Food and beverages industry/pharmaceuticals

Hygiene areas in food and beverage production, pharmaceuticals or fine chemicals all share one requirement: The devices and equipment must be easy to clean. The relevant directives, standards and legislative requirements must be observed, e.g. EHEDG, FDA, EN 1672-2 (Hygienic Design), GMP, LMHV, LMBG.

However, optimization and variation in the device hardware are also perfectly possible:

• Degree of protection
• Ruggedness
• Temperature resistance
• Design and installation versions
• Suitable for clean rooms
• Certification in accordance with ATEX

The aim is to find the cost-optimized solution for the specific application case.

The overview below shows different features depending on the applications areas, from packaging to the wet area in processing.

The product examples described on the following pages cover a wide range of the most important requirements.

• Simpler cleaning thanks to resistant and rugged stainless steel front with smooth surface, and minimal grooves and gaps
• High degree of protection IP66K (TP 177B and MP 277 additionally IP66K) on the front for increased sealing properties and ruggedness
• Food-standard sealing material and shatter protection for the display to prevent contamination of the foodstuffs
• Optimized frame design almost flush with the control cabinet so that liquids can run off
• Device front developed on the basis of EN 1672-2
• Decorative membrane tested against chemicals according to DIN 42115, Part 2¹⁾
• Food-standard flat seal in accordance with FDA 21 CFR 177.2600
• Rear tensioning frame (included in scope of supply) for even application pressure of the seal
• External dimensions and mounting cutout as for corresponding standard product

High degree of protection for humid environments

With low installation depth and rugged fronts, the SIMATIC HMI Standard Panels are eminently suitable for industrial and machine-level use.

Panels with stainless steel fronts are also even better equipped to meet the high requirements presented by the food and beverage production environment. IP66K degree of protection protects against water even with a jet strength of 100 l/min at 10 bar from a distance of 2.5 m to 3 m. The optimized frame profile and almost flush-mounting of the device on the control cabinet allow liquids to run off.

Installation of the operator panels in a stainless steel control cabinet as a ready-to-use operator station is optionally available as a customized version.

Certificates, listings and appraisals

SIMATIC HMI products with stainless steel fronts, and the stainless steel operator station, were subjected to some or all of the tests below and are listed or appraised in accordance with:

• High degree of protection IP66K, NEMA Type 4, 4x, 12
• CE-compliant, cULus-listed
• LGA mark "Hygiene tested" (Approval document No. 5664018)
• Expert appraisal of the Munich University of Technology, Research Center Weihenstephan, in accordance with EHEDG recommendation (Report No.126/01 March, 2007)
• Clean room qualification by IPA Fraunhofer Institute (test report: Examination of the clean room suitability and ESD characteristics of Panel PCs from Siemens AG, Report No. SI 0810-450 of October 2008)

1) Special resistance requirements must be examined separately.

Qualification for clean rooms

High-quality products such as semiconductors, medicines, food & beverages, and nanotechnology products are subject to special demands with regard to contamination with particles or bacteria.

Increased requirements for protection of the products and processes can only be met by production in clean rooms with suitable equipment under controlled conditions.

Clean rooms are classified according to particle quantities and sizes per m³ of room air and time unit. Clean room classes in accordance with ISO 14644-1 (ISO 1 to 9) have been introduced in pharmaceuticals, for example, in accordance with EG-GMP, Annex 1 (Classes A to F), and in semiconductor production.

Example:
A person in normal clothing emits approximately 80 000 particles >= 0.5 mm per second (in clean room clothing, this can be reduced to approximately 700 particles/s >= 0.5 mm).

• Requirements regarding equipment in clean rooms include the following:
• Surfaces that are easy to clean and disinfect
• As few adhesives as possible, e.g. electrostatic
• No emitting surfaces
• Shape favorable to air circulation, no air eddies
• Dense, as few hollow or dead spaces as possible
• Smooth, as few grooves and gaps as possible

SIMATIC HMI products with stainless steel fronts and the stainless steel operator station have been designed for these requirements.

Stainless steel operator stations with Panel PC 677B 15" Touch INOX and MP 377 15" Touch INOX have been tested by the Fraunhofer Institute and qualified for "obvious suitability for clean rooms of ISO Class 1 according to EN ISO 14644-1".

Quality and hygiene are decisive competitive features in the production of food and beverages. In addition, higher volumes have to be produced in shorter times and with rising quality demands.

Objects and equipment that come into contact with food and beverages must be

• such that they are clean and can be maintained and, if necessary, disinfected, and have no adverse effect on the food and beverages, and
• installed in such a way that the immediate environment can be cleaned appropriately.

Objects and equipment must be clean and well maintained (extract from the German food and beverages hygiene legislation). This requires not only the innovative know-how of engineering offices, mechanical equipment manufacturers and plant builders, but also modern, powerful operator control and monitoring systems whose hardware and software are adapted to the special requirements.

Panels and panel PCs with touch screens and stainless steel fronts have been designed for use in the food, beverages and tobacco industry for operator control and monitoring close to food processing machines. For this reason, the devices with stainless steel fronts have been developed in compliance with EN 1672-2 "Food processing machinery – Safety and Hygiene Requirements".

Simpler cleaning and disinfecting

The high quality requirements in the food and beverages industry require a high standard of the food processing machinery. There are many relevant regulations, directives, ordinances, standards and laws. Essential here is that all equipment and components must be easy to clean and disinfect so that cross-contamination of the foodstuffs can be avoided.

The panels with stainless steel fronts have a 240 grit finish, so they are suitably smooth. The membrane covering the display cutout is tested with regard to its resistance to chemicals, has minimal grooves and gaps in which micro-organisms could settle, and also provides shatter protection for the display.