Fourage collaborated with Emerson to create a complete pneumatic control panel solution. (Image courtesy of Emerson).
Fourage CTI is a designer, manufacturer, and distributor of equipment for the beverage industry. One of their key products is a wine filtration skid, a complete filtration system used to perform several filtration functions.
In winemaking and the production of distilled spirits, clarification and stabilization are critical processes by which insoluble matter suspended in the wine or spirits is removed before bottling.
Filtration, especially through carbon-based filters, contributes to the stability and long shelf life of the wine or spirits. Filtration also helps winemakers and distillers achieve specific, delicately refined tastes and aromas for their products and saves time waiting for spirits to age. These high-volume filtration systems can filter up to 23 liters in a few minutes and can filter multiple batches using just one set of carbon pads.
Conventional filtration systems from the beverage industry are also used in the spirits industry. These include sheet or stacked disc cartridge filters fitted with depth filter sheets or stacked disc cartridges made up of depth filter sheets. Other filtration options include cartridge filters, crossflow filters, and pre-coat filters, in which diatomaceous earth, perlite, or cellulose are used as filter additives.
Fourage CTI provides these kinds of filtration products for the wine industry. However, some spirits and wine manufacturers require more advanced filtration capabilities. A high degree of initial haze may require multistage filtration with the same or different filtration systems used in combination. Beverage producers must assess what colloidal haze-causing substances need to be removed — materials such as polyphenