Airlocks are a critical feature in modern food processing plants, where strict control of environmental factors is essential to maintain product quality and safety. By creating a barrier between different areas of a facility, airlocks help prevent contamination, regulate airflow, and ensure that temperature-controlled environments remain stable. In this comprehensive overview, we will explore how airlocks play a vital role in food processing operations, enhancing both efficiency and compliance with industry regulations.
What are Airlocks?
An airlock is typically identified as a small room or compartment within a building, that permits the access of pedestrians or vehicles between two rooms of varying temperatures or atmospheric environments.
Doors within an airlock are tightly sealed and open at separate times, to prevent the passage of air, temperature variations, and/or airborne pests and bacteria between the two environments.
How can Airlocks be Used in Food Processing Environments?
Air locks offer major advantages to food and beverage production, by establishing a superior barrier against bacterial transfer, temperature variations, and airborne pests – all of which have the potential to damage food and beverage produce.
Since the chamber’s two access points do not open simultaneously, the air and environment from behind the first room is contained, and has less likelihood of permeating the second room.
How do Airlocks Prevent Bacteria Transfer?
As we’ve seen, the purpose of an airlock is to regulate the airflow between two environments through controlled access.
Because the inner dock door does not open until the outer door has closed, the transfer of harmful bacteria is less likely to pass through into the second room.
In production facilities where various foods might be produced at differing temperatures, there is a danger of food contamination with a facility, between different products. By installing sealed airlocks, you can maintain temperature to a stricter level, and food contamination can be minimised, with the reduced likelihood of different substances passing from one room to the next.
Do Airlocks Save Your Business Money?
It can be difficult to determine whether or not an airlock can be justified within an operation. If your facility is strictly temperature controlled, and the success of your products is directly dependant on the stringent environment they are manufactured in, you would definitely see the benefit in airlock access to those areas.
Because a lot of money can be wasted in temperature loss through open doorways, you’ll most likely see a huge cost benefit in tightly sealed doorways, and faster access too.
What’s more, if your company is at risk of food contamination via airborne pests and harmful bacteria, chances are investing in an environment-control airlock could very well save your bacon – both literally and metaphorically speaking!
What is the Best Door to Install for Air Locks?
When considering your door options for an airlock, remember you’ll want the doors to be fast, reliable, and tightly sealed. The Movidor range of high speed doors are all of the above, and have been specifically designed with temperature and hygiene control in mind.
The speed of your doors within an airlock can be an important measure of efficiency and productivity. The faster your traffic can pass through, the faster the job gets done. Automated access plays a big part in achieving speed of operation. It not only removes the touchpoints (hello hygiene!) but can be configured around movement, timed access, or objects of varying size.
Reliability is a no-brainer, especially within an environment where a lot of damage can be suffered through door malfunction. We’re talking temperature loss, bacteria transfer, food contamination, you name it.
Lastly, tightly sealed doorways will ensure no baddies creep through the cracks.
Find Out More About Rapid Doors for Air Locks Zones
Remax Doors can help with the ideal door for your facility. For more information on setting up doors for air locks, contact us online or to speak with the Remax Doors team immediately, call us on 1800 010 221.