Conveyor belt hygiene is pivotal to the success of any food production operation. Not only is a clean conveyor belt a regulatory requirement, the cleanliness and effectiveness of these systems also plays a huge part in determining the overall quality of food products and the efficiency of your entire operation.
Without stringent conveyor belt hygiene protocols in place, these belts can quickly become a source of contamination and jeopardise overall food safety. The consequences of uncleanliness make it imperative that food facility operators determine which solution best addresses the unique concerns of their facility.
Key Challenges in Cleaning Food Conveyor Belts
One of the biggest challenges faced when cleaning conveyor belts is the time and cost involved. Removing conveyor belts takes a huge amount of time and man-power. In most cases, when the belt is removed, it must be transported to a wet room for jet washing. This is a difficult and heavy task, and usually requiring skilled engineers to carryout the work. In addition, this process can take several hours. For businesses, this cost eats into budgets, impacts critical operational time and removes crucial resources elsewhere.
KHD’s conveyor belt cleaning solutions allow onsite hygiene staff to carry out the work swiftly and safely, without the need to remove the belt. This is a significant advantage for businesses, freeing up engineer’s time, reducing operational costs, reducing belt running down-time and improving bottom line results.
Manual vs Automated Conveyor Cleaning
Improperly cleaned conveyor belts can lead to serious challenges, including cross-contamination of food products, the spread of harmful bacteria, costly equipment breakdowns, and even regulatory non-compliance, which can have severe financial and reputational consequences for businesses.
When addressing the matter of conveyor belt cleaning solutions, food facility operators adopt either a manual or an automated approach to conveyor belt cleaning operations. But which solution best addresses the unique needs of your facility?
Automated Conveyor Cleaning
In most cases, flat-bed conveyor belts are cleaned in-place, with the majority running whilst the cleaning process takes place. For mesh-style conveyors, belts are frequently removed and jet washed separately, or cleaned in place if the machinery is able to withstand high-pressure water and the facility has adequate drainage, which is a point this piece will expand on soon.
The problems with manually cleaning conveyor belts are numerous. First, the cleaning process is labour-intensive, very time-consuming and not very efficient. Human error is commonplace, leading to areas on the belt that are not cleaned thoroughly or that have been missed altogether. This can lead to a contamination hotspot, catastrophic for business operations. In addition to the contamination threat, we also have the problem of massive water consumption, often hundreds or even thousands of litres per hour.
The problem here is that the volume of water involved can, and often will, overwhelm drainage systems and encourage mould growth, especially in dry food environments. These environments are very vulnerable, as excessive moisture will negatively impact hygiene standards and increase microbial risk.
This struggle to maintain a balance of effective, deep cleaning and controlling the threat of increased moisture is one of the core reasons KHD’s systems were developed. Our systems will deliver the high cleaning standards expected without compromising hygiene and food safety.
Which Cleaning Method is Better for Your Facility?
Selecting the most effective cleaning method for your facility depends on various factors, including the type of contaminants, the materials being processed and your operational priorities. Traditional cleaning methods, such as water-based or chemical cleaning, often require extensive downtime, high water consumption and may leave residual chemicals behind, posing potential risks to product safety.
Steam based cleaning represents a cutting-edge, eco-friendly solution for modern sanitation needs. By utilising high temperature steam, this method effectively eliminates bacteria, allergens and other contaminants without relying on harsh chemicals.
For facilities seeking to optimise production efficiency, minimise environmental impact and maintain the highest hygiene standards, automated steam cleaning provides a forward thinking and highly effective alternative. With its combination of precision, sustainability and performance, steam-based cleaning is the obvious choice for innovative operations.
As we’ve read explored earlier on in this piece, we know that facilities face practical engineering and production challenges when cleaning conveyor belts.
Questions we must consider are:
1. Are your belts being removed regularly, increasing maintenance demands and the risk of damage?
2. Are mechanical issues like belt slippage or motor strain caused by infrequent deep cleaning, especially on hard-to-access spiral belts?
3. Does your facility struggle with limited drainage?
4. Do you require frequent allergen changeovers that demand quick and reliable top-up cleans?
How KHD Steam Cleaning Works
Our advanced conveyor cleaning systems utilise carefully controlled saturated steam to clean conveyor belts thoroughly and efficiently, ensuring optimal hygiene and performance.
The process is remarkably resource-efficient, using only 10–30 litres of water per hour. Not only does this reduced water usage save on coats, it also makes KHD systems an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional cleaning methods
Tailored Solutions for Every Conveyor Belt
Recognising the wide variety in conveyor designs, materials and the cleaning challenges they present, KHD Technology has developed an extensive range of steam conveyor cleaning solutions, including:
Portable Flat Conveyor Belt Cleaners
Ideal for PU and monolithic polymer belts, these conveyor belt cleaners offer maximum flexibility and ease of use for facility operators.
Mesh Conveyor Belt CleanersÂ
Designed specifically for plastic and metal mesh belts, these cleaners effectively address the unique challenges of mesh conveyor sanitation. Traditionally, cleaning mesh belts requires full removal, a very time-consuming process that risks damaging the conveyor belt and disrupting overall production. Our system eliminates this need by cleaning mesh belts in place, dramatically reducing downtime, operational costs, and the likelihood of mechanical issues.
Fixed Flat Conveyor Belt CleanersÂ
Mounted for use on polymer belts, fixed cleaners integrate seamlessly with existing conveyor setups. This allows for effective cleaning for either just the food-contact side or both the food-contact and reverse side of the belt.
Special Conveyor Belt Cleaners (Bespoke Solutions)
For facilities with unique requirements, KHD offers custom-designed steam cleaning systems tailored to your specific needs.
Pan Cleaning
Using the same advanced system developed for mesh conveyor belt cleaning, our technology is also highly effective for pan cleaning.
Pan cleaning is an increasingly in-demand requirement. We can provide a powerful in-place jet cleaning system that eliminates the need for manual scrubbing or wet washing, ultimately saving your business time, water, operational costs and maintaining consistent hygiene standards.
Contact our team today, or book a free demonstration to experience the future of conveyor cleaning firsthand – fill out the contact form below.