September/October 2020

Efficiency, ease of sanitation focus of Urschel’s new dicer, cutter
By Melanie Epp, Contributing Writer

Each year, Produce Processing visits Fruit Logistica in Berlin to check out the latest machinery launches. This year, we visited Urschel to check out two new pieces of cutting equipment: the DiversaCut 2110A Dicer and the TranSlicer 2520 Cutter. Both offer features that improve accessibility and sanitation, and reduce cleaning and downtime.

DiversaCut 2110A Dicer designed with conveyor

One of the benefits of Fruit Logistica is being able to see new equipment and meet industry experts firsthand. Urschel equipment engineer Tony McCracken was on hand to explain how equipment design improves productivity, efficiency and food safety. He started with the new DiversaCut 2110A Dicer, a piece of equipment that dices, strips, slices, granulates and shreds at high production capacities.

Urschel’s DiversaCut2110A

With a maximum in-feed of 10 inches in any dimension, DiversaCut 2110A Dicer offers cost savings by eliminating the need to pre-cut product. The new dicer offers more precise cuts with slice adjustment and lockdown features. It also features fine-tuning through adjustable collars on both cutting spindles for ultimate precision.

Perhaps the most attractive feature, though, is that it’s sold with a conveyor on it. The conveyor is designed to allow the customer to discharge into a stainless steel tote or bin without having to elevate the machine or have to put it on a stand, said McCracken. 

Normally, the discharge chute would be located at the bottom, he explained. Product would either discharge into a flume or on top of another conveyor. “What this does is that it actually raises it above 18 inches off the ground, so then it allows it to be discharged into a stainless steel tote,” McCracken said. 

DiversaCut is a versatile piece of equipment that can easily be moved around the worksite, and the conveyor is easy to clean and maintain. The equipment was also designed with worker safety in mind, said McCracken.

“The reason it’s safer is because it actually discharges into a bin, so you don’t have to worry about product getting on the floor and people walking on it,” he said. “Plus it also provides more user friendliness when they’re running a variety of products.”

TranSlicer 2520 Cutter offers precision and next-level sanitation

The TranSlicer 2520 Cutter was designed to meet the needs of the salad industry, said McCracken. Processors, he said, are looking for a machine that is easier to clean and inspect and easier to rebuild post-cleaning. To address this, they’ve reduced overlap joints so there are very few pieces of metal sandwiched together. Normally, those pieces would need to be removed and cleaned.

“We’ve reduced the overlap joints on this machine so that there are very few pieces of metal that are sandwiched together that they actually have to completely take apart and clean,” said McCracken. “We try to adhere to all of the FSMA requirements for making a piece of equipment sanitary.”

The TranSlicer 2520 Cutter includes several features of interest. For one, everything is stood off on the machine, so no parts sit flat on any piece of metal. The doors also stand off from the machine and the machine has a solid frame that has drip drain angles so water actually runs off. This eliminates the sanitation risks that come with standing water.

All cabling is individually segregated, so that it can be washed out and easily viewed. Even the back mounts on the machine are stood off. The belt slide on the machine can also be easily cleaned.

The inside of the machine has been designed to be completely visible, a feature that is especially attractive to companies that like to do pre-operational inspections. “There are no guards to take off, there’s nothing to set on the floor,” said McCracken. “It’s all nicely compacted and very user-friendly for the plant associate.”

“With sanitation being something that’s becoming more and more stringent, this is something that we felt would be a great addition to our product line,” he added.

Top photo: The TranSlicer 2520 on display at Fruit Logistica 2020 in Berlin. Photo: Melanie Epp



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