EN
Navigating Challenges in Fresh Produce Processing Contamination & Cost
1. Guangdong Yiwan Testing Technology Co., Ltd. recently delivered a new-generation digital metal detector to a professional fruit and vegetable packaging enterprise in Hong Kong. With an annual production capacity covering 30 million fruit and vegetable packaging units, the client supplies products to local supermarkets in Hong Kong and fresh produce chains in Southeast Asia. Specializing in multi-specification products such as pre-cut fruit and vegetable tray packaging and vacuum fruit and vegetable packaging, the client previously faced three core pain points with traditional detection equipment: high risk of missed detection of metal foreign bodies (e.g., knife scraps, conveyor belt metal particles) in packaging, cumbersome parameter switching for multi-specification packaging, and reliance on manual sampling inspection for missing desiccants/oxygen absorbers. Thus, an upgraded inline detection system meeting food machinery standards was urgently needed.
2. Core Challenges
(1) Metal Foreign Body Detection Difficulty: During the production process, knife scraps are easily generated in the pre-cut fruit and vegetable cutting link. The detection rate of traditional equipment for stainless steel/iron scraps smaller than 0.4mm was less than 65%, posing food safety risks;
(2) Multi-Specification Adaptation Pressure: The enterprise produces 8-12 different sizes of packaging daily (from 100g small fruit cut portions to 1kg family-sized packs). Parameter adjustment for traditional equipment took 15 minutes per switch, leading to frequent production line shutdowns and reduced daily effective production time;
(3) Inefficient Missing Component Control: The efficiency of manual sampling inspection for desiccants and oxygen absorbers in packaging was only 300 units per hour, with a missed detection rate of 12%. In the past, missing components caused product spoilage during the short shelf life, resulting in customer returns and exchanges.
3. Yiwan's Customized Solution
Based on the client's food packaging detection needs, core functions were configured to fit inline production scenarios:
(1) Hardware Architecture Upgrade
● Equipped with an advanced digital signal processing module and original imported detection chips; the detection coil adopts a one-time potting and sealing process to prevent moisture or wear from affecting accuracy, improving resistance to workshop vibration and electromagnetic interference by 35%;
● The entire machine complies with EU CE certification and FDA food contact material standards, with a body made of food-grade 304 stainless steel that supports daily rinsing and cleaning, meeting food production hygiene requirements.
(2) Key Function Implementation
● High-Precision Metal Detection: Through the product effect automatic learning algorithm, signal interference caused by moisture and salt in fruits and vegetables is intelligently filtered. It can accurately identify 0.2mm iron scraps and 0.3mm stainless steel scraps in packaging, with the detection rate increased to 99.9% compared to the client's original equipment;
● Efficient Parameter Management: The 100-product parameter memory function is enabled. When switching between different packaging specifications, operators can call preset parameters with one click, reducing adjustment time to 20 seconds per switch and cutting production line downtime by 85%;
● Customized Missing Component Detection: A dual-mode detection scheme combining weight and electromagnetic signals was developed. For packaging specifications ranging from 20g to 1.2kg, it can real-time identify missing desiccants and oxygen absorbers, achieving a detection efficiency of 1,200 units per hour and a missed detection rate reduced to below 0.1%.
(3) Production Line Integration Design
The equipment adopts a modular docking structure, compatible with the client's existing packaging line (adjustable conveying speed: 0-50m/min). Equipped with a high-speed pneumatic rejection device, it can complete the diversion of unqualified products within 1 second and trigger an audio-visual alarm when abnormal products are detected. Meanwhile, it automatically records abnormal data (time, specification, and anomaly type) for easy traceability.
4. Implementation Results
(1) Food Safety Upgrade: The metal foreign body detection rate increased from 65% to 99.9%. Since the equipment was put into operation, there have been no customer complaints caused by metal foreign bodies, and it successfully passed the sampling inspection of the Hong Kong Food Safety Center;
(2) Production Efficiency Optimization: The parameter adjustment time for packaging specification switching was reduced by 97%, daily production capacity increased by 22%, and manual sampling inspection costs decreased by 55%. The estimated equipment ROI (Return on Investment) period is 12 months;
(3) Improved Quality Traceability: Detection data is automatically stored for 2 years and supports Excel report export, meeting the client's quality traceability requirements for the Southeast Asian market and helping secure cooperation orders with 2 new supermarket chains.
5. Client Testimonial
"The Yiwan detector has solved two key problems in our production: missed detection of metal foreign bodies and missing component control. The one-click parameter adjustment is particularly suitable for our multi-specification production needs. Now the production line runs more smoothly, and food safety is more guaranteed."— Mr. Li, Production Operations Manager of the Client.
