4.12. DESIGN REQUIREMENTS FOR COATING EQUIPMENT

4.12.1 Definitions

4.12.1.1 The product zone, as defined in Section 2.11, shall include all surfaces, including bottoms, with which ingredients used in the coating of food products in normal production may have contact, magazines, entry pipes, fittings, pumps, agitators, blowers, and those surfaces over or through which forced flows of air are directly applied to the product, conveyor belts and such adjuncts as side guards, fittings, carrying rollers, and devices with which the coating and other food products may have direct or indirect contact during the process of drying and cooling, and the interior surfaces of cooling and drying tunnels, housings and ducts therein over or through which forced flows of air are directly applied to the food product.

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4.12.2 Specific Design Requirements

4.12.2.1 Openings for the introduction of coating and ingredients shall be designed so as to prevent spillage. Covers shall be provided for such ingredient openings and shall be removable, easy to clean and equipped with a means of protection against the entry of foreign material from the exterior of the cover. Such openings shall have a raised rim of at least 3/8 inch (10mm).

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4.12.2.2 The coating reservoir shall be accessible without cutting the conveyor belt or dismantling the conveyor and easily accessible for cleaning.

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4.12.2.3 The coating reservoir shall be self-draining.

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4.12.2.4 Air ducts and baffles for the delivery and distribution of air shall comply with Section 3.1

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4.12.2.5 Blowers, which remove coatings from food product, shall be readily accessible and shall comply with Section 3.1.

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4.12.2.6 Blower intake hoods shall be readily removable. Blower blades, motor mounts, and related parts shall be readily accessible.

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4.12.2.7 Air distribution horn or cone shall be removable. Horn or cone adjustments shall be readily accessible and removable.

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4.12.2.8 Wire belt rollers shall be readily accessible.

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4.12.2.10 Heater units installed under a coating return section shall be readily accessible.

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4.12.2.11 Product conveying surfaces shall be readily accessible and removable, and shall be designed for minimum product retention and complete cleaning.

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4.12.2.12 Attachments used to prevent accumulations on aprons or belts shall be readily accessible and removable.

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4.12.2.13 Readily removable drip or catch pans shall be provided under cleaning attachments and transfer points.

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4.12.2.14 Sensing devices used in the product zone shall be suitable for the application and shall have shatter-resistant faces.

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4.12.2.15 Pumps, valves, pipes and fittings, including those used to insert sensing bulbs, except those which are normally continuously filled, shall be of the sanitary take-apart type and shall be readily accessible or readily removable.

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4.12.2.16 All devices, including the mounting brackets, used for the purpose of stacking, shingling or otherwise aligning the food products prior to packing, shall comply with Section 3.1.

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4.12.2.17 Enclosure panels shall be smooth and readily removable for cleaning.

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4.12.2.18 Insulation within doors or access panels shall be isolated by sealing the fabricated joint or seam of the door or access panel. When multiple insulated panels are used (as in tunnel walls or tops), insulations shall be isolated within each individual panel by sealing.

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4.12.2.19 Shaft seal rings shall be readily accessible and readily removable or retractable, to permit cleaning of all product zone surfaces thereon, including the face of the agitator hub.

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4.12.2.20 Take-up rollers and their bearings shall be removable.

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4.12.2.21 Rollers, pulleys, sprockets and wheels shall be free of end recesses. Sprockets and wheels in the product zone shall be solid disks.

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4.12.2.22 Electrical, plumbing and sensing device lines shall be grouped and protected by seal enclosures.

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4.12.2.23 Cooling coils shall be readily accessible and easily cleanable.

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4.12.2.24 A minimum space of 8 inches (200mm) shall be provided between the floor and the bottom of the coater.

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4.12.2.25 A minimum space of 12 inches (300mm) shall be provided between the floor and the bottom of the frame and body of the conveyor.

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4.12.2.26 Bunker boxes and other refrigeration or heating equipment used under processing conveyors shall have condensate drainage, and the drainage pans shall be designed so as to prevent entry to food products. A minimum space of 6 inches (150mm) shall be provided between the floor and bunker boxes or related equipment.

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