talked with several suppliers and decided to go with Key Technology. VERYX gives us more advanced sorting capabilities as well as a higher throughput in a smaller footprint.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
To achieve their food safety and product quality objectives, Mariani selected a fully-loaded VERYX C140 chute-fed sorter equipped with front- and back-mounted color cameras, laser scanners and Key\u2019s proprietary Pixel Fusion\u2122 detection module. Recognizing the color, size, shape and structural property of every object, Mariani\u2019s VERYX is programmed to find and eject defects such as scabs, cracks, exposed meat and brown rot as well as all types of FM such as glass, rocks, plastic, insects, animal parts, extraneous vegetative matter (EVM) and more.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cSince a lot of our growers are diversified and grow several different crops, it\u2019s not unusual for us to see some cross-contamination,\u201d explained Kennedy. \u201cWith VERYX, we\u2019ve got a powerful tool that finds even the most difficult-to-detect FM and defects. Among other things, we\u2019ve virtually eliminated all Class 1 FM, which includes allergens like little pieces of almonds and walnuts that can come from neighboring growing fields. This is a game changer for us.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cVERYX actually out-performs our old sorter in many ways,\u201d added Mark Krause, Marysville Plant Manager at Mariani. \u201cFor one thing, our old sorter inspected product from the top only, so it couldn\u2019t see every defect. Now, thanks to VERYX, we\u2019re accomplishing all-sided surface inspection, which is essential for prunes since they can present defects on any side. With no blind spots, we\u2019ve got a more accurate sort.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cWe\u2019re also able to better maintain sort accuracy over our long production cycles,\u201d added Krause. \u201cOur old sorter got bogged down with product build-up, and that build-up could make the sorter fire its ejectors either too often or not at all. We would have to clean the old sorter during the production run, but that had problems too because when prunes get wet, FM tends to stick to good product. Quite frankly, it was a nightmare. But VERYX is designed specifically to minimize product build-up \u2013 it performs perfectly with no mid-shift washdowns.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Prior to installing VERYX, Mariani had to size-grade on a separate line due to the old sorter\u2019s limitations. Back then, they needed ten workers over two eight-hour shifts to keep pace with incoming product. Now, with VERYX, they\u2019ve improved sort performance and increased sort capacity, which has enabled them to integrate sorting and grading on one line. This year, they\u2019re producing the same volume of prunes in only one 10-hour shift with only six workers. \u201cReducing our labor requirements with world-class automation means we can give our full-time people a better work environment at the same time we need fewer seasonal workers, which is a huge relief in this tight labor market,\u201d said Krause. \u201cWe need only one VERYX operator, and once he starts up the line, he can go do other things. VERYX basically runs itself.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cKey\u2019s remote monitoring service supports our in-house team and adds to our high confidence that we\u2019re achieving peak performance. With remote monitoring on VERYX, a Key technician can access and adjust settings on the sorter remotely, if needed. Without it, we\u2019d have to either make an appointment with an in-person technician or trade photos on email to troubleshoot a problem,\u201d said Krause. \u201cWhile we haven\u2019t really had any problems or downtime since we started using VERYX, we did have the opportunity to use remote monitoring once, shortly after installation, to make a minor tweak to a setting. Key was able to make this small adjustment and optimize our sorter\u2019s performance very quickly. Key\u2019s customer service is always stellar. They take the time to really understand our environment and our goals.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
During their seven-to-eight-month season, Mariani typically runs 13,000 to 14,000 lbs of product per hour on their new prune sorting and grading line. Since VERYX C140 is rated to sort up to 20,000 lbs of prunes per hour, they have room to grow. After the prunes are sorted and graded at the Marysville plant, they\u2019re sent to Mariani\u2019s Vacaville plant 70 miles away for further processing. Overall, Mariani is producing more than 300 million lbs of fruit annually at five manufacturing facilities, offering Mariani-branded and private label retail packs as well as bulk ingredients to other food processors worldwide.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cVERYX is a more valuable tool than we anticipated. You see, the severe drought in California has brought new challenges. Recent prune crops are smaller than usual and the quality of incoming product has suffered. It would\u2019ve been very hard for us to satisfy customer demand with our old sorting setup,\u201d concluded Kennedy. \u201cVERYX enables us to achieve our final product quality specifications despite wide fluctuations in raw product quality. At the same time, it also maximizes yield, improves efficiency and eases labor requirements. Our VERYX sorter is helping us accomplish all our goals.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
About Key Technology, Inc.<\/strong> About Duravant<\/strong> <\/p>\r\n Reader Inquiries<\/u>:<\/strong>
\r\nKey Technology is a global leader in the design and manufacture of automation systems including digital sorters, conveyors and other processing equipment. Applying processing knowledge and application expertise, Key helps customers in the food processing and other industries improve quality, increase yield and reduce cost. Key manufactures its products in Walla Walla, Washington, USA; Redmond, Oregon, USA; and in Beusichem, the Netherlands.\u00a0 Key offers customer demonstration and testing services at five locations including Walla Walla and Beusichem as well as Hasselt, Belgium; Sacramento, California, USA; and Melbourne, Australia; and maintains a sales and service office in Santiago de Queretaro, Mexico. Key is a Duravant Company. For more information, visit www.key.net<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n
\r\nHeadquartered in Downers Grove, IL, Duravant is a global engineered equipment company with manufacturing, sales and service facilities throughout North America, Europe and Asia. Through their portfolio of operating companies, Duravant delivers trusted end-to-end process solutions for customers and partners through engineering and integration expertise, project management and operational excellence. With worldwide sales distribution and service networks, they provide immediate and lifetime aftermarket support to all the markets they serve in the food processing, packaging and material handling sectors. Duravant\u2019s market-leading brands are synonymous with innovation, durability and reliability. For more information, visit\u00a0www.duravant.com<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n
\r\nBuffy Hagerman
\r\nKey Technology
\r\n150 Avery Street
\r\nWalla\u00a0Walla,\u00a0WA\u00a099362\u00a0USA
\r\nTel: +1\u00a0509 540 7415
\r\nbhagerman@key.net <\/a>
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