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Laser Cleaning for In-Line Baking Plates

05/25/2020
Laser Cleaning

From metallic baking trays and molds to conveyors, the food products manufacturing industry faces oil, grease, and other deposits regularly. Media blasting solutions can remove these contaminants, but they can also damage the products and — in some cases — leave a thin layer of contamination behind. This, among the long duration of use, can impact production and cause performance complications, such as alignment issues. Laser solutions provide a potential alternative, but are they suitable for the job?

HOW DO LASER SOLUTIONS WORK?

Laser systems use thousands of pulses per second to absorb into and remove contaminants that can cause your equipment and other applications to underperform. Using a combination of laser energy to pulse and remove contamination layers without impacting the substrate and a suctioning tool to contain coatings, you can effectively remove oil, grease, sugars, and any other contaminants plaguing your products.

CAN LASER SOLUTIONS CLEAN IN-LINE BAKING PLATES?

BAKING TRAYS

Baking trays can be tricky because they’re often used in high-temperature areas, and downtime can severely hurt production. We provide specialized optic packages to withstand these temperatures so that you can continue using our laser systems. Our solutions can clean baking plates as they move and other challenging surfaces on the fly while maintaining a permanently cleaned condition. Since production doesn’t stop, this increases equipment up-time and reduces costs.

BAKING MOLDS

Baking molds — whether flat or textured and made of steel, cast iron, or chrome-plated metal — are well-suited for laser cleaning. Similar to baking trays, baking molds often travel through high-temperature areas in the production process. Our laser solutions can be specifically designed to operate consistently inside hot ovens during normal production at temperatures higher than 356° F. Plus, our laser solutions are ideal for cleaning:

Sugar cone molds
Waffle molds
Product handling components and conveying systems
Other challenging baking and food processing applications

CONVEYORS

The manufacturing process requires getting products from point A to point B. This often requires a conveyor — either a continuous belt of metal that moves with the product or rollers that stay stationary and help move products along. These parts can experience all sorts of conditions, from high temperatures to oil and grease from the production process. Our laser solutions clean them to eliminate potential problems before they occur — streamlining your production process.

BENEFITS OF LASER CLEANING

ADVANTAGES

Our laser solutions excel in continuous cleaning applications. In addition to eliminating downtime, laser solutions are considered one of the safest forms of contamination cleaning. That’s because it only requires protective eyewear, training, and an optical hazard zone to keep your employees safe — eliminating the need for full HAZMAT suits. Plus, our laser systems can be used for more than removing contaminants. They also offer:

Bonding preparation
Coating preparation
Surface prep for NDI
Welding/brazing preparation
Welding post-treatment

DISADVANTAGES

Laser solutions work for most metals and some non-metal materials alike, but they aren’t the most suitable solution for every product. Applications made from glass, wood, or other combustible materials can often be difficult to clean. Also, larger surfaces and hard-to-see areas are difficult to clean efficiently and effectively.

In some instances, companies may wait to clean their molds and other baking tools until contaminants have built up. Our laser solutions are not as quick or effective during these treatments and are better equipped for continuous application usage.

The best way to determine if laser cleaning will be able to remove contaminants from your baking plates is to send your product to our on-site lab where we’ll test to find which solution — if any — is best suited for your needs. If your product is too difficult to disassemble and move to our lab, we can also test our solutions at your facilities. Talk to our sales team to learn more.

WHATEVER YOUR NEEDS, ADAPT LASER HAS A SOLUTION FOR IT

Adapt Laser specializes in the know-how and application of laser cleaning solutions. We offer products with a range between 20 and 1,600 watts and provide training to ensure your employees can get the most from their laser cleaning solutions. We’ve equipped a variety of industries and companies with laser cleaning solutions — including military and defense for the US Airforce and Navy — and hundreds of organizations trust our state-of-the-art laser cleaning solutions.