Foodmek

Who is Foodmek Ltd?

Since 1971, Foodmek has been designing, manufacturing and installing tailor-made, high-quality processing equipment for some of the largest food and drink manufacturers in the UK and around the world.

The Challenge

Foodmek was working on a project for a food manufacturing company which required pallet loads of produce to be unloaded onto a conveyor system which then fed onto a production line.

The challenge was that the pallets sat at a very low level and with the conveyor at waist height, Foodmek needed a way to raise the pallets to the same level as the conveyor so the pallets could be unloaded with minimal manual handling involved.

In addition to this, the lifting solution needed to be retrofitted to the conveyor so when it was installed in the end-user’s factory, they worked as one.

The Solution

Foodmek approached Advanced Handling to work collaboratively with them on the project as it was outside of their technical remit and they recognised Advanced Handling had the knowledge and experience to provide the end-customer with the perfect solution.

“We needed a lift that was strong and precise, that could be operated easily by the client’s production team. We chose Advanced Handling as they happily accepted the challenge of designing the exact piece of equipment we needed to meet all of our requirements.”

Engineer – Foodmek

Advanced Handling recommended a Double Static Scissor Lift Table incorporating several features to ensure the lift fulfilled all their needs and would work seamlessly with the conveyor system. The double scissors were essential in reaching the required lifting height taking into consideration the platform size.

Key features included:

• A platform size configured specifically to hold two of their customer’s pallets.
• 304 Stainless Steel food grade top to ensure it is compliant with health and safety regulations.
• Stainless Steel roller balls installed into the platform to ensure pallets can be manoeuvred on and off the table with ease minimising manual handling and operator involvement.
• Lifting eye bolts installed on each corner of the table to make it easy to manoeuvre for servicing and maintenance or if the layout of the factory needed to change.
• Automatic roll-off guards on three of the four sides to stop pallets from falling off when stationary and in transit.
• Anti-tilt on base and lid and a constant pressure up and down hand control for smooth operation.

The Benefits

Foodmek with the help of Advanced Handling supplied the end customer with the perfect solution for their challenge. The roller-ball scissor lift table raised the pallets to the perfect height so the operator could manoeuvre the produce safely and ergonomically from the pallet and onto the conveyor with no lifting, bending or stretching.

The project was very exciting for both parties involved and Foodmek has already placed further orders with Advanced Handling to supply the material lifting, handling and manoeuvring solutions to retrofit to their food processing machinery.