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At the 2018 International Cheese Technology Exposition, April 17-19,  Fortress Technology (Booth 1313) will demonstrate how its Interceptor range is achieving a new level of sensitivity by conquering product effect.

 Inspecting wet products has for many years presented cheese makers with a number of challenges. At the 2018 International Cheese Technology Exposition, Fortress Technology (Booth 1313) will demonstrate how its Interceptor range is achieving a new level of sensitivity by conquering product effect.

Water like metal is conductive. This means that blocks of cheese compared to grated, sliced or soft cheese will react in different ways in the magnetic field of a food inspection metal detector, which can lead to false readings and consequently higher product waste. For bulk cheese products, where variations in density pose a challenge to x-ray, the Interceptor is the only sure option for the detection of metal contaminants.

Specifically designed to inspect conductive applications, the Interceptor facilitates an improvement in detection capabilities of up to 100% with stainless steel, especially when inspecting traditionally difficult “wet” products or using metalized film during processing. In real terms, halving the test sample sphere size to 0.5mm equates to picking up a wire length contaminant of 25mm.

Rather than tuning into specific frequencies, the Interceptor splits and simultaneously analyzes the low- frequency and high-frequency signal. This means the metal detector can clearly differentiate between the signal generated by the product as a result of moisture or mineral content and any metal contaminant. The result is a more reliable and accurate reading regardless of size, shape and orientation of metal particles.

Interceptor units can be deployed in different locations on a cheese production and packing line, including apertures customized to a given conveyor, pipeline configurations for pumped product applications, such as soft cheeses or desserts, or gravity systems for powdered lactose and other dairy concentrates.

For ease of use, the Interceptor learns and recalls the signature of any given product with just one pass. FM Software is integrated, bringing a predictive element to the analysis of signals from the metal detector.

Customers can choose either Wi-Fi or Ethernet connections for easy and accurate data collection. To reduce the risk of human error when manually testing the performance of the detection system, Halo automatic testing can be added.

Being IP69K rated, the Interceptor range is resistant to water ingress, ensuring long-term reliability and performance in heavy processing cheese manufacturing plants.

For a demonstration, visit ICTE, Booth 1313