You know us for our complete range of seed processing equipment and complete solutions for all the processes in seed processing. We can help you optimise your seed processing process in many ways. As we are your One Stop Shop for Seed Processing Equipment, here is an example how.
The Idea
Say you want to process sweet peppers at one site to reduce transport and handling and prevent contamination of the seeds.
You can start from scratch or already have some (SPH) machines there. You also want to cut operator touch times and keep the needed operators at a minimum.
In this example we describe a commercial plant, but this set-up also works for an isolated (GSPP) site for processing tomatoes.
Good Seed and Plant Practices is an international, transparent business chain system.
The purpose of Good Seed and Plant Practices is to prevent tomato seed and plant lots from being infected by Clavibacter michiganensis subspecies michiganensis (Cmm). For more info go to https://gspp.eu/
The Solution
We design, engineer, manufacture, and install the entire line. From extraction to drying, with minimal handling and a compact footprint.
This includes loading the sweet pepper fruits, extracting, cleaning, and disinfecting the seeds and drying them to your desired specifications.
Supply and Extraction
The process starts with extraction using our Seed Extraction Machine. With a capacity of 500 kilograms of sweet pepper fruits per hour this machine is well suited for commercial production locations.
First you load the sweet peppers on to the fruit elevator (1). The elevator doses them into the inlet hopper of the extraction machine.
The Seed Extraction Machine (2) extracts the seeds in three steps. First it crushes and breaks the sweet peppers into smaller parts. Then the fruit parts are separated from the seeds. Removing the juice from the seeds is the final step.
Juice is drained towards your drainage by a liquid collector (2a) underneath the machine.
Washing
The extracted seeds are collected in a perforated bin which you empty into our Rocker (3). This is done by hand or using a winch on a rail track (4).
The Rocker, which is filled with water, separates seeds from seed skins and very small fruit parts. By rocking (pouring) the unit by hand, the empty seeds, fruit pulp and skin, which float, leave the unit through the overflow. The heavy “good” seeds sink to the bottom.
When all the waste parts are separated, you empty the unit by pouring out the excess water. Then pour the seeds into a seed drum.
Here the “good” seeds are collected in a 41 litres drum which handles a maximum of 20.5 litres of wet seeds.
Smaller lots can first be put into mesh or gauze bags.
Disinfection
Using our special lifting tool (5) on a rail track the drum is loaded into one of the disinfection units (6).
These units fit a total of four drums which gives this step a capacity of 82 litres of wet seeds.
Here disinfection and rinsing of the seeds takes place.
Depending on which pathogens you need to eliminate you use water (cold or hot) with or without added chemicals to disinfect your seeds.
The time a disinfection process takes depends on the amount of the liquids and chemicals used.
At the end of the disinfection cycle the machine alerts the operator(s) to act. Either starting a second cycle or moving on to the next step of the process.
With the right options installed each of the drums can run its own program which reduces waiting time.
Lighter work
Using the lifting tool on the winch reduced the workload for your operator(s) significantly because the winch on the track does all the heavy lifting.
Drying
Before placing the seed drum in the centrifuge, it can be placed on a leaking table (7). This is not a necessary step but can serve as a buffer station for when the centrifuge is not ready yet.
The centrifuge (8) handles one 41 litres seed drum (20.5 litres of wet seeds) at a time. It removes most of the excess water from the seeds which reduces the time spend in the dryer.
Like the disinfection unit, the centrifuge uses a timer to alert the operator when it is ready.
Loading and unloading of the centrifuge is also done using the lifting tool.
The drum loads onto a rotation unit (9) which stands in the Conditioned Seed Dryer CSD-120 (10). The rotation unit fits twelve 41 litres drums.
The dryer uses an automated program to dry your seeds to the desired moisture content.
Constant monitoring of temperature and relative humidity in the drying chamber keeps your seeds save.
Drying in steps allows for controlled lowering of the moisture of the seeds which preserves its quality.
Because of the controlled drying, drums can be added to the dryer all day. This allows you to work continuous by processing new batches as they come in. Adding new drums of seeds does not affect the quality of the drying process.
Drying can be done unattended (at night or in the weekend) because of the conditioning function. It keeps the room on the right relative humidity until the machine is stopped to remove the seeds.
After drying the drums are easily emptied into a container or octabin for storage or the next step in your process.
Advantages
All this adds up to the following advantages for you and your product.
- One continuous process from fruits to dried seeds
- Minimal handling by using drums that fit into different machines
- Automated processes that alert the operator(s) when ready (or when there is an issue). This allows operators to work on different steps and lines
- One partner for all your equipment and maintenance
- Healthier workspace. Lifting tools lighten the load. Vapour extraction and liquid drainage keeps the air cleaner and dryer.
Contact
We hope we have triggered your curiosity for our machines and solutions.
Interested or having questions? Do not hesitate to contact us.
Click here to find our salesperson for your region.
One more thing
And now, in the style of Steve Jobs, oh one more thing… Add a calibrating machine, (optical) sorter, priming unit or coater and a third-party packaging machine to further automate your process. You have the idea; we have the solution.
