Product handling is a key point in the production line for fruit and vegetable producers. Product life span begins to decline at the point of harvest and many variables can affect the quality of fresh produce before it reaches the consumer. Fresh produce is easily damaged during processing and packaging but advanced conveying solutions are available that eliminate product breakage and will convey hard-to-handle products reliably.

Heat and Control offers a range of conveying and product handling solutions that provide gentle and efficient product transfer solutions for fruit and vegetables.

The Industry Benchmark in Conveying

The FastBack® range of horizontal motion conveyors are the industry benchmark when it comes to conveying fragile fresh produce such as lettuce, spinach, cauliflower or broccoli. This is because of FastBack’s ability to virtually eliminate product breakage by gently sliding the product along the pan instead of bouncing it.

The FastBack 260E-G3 Horizontal Motion Conveyor gently transports product by cycling through a slow-forward and fast-back horizontal motion, without damaging fragile products. At the same time, it provides the fastest product travel rates while maximizing product distribution efficiency. FastBack conveyors can reliably transport large quantities of product without build up in the pan, reducing downtime for cleaning and maintaining product blends, without segregating product pieces.

FastBack horizontal conveyors have five times the design life of the competition, and the highest travel rates and throughputs. Its gentle motion results in near zero product breakage — which has made the FastBack brand famous­ — ­ while also having the highest resale value in the market.

Depend on FastBack to reliably convey hard-to-handle products

The groundbreaking Fastback Revolution® Proportional Gate 3.0 is a proportional distribution system that uses unique cylindrical outlets that rotate to divert a proportional portion of product, so the main product supply continues to flow as it allocates amounts to individual weigher/bagmaker stations. Downstream stations are not "starved" and do not need to wait for the product. The patented design introduces various advantages that make it the premier gate in the industry. The gentle, innovative design diverts product without creating a single pinch point which reduces product breakage.

Blending Systems

FastBack Blending Systems offer manufacturers the most economical and accurate means of delivering product blends to multiple scales in a variety of environments. Distinct products behave uniquely when conveyed and blended and the FastBack Blending Systems give manufacturers the ability to calibrate each component stream, for a constant product stream flow.

For manufacturers of fresh produce achieving balanced blends is a complex task that requires the synchronization of various technologies. This synchronization provides consistent component streams, meters components with dependable accuracy, and conveys blended components without segregation, and gives operators complete and intuitive control over the entire process.

FastBack Blending Systems weigh only the final metered product stream of each component instead of bulky hoppers associated with loss-in-weight systems. This allows the use of high-resolution load cells for precise measurement. Hermetically sealed stainless steel load cells are tough enough for the most demanding environments and simple sanitation quick-disconnect weight trays and wipe-and-go sanitation minimises cleaning time and maximises production time.

Choosing the right conveying and blending system for your fresh produce application is an important decision and can be a complex process. Heat and Control service a range of customers from small startups to large multi-nationals, across industries and applications and can offer practical knowledge and support.