Production Line Sanitation

As 2020 crawls towards a close and we continue to battle COVID-19, the importance of thorough and effective sanitation is clearer than ever before. Facilities throughout the country have doubled down on cleanliness and washdown procedures, with a spotlight on human-staffed production line sanitation of consumer items.

Inadequate cleaning and sanitation in food production facilities can lead to a buildup of microorganisms that carry bacteria, molds, yeast, viruses, parasites, etc., which can spread contamination and food-borne illness to consumers. In a world already enduring a global pandemic, the elimination of preventable hazards is vital to ensuring the public’s continued health.

Sources of Production Line Contamination

Food production facilities are often exposed to hazardous contamination’s which is why sanitation procedures are critical and must be applied in production facilities. These facilities need to be aware of any hazards present that can potentially lead to contamination and food-borne illnesses. These typically include but not limited to:

• Food Production Residue
• Liquid & Airborne Contamination
• Transient Soil from Workers
• Detergent Residue
• Microorganisms

Benefits of Washdown Stations

Conventional industrial hose stations that use old pressure balancing technology and rely on many moving parts, are prone to premature failure due to mineral deposits and scaling. The maintenance required to keep these units running safely and efficiently is time consuming and costly.

ThermOmegaTech®’s innovative washdown stations include a variety of high-temperature sanitation and maintenance equipment that benefits industrial facilities for top-notch cleaning:

• Reduction of maintenance and labor
• Easy installation
• Minimizes scaling
• Quiet Operation
• Economically Friendly

Premium Washdown Solutions

ThermOmegaTech® offers a variety of washdown stations to effectively clean and sanitize food processing equipment.

Our washdown product line offerings include the STVM® steam and water washdown station, the HCX hot and cold water mixing washdown station, and the single-stream HCS washdown station. Along with stations, washdown guns, hoses and other equipment are available to ensure proper cleaning and sanitation.

As we approach the frigid winter months and temperatures begin to fall, industrial plants are preparing for their annual pipeline freeze protection procedures to protect their water-bearing systems from freezing.

What Happens If Pipelines Freeze?

Water-bearing piping must be appropriately winterized before temperatures drop to keep temperature-sensitive processes and equipment functioning optimally throughout the freeze season.

Without a pipeline freeze protection solution, piping can rapidly freeze when exposed to frigid temperatures leading to interrupted systems, burst piping, and inevitably lengthy and costly repairs.

What’s The Solution

To prevent freeze damage, many industrial facilities repurpose an existing steam supply to heat trace their piping.

While an effective freeze-deterrent, conventional steam tracing systems often feature a manual control method which can quickly accumulate hefty costs. Traditionally, plant maintenance personnel would turn the steam supply on at the beginning of the freeze season, and only turn it off once warmer, Spring weather arrived. Although this does effectively prevent freezing, the unregulated steam supply does not account for periods of time when the temperature is above freezing resulting in wasted steam and bloated operation costs.

To both conserve steam and significantly reduce tracing expenses, ThermOmegaTech® offers several thermostatic steam tracing solutions that automatically control the flow of media through traced lines by sensing ambient or surface temperatures and turning off to conserve steam when temperatures are above freezing.

Ultimate Steam Tracing Solutions

Accurate and reliable, our thermostatic, self-actuating steam control valves automatically regulate a heat tracing’s steam supply according to variations in ambient or surface temperature – turning steam on when below freezing, and turning it off when above. Innovatively designed to both prevent freezing and reduce the costs associated with manually controlled systems, you can trust ThermOmegaTech’s® steam control valves to keep your facility freeze-free all winter!

We offer several thermostatic steam control valves to satisfy a variety of system designs and needs:

TV/SCA – Ambient Sensing
Used to regulate steam, air, gas or liquid flows in response to ambient temperature changes to protect lines from freezing.

US/S-X & TV/US-X – Surface or Fluid Sensing
Regulates the flow of heating media in response to the process temperature or the pipe’s surface temperature.

HAT & TV/HAT
Acting as steam traps, these valves eliminate live steam loss by discharging condensate well below the steam temperature.

Winter is just around the corner, meaning temperatures are going to drop and railroad operators need a reliable freeze protection solution for their winterization procedures to prevent costly damages and delayed schedules.

ThermOmegaTech®’s GURU® Plug and GURU PC® valve are designed to automatically monitor and respond to temperature variations. Mechanically operated, the GURU® valves require no outside source of electricity, meaning when the power is out, the valves are still working at maximum efficiency.

Locomotive Freeze Protection

When diesel locomotives are not in use, the water in the cooling system is not being heated from the engine and will freeze if temperatures drop too low, this can cause cracked pipes and tanks, or worse case, an engine freeze up resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.

