Actuators convert one form of power into a linear or rotational mechanical force. For cheese manufacturing equipment, electric actuators are often a better choice than hydraulic or pneumatic alternatives, because electric actuators are both more reliable and have lower maintenance requirements. These benefits can improve sanitation and reduce costly downtime, ensuring more consistent product quality and system efficiency.
What are Electric Actuators?
Electric actuators are machine components that generate mechanical forces from an electric power supply. The force an electric actuator generates can then power a control device or system to perform any number of actions.
Together, an electric actuator and control device harness electric current to generate some kind of physical work, such as opening a valve, mixing vats of dairy, or moving dense cheese blocks through cutting devices.
How are Actuators Utilized in Cheese Manufacturing Equipment?
Food-grade linear actuators are necessary throughout the modern cheese manufacturing process. With a more robust design and easy maintenance, electric actuators can dramatically enhance cheese quality and production efficiency. A wide range of modern cheese manufacturing equipment now depends on specialized electric actuators to fulfill the same principles as traditional cheesemaking processes.
Modern cheesemaking facilities use numerous actuator-driven processes, including:
- Curdling: An electric cylinder applies consistent linear pressure to gradually separate whey from the cheese. The pressure also provides control over the water content of the cheese, which can be very specific to different varieties.
- Forming: During a pre-pressing stage, a large, often-perforated metal plate presses down on the cheese, creating a uniform surface across large volumes of the product while allowing curd to exit through the top. The largest commercial cheese presses utilize hundreds of electric cylinders, a type of linear actuator that can function with or without accompanying servo motors.
- Draining, Salting, and Mellowing: This three-part process usually requires a draining table that separates curds and whey. Draining tables also allow more uniform application of salt or condiments throughout the curd bed. Control over these factors allows cheese makers to create many different varieties of cheese.
- Curd Transfer: It's important to transfer curds at a consistent rate. Curd pick-up hoppers use actuators to move curds accurately and consistently. Hoppers require unique dimensions and configurations based on the specific cheesemaking process, as well as the size of the curds and the curd draining table.
- Blockforming: Devices such as cheese cuber machines create cheese blocks of different sizes. They're highly customizable to the exact needs of the cheese manufacturing company.
- Whey Handling & Processing: Specialized whey handling and processing equipment, including drying systems and evaporators, use actuators to concentrate and treat whey or prepare it for transport and further processing.
Benefits of Actuators in Cheese Manufacturing Equipment
Cheese producers depend on many types of custom cheese manufacturing equipment, such as the commercial cheese press, the cheese cuber machine, and others discussed above. Food-grade linear actuators ensure cheese production equipment operates consistently and accurately, even while processing extremely dense cheeses for long periods of time.
Linear actuators provide a wide range of benefits to cheese manufacturing companies, including:
- Automation
- Efficiency
- Precision
- Reliability
- Customization
- Hygiene
Electric Actuators from EDrive Actuators, Inc.
EDRive Actuators, Inc., specializes in custom food-grade linear actuators for heavy-duty cheese manufacturing equipment. We build our electric actuators for the food industry using high-quality food-safe steel, according to the most stringent industry regulations.
The food and beverage industry relies on durable, high-precision actuators to maintain product quality and efficiency. More consistent operation and fewer maintenance requirements also serve to extend the lifespan of our partners' cheese manufacturing equipment. Edrive Actuators are known for their simple and reliable operation, due to a more conservative design, which also makes them suitable for a wider range of applications.
To learn more about linear actuator uses in the cheese manufacturing industry, request a quote or contact us, and tell us about your food-grade linear actuator control device needs.
