The product in question is Premier Foods’ SMASH Instant Mashed Potato. SMASH ranks among the UK’s best known consumer brands confirmed by the fact that its ‘Martians’ advertisement has been voted the best TV ad of all time.

Customer requirements

It was a change in the SMASH production and handling methods that brought about the need for the new Big Bag Dischargers and Conveying system. Previously, product made on Premier Foods’ Histon, UK site was held in storage hoppers and then transferred from the production area to the packing hall via an overhead conveyor belt system feeding each of the 4 main packing lines. Processed product is now filled into and stored in 2m3 big bags. These are brought to the packing hall by forklift truck at the rate of 16 a day. In the packing hall, these big bags need to be discharged in an efficient and dust tight manner.

Spiroflow solutions

We supplied 2 ‘Spiroflow’ Big Bag Dischargers and 4 Flexible Screw Conveyors to deliver processed product to the packing lines. A forklift truck places full bags into position on the Dischargers using the Big Bag Lifting/Support Frames we supplied as part of the package.

Each of the collection hoppers below the 2 Dischargers has bifurcated outlets from which 2 ‘Spiroflow’ Flexible Screw Conveyors deliver product to the 4 packing lines. These conveyors are controlled by ‘low’ and ‘high’ level probes in the buffer hoppers above the filling machines. The Flexible Screw Conveyors range in length from 8 to 10 metres and operate at a variety of angles. There is a fifth, pre-existing, ‘Spiroflow’ Flexible Screw Conveyor that is used to return perfectly good product to one of the packing machines after it has been recovered from any ‘out of spec.’ packaging. It was this existing conveyor and other ‘Spiroflow’ equipment on site that encouraged Engineering Manager, Kevin Murray, and his colleagues to choose Spiroflow as the supplier for their new SMASH handling system.

At the time this data sheet was prepared, the equipment had been in operation for 10 hours a day for over 12 months and Engineering Manager, Kevin Murray, reports that the equipment has performed to his entire satisfaction. Since installation, Premier foods have benefited from improvements to product quality and they have also seen reductions in both labour and utility costs.