Case Study: Designing and installing a dust extraction system for Fox‘s Biscuits
We recently worked with Fox’s Biscuits, the iconic Batley-based biscuit maker.
Fox’s Biscuits is a household English brand name which has been baking iconic biscuits such as Party Rings and Wagon Wheels for 160 years, after being founded by the Fox family back in 1853. The company is based in Batley, West Yorkshire, with an additional site in Lancashire.
Fox’s came to us with the problem of a legacy dust extraction system which was showing signs of performance drop off year on year. The system also didn’t cover all the areas within the factory, which meant airborne dust was being released.
Our opportunity to work with Fox’s came about following some previous work with the then health and safety manager at a different company in Hull, where we installed two large LEV systems previously. The high-quality job we did on that site meant we were first in line for consideration when the manager moved to Fox’s.
The brief was simple – design and install a system that covered all dust release processes whilst offering prolonged performance levels.
Challenge
The main challenge we faced in the project was working with processes which had a high level of operator movement and interference, meaning our hood designs in most cases had to be moveable. We also faced the challenge to overcome processes which were extremely old and hadn’t been designed to accommodate dust control.
Finally, with Fox’s being a constantly operating factory we had a very short window during the Easter Bank Holiday weekend to complete the internal ducting works, which were of a large scale.
Solution provided by APS
We offered a highly specified reverse jet cartridge dust collector complete with full ATEX ancillary items, and we created a significant ducting network spread to all areas of the factory requiring dust control.
Each hood was designed with the production processes in mind, including ATEX rated flexible arms, direct mixer hood connections, manual weighing rip and tip hoods and a manual small weighing partial enclosure.
By offering a system large enough to cover all areas we have allowed Fox’s to turn three legacy dust control units into one, state of the art dust control unit.
Benefits and outcomes
The equipment technology is regarded as the best on the market for filtration efficiency, ease of use and maintenance, and quality.
By operating a single system rather than three, the maintenance regime is condensed whilst the electrical requirements are simplified. Fox’s can also have peace of mind that all dust release zones are being controlled and an improvement to the air monitoring will be achieved when a retest is undertaken within three months of initial installation of the system.
Alex Golpin, Area Sales Manager at APS said: “We were really pleased to work with Fox’s, introducing a much-needed modernised dust extraction system to help maximise the Batley factory’s operational efficiencies. The whole process has been really collaborative, working directly with the Fox’s team to build a bespoke solution, which helps, not hinders, their current operations.”
Fox’s said: “APS UK Ltd have supplied us with an LEV system that fit our requirements perfectly. The attention to detail, ability to work to tight deadlines and the professionalism from all APS employees that have been on site, has made this an extremely satisfying project to bring to life.
“The effectiveness of the new system has been seen and felt immediately. All areas that the system covers have reduced airborne dust levels, the operators report back of a much cleaner environment to work in and the factory floors are cleaned bi-weekly as opposed to every day.
“The impressive performance from APS UK Ltd has given us confidence to utilise their skillset within our other UK factory locations.”
Are you looking to upgrade your dust extraction system? Get in touch with our expert team today.
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We Design
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