A reliable supply of very hot (180°F, 82°C) water is critical to meet sanitation needs in meat processing plants. A large meat processing plant located in the Midwest US had old, failing heat exchangers which were not keeping up with demand and were also becoming a maintenance headache.
The Challenge
The hot water usage in a meat plant is varied and sporadic. The cutting floor, Viscera, saws, cutting tools and knife sanitizers all have on/off hot water requirements and once a day there is a major cleaning cycle with high water demand.
Making the situation more difficult is the strict USDA requirement that water temperature never drop below 180°F at any point in the plant. Plants risk immediate shutdown, fines, and lost production costs (in excess of $300/min downtime) if the minimum temperature is not met. An extended shutdown may also sacrifice quality animals in queue completely, at significant cost. The plant previously used an old heat exchanger which was a maintenance headache, took up a lot of floorspace, and was expensive to operate.
The key requirements were:
- Maintaining the 180°F temperature through all conditions
- Reliability to maximize equipment up-time.
- low maintenance costs
- Low cost of operation
Solution
ProSonix worked with the customer and their fabrication partner to design and install a PSX I-Series 3” skidded system. The small size of the Prosonix I series heater enabled installation of second, backup, heater on the skid for total redundancy, with a footprint smaller than the original heat exchanger. The new system utilized their current tank as a buffer to smooth out the big flow fluctuations and ensure a steady supply of 180°F water. The system draws from the plant 140°F (60°C) water supply and raises the temperature to 200°F (93°C). This ensures 180°F water at the most distant point of use. The system is very energy efficient and ensures the customer always meets USDA regulations for safe operation. Full heater redundancy allows for constant up-time, easy maintenance, and peace of mind.
Summary
The new ProSonix I-Series Skidded system provided the following benefits:
- Ensures 180°F water at the critical use points to meet all USDA performance and safety requirements.
- Total up-time. A backup heater assures there is no interruption to the hot water supply should maintenance be required.
- The increased energy efficiency of the Prosonix heater as compared to the heat exchanger saves approximately 15% energy usage. The total system installation has a payback of about 1 year strictly based on energy savings.
- Even with heater redundancy, the heating system freed up considerable floor space.
SPEC
- Flow Rate: 50-300gpm (1.1-68 M3/h)
- Inlet Temp: 135°F (57°C)
- Discharge Temp: 200°F (93°C)
- Steam Pressure: 100 psi (690 KPag)
- Water Pressure: 20 psi (138 KPag)
Learn more about the ProSonix I-Series here.