Avure Technologies Inc. has unveiled the new QFP 525L-600 (525 liters), the largest-volume high pressure processing (HPP) system available to date. Cementing Avure’s HPP leadership position, the 525L offers HPP processing at the lowest price per pound in the industry.

The 525L delivers an unprecedented 8,135 pounds (3,690 kg) of HPP processing per hour, a quantum increase in throughput over current industry offerings. In comparison, today’s installed base of large-volume HPP systems typically operate at production rates of between 3,000-4,000 pounds per hour.

HPP is the post-packaging lethality treatment that uses ultra-high pressure instead of heat to inactivate foodborne pathogens and spoilage organisms in products as diverse as raw and RTE proteins, deli meats and salads, fresh fruit and vegetable beverages, and seafood. The non-thermal, all-natural pasteurization process is increasingly applied around the globe to enhance safety, extend shelf life, enable innovation, and improve the nutritional value of food.

According to Matt Rutherford, Avure Senior Vice President of Business Development and Global Sales, the 525L is the step change food processors have asked for to respond to the dramatic upsurge in HPP applications, both from a volume and a physical size perspective.

“We assembled a special team to ask producers in various food segments for detailed information on what HPP improvements they would like to see,” Rutherford said when introducing the 525 at Pack Expo Las Vegas Monday morning. “These producers employ HPP daily, and have become the real experts on understanding their HPP processing requirements, such as throughput, maintenance, loading efficiency, and operations.”

With this feedback, Avure launched an accelerated engineering effort to bring this new innovation to the industry. The 525L’s improved filling and pressurizing efficiencies achieve 10 cycles per hour with a three-minute hold time. A three-inch expansion in vessel diameter, to 18.5 inches, accommodates larger-size packages, a trend growing in tandem with the influx of HPP products in semi-rigid packaging options.

Along with its leap in processing power, the Avure 525L HPP system incorporates several innovations that boost productivity and increase efficiency, from footprint economy and speed of installation to safety enhancements and ease of maintenance:

• Although it more than doubles existing throughput levels, the 525L does not require an equivalent increase in floor space. Instead, the high-pressure processing area is actually smaller than the next-largest Avure model, the widely deployed 350L.
• Streamlined installation protocols shorten time to production.
• For enhanced safety, key machine systems are individually alarmed, while a sole plate with pre-located bolt-down points secures the frame support structure for further stability and reliability.
• From a maintenance perspective, redesigned component configurations reduce spare parts wear while providing quicker technician access and dramatically reduced time required to replace worn parts.

Manufactured in Avure’s new North American facility in Middletown, Ohio, the 525L also benefits from the cost advantages of state-of-the-art production efficiencies, a strong local industrial infrastructure and materials expertise, and proximity to major transportation corridors.

For more information, visit Avure online at www.avure.com/525L.