How to eliminate jamming of starch trays from your confectionery production line

posted on 27 February, 2023 by Edward Smagarinsky - Group Product Manager (Mogul)

Jamming is one of the most common problems in confectionery production, leading to inefficiencies and increased production costs. We estimate that starch tray jamming of confectionery processing equipment causes 5% – 7% downtime per month on average dependent on production run time. In this blog we share top tips on how to minimise the jamming issue and boost you line uptime in 2023.

There are lots of reasons why jamming occurs, so we’ve drawn on our 60+ years of confectionery manufacturing experience to bring you a run-down of the most common issues and our advice on solving them.

Misshapen Starch Trays
For trays to function properly they need to be square. As trays get used, they inevitably suffer from wear & tear which can cause them to lose their shape. That means they won’t flow through the confectionery processing machinery properly and will therefore jam in the machine. Fortunately, the solution here is fairly straightforward: just replace the misshapen trays with new trays.

Dirty Starch Trays
There are a number of ways to solve this problem. Because they can be expensive to replace, the first course of action should always be to clean the trays. Fiberglass trays have a clear advantage over timber trays in that they can be washed, giving them such longevity that they rarely (if ever) need to be replaced. Timber trays cannot be washed, so instead should be cleaned by scraping off any candy residue. When this no longer becomes practical without damaging the tray, it’s time to replace the trays with new ones.

Looking at the bigger picture, if you can reduce tailing caused by a worn pump by carrying out regular pump overhauls then your trays should remain cleaner for longer. Finally, you can install a dirty tray vision system to help eject dirty trays from your machinery and therefore prevent it from causing a jam.

Incorrect timing
Another cause of jamming is when the tray moves out of synch between the different modules of your confectionery production line. This can be solved by speaking with your service engineer to arrange a full machine retiming. Also, take a look at the components in your confectionery processing equipment which may have become worn.

Clutch problems
The mechanical clutches are important parts on a confectionery production machine. If they become worn or are deployed with the wrong settings, jamming is highly likely to follow. To deal with this problem, you will need to replace the clutches with new parts or reset the clutch torque.

The tray transport system
The final source of jamming in our checklist is the tray transportation system. If it falls into disrepair or breaks, you will need to replace it with a new system or face the possibility that jamming will occur.

Maintaining an efficient and optimised confectionery manufacturing system with minimal jamming is crucial. Our specialists have decades of experience and in-depth technical know-how, so if you want to talk about any of the issues raised in this post, get in touch today.

Visit us at interpack 2023, in Dusseldorf, Germany, from 4 to 10 May 2023, hall 14 C56 & D56.

Background
With the acquisition of NID, tna provides combined expertise of over 60 years along with cutting-edge innovations in applications including gummies, jellies, marshmallows, fondant cremes, liquorice, chewy candies, caramels, and crusted liqueur, among others. In the ever-evolving world of candy manufacturing, new innovations can make it difficult to know which machine to purchase.
.