You can prevent this by installing a GURU® Plug at the lowest point of your engine coolant system to continuously sense the water temperature in the tank. Should the temperature reach the set-point of the valve, either 35°F (1.7°C) or 40°F (4.4°C), the GURU® will automatically “pop” open and drain the tank before freeze damage can occur.

Passenger Car Freeze Protection 

Passenger trains’ potable water-bearing systems are at risk of burst piping and tanks from freezing temperatures when the car heat is turned off for switching locomotives, during layovers or a power outage. Not only does this cause damage to the train, but it also disrupts the water supply being used for hand washing, hygiene and food preparation.

Eliminate this risk by installing a GURU PC® valve at the lowest point in a passenger car’s potable water bearing system. This valve monitors ambient temperatures and will automatically drain the system if the air temperature falls to the valve’s set-point, 35°F (1.7°C), preventing frozen tanks and bursting pipes.

GURU Rebuild Program

To maintain optimal valve performance, ThermOmegaTech® recommends you replace your GURU’s every 18-24 months to prevent nuisance dumping. We’ve developed a cost-effective way for you to prepare your fleet each winter with the GURU Rebuild Program. Send us your old GURU® Plugs to be cleaned, refurbished, and retested as part of your maintenance schedule to restore used GURU® Plugs to like-new condition!

Protecting over 95% of the North American locomotive industry and the largest passenger railroad provider in the United States, the GURU® truly is the gold standard in railroad freeze protection. Any winterization procedure without the GURU® is incomplete.

3 GURU Plug Accessories to Stream-Line Maintenance

The North American railroad industry has relied on the GURU Plug to protect its locomotives every winter for more than 35 years. A reliable and easy to use product, the GURU is the industry’s freeze protection standard.

Each time the GURU Plug “pops” and dumps a water storage tank due to falling temperatures, the tank has to be refilled. To streamline refilling the water tank and getting your locomotive back into service quickly, we offer the following GURU Plug accessories:

GURU Flag and Clip

To avoid “tripping” the valve while refilling the tank with cold water, we offer the GURU Flag and Clip Tool. After warming the cartridge nose, the clip at the end of the cable is inserted into the resetting stem’s slot and the tank is refilled.

When the locomotive’s cooling system is back up to temperature, the clip is removed and the GURU is ready to protect the locomotive.

The flag is magnetic and attached on the outer wall of the locomotive as a visual aid, reminding operators that the GURU plug is disarmed. The flag prevents leaving the clip in the valve stem, compromising the valve’s function.

GURU Flag and Key

The GURU Flag and Key tool works with the anti-tamper valve’s domed cap. The tool’s “key” is inserted into the cartridge end of the valve after warming the nose in order to clip the resetting stem.

The stem is not accessible, eliminating the risk of leaving a penny or washer tucked up under it by accident and compromising freeze protection.

Compressor Head Cleaning Tool

Over time, dirt and debris can accumulate in a locomotive’s compressor head, potentially compromising freeze protection.

The compressor head cleaning tool(CHCT) is used to flush out debris from the compressor head and ensure a complete seal.

Steam Tracing Traps That Save You Money

During cold months, fluid-carrying or temperature-sensitive piping must be winterized to keep industrial processes functioning optimally. For facilities that already have systems that use steam, redirecting some of it to heat trace piping during the winter months seems a simple solution.

While an effective method for preventing potential freeze damage, conventional steam traps often result in expensive live steam losses and temperature variations on piping, which may effect the processes that they supply.

When used as a steam trap on steam tracing, ThermOmegaTech®’s TV/HAT valve eliminates these issues. The TV/HAT only drains cooled condensate, eliminating live steam losses and saving money over the freeze season.

Installed on each tubing run, the TV/HAT keeps the entire traced piping at the same temperature, a necessity for temperature-sensitive applications and equipment.

Using leak port flow, the valve constantly bleeds a small amount of condensate to continuously monitor the discharge temperature, allowing for a shorter reaction time to temperature changes.

As the steam in the tracing cools to condensate and its temperature falls to the valve’s set-point, the TV/HAT modulates open, drains the condensate, and closes once the discharge temperature has risen.

Offered in a wide range of set-points, the TV/HAT’s reliable actuator and corrosion-resistant stainless steel body guarantee a long service life.

Protecting your piping during the winter with steam tracing shouldn’t empty your pockets – implement the TV/HAT for reliable and efficient steam tracing control. For more information on the solutions ThermOmegaTech® offers, click here to visit our website.

Should you have any questions about how the TV/HAT valve can benefit your facility, please don’t hesitate to reach out!