The Importance of Cleaning Specialist Food Production Facilities
Cleaning Specialist Food Production Facilities
Food production facilities need to have stringent cleaning processes in place to ensure exceptional hygiene is maintained. From the machinery to the floors and walls, all require regular sanitation with professional-quality cleaning equipment. During food preparation, there is always the risk that harmful bacteria could contaminate food; if someone then eats the product, they could become ill which is why hygiene is essential.
To clean specialist food production facilities, staff need the right equipment and to stick to a strict schedule. The purpose of regular cleaning is to prevent cross-contamination, which could include dust. Cleaning food production environments occupied by dust presents a set of issues such as the risk of an explosion occurring from the ignition of combustible dust.
Another obstacle to cleaning large food production facilities is the scale and size of the building; however, even small industrial spaces that have high ceilings pose cleaning challenges. Pipes, ducts, and any other obstacles will all not only gather dust but be difficult to clean effectively. Machinery and conveyor systems also make it difficult to navigate the facility while cleaning.
How Does ATEX Cleaning Equipment Support Food Production?
Combustible dust doesn’t only cause hygiene issues in a food production facility. By-products of grain, rice, flour, and sugar, for example, all contribute to the creation of an ATEX explosive atmosphere. ATEX cleaning equipment is specially designed for industrial cleaning in potentially explosive atmospheres.
An example of ATEX tools ideal to complete this task is our ATEX certified Food Safe vacuum cleaning systems. The food-safe kit uses 38mm ATEX certified poles made from 100% carbon to ensure complete conductivity; crucial to the safe operation of the system in combustible atmospheres. The system also features a range of FDA approved cleaning beds and brushes – available in five colours (red, blue, yellow, green, and white) – to follow the colour coding requirements in food production facilities.
Hazardous dust leads to increased risk of explosion, so to clean dust zones safely it’s essential to use ATEX certified equipment. These industrial vacuum cleaners are fully conductive to ensure a non-spark anti-static operation, which reduces the risk of an explosion occurring. However, it isn’t only explosive environments that ATEX equipment helps clean as they’re used in high-level areas that cannot be reached with conventional tools.
High-level cleaning tools are designed to reach previously out of reach areas, such as industrial environments with high ceilings, feature corners, pipes, and machinery that requires additional equipment to clean. In the past cleaning was carried out using scaffolding, ladders, and scissor lifts which all pose health and safety risks.
Safety has to be a priority when cleaning any environment, but especially food production facilities. Using ATEX cleaning equipment ensures operators can use the ATEX tools, such as anti-static brushes that remove dust without the risk of ignition, from the ground, while still being able to reach previously inaccessible areas. The right attachments, heads, and tools make reaching high up areas even simpler.
The Benefits Of Cleaning Specialist Food Production Facilities
- Reduce The Risk Of Food Being Contaminated
- Remove Combustible Dust
- Create A Cleaner & Safer Place To Work
Cleaning in any food production facility is essential to maintain hygiene standards. Using specialist ATEX cleaning equipment removes combustible dust that not only could cause an explosion but contaminate the food products as well. Basic sanitation is the bare minimum expected for any food production facility. Using the correct ATEX tools and specialist cleaning accessories ensures any area involved in food preparation is kept hygienic.
How To Ensure Your Food Facility Is Hygienic
To clean a food production facility you need to be thorough and follow a core process.
- Inspect & Identify – Find problem factors or areas within the facility and identify the correct equipment to handle the issues.
- Sweep & Flush – Remove all dust and dirt with the appropriate cleaning tools and methods.
- Wash – This stage focuses on removing unseen bacteria; apply a detergent either manually or using a specialist device.
- Rinse – Use water to rinse off any detergent, this stage is essential as the detergent can counteract a lot of sanitiser products.
- Sanitise – Apply a sanitiser to areas across the facility, these can either be heat or chemical disinfectants. Once the sanitiser has been left on long enough, follow the cleaning instructions which will be to either wash it off or leave it on.
- Assess – Analyse whether the cleaning process has worked effectively; conduct a visual inspection but microbial swabs are also a smart investment.
SpaceVac ATEX Cleaning Equipment
At SpaceVac, our range of ATEX certified systems – including our new Food Safe system has proved to be a valuable tool for cleaners operating in food production facilities. Developed for cleaning tasks in explosive atmospheres, it’s operator-friendly, 100% fully conductive to ensure a spark-free operation, and cost-efficient. Our team is always looking for ways to improve the system’s effectiveness and efficiency, which is why we have developed a new ATEX certified version of our Explorer camera system that will be available soon.
Used by Coca Cola, Carlsberg, Weetabix, and many more industry leaders, the SpaceVac system is the safest and most useful method of cleaning specialised explosive atmospheres. Fill in our enquiry form to secure an innovative high-level cleaning solution, suitable for a wide range of industrial workplaces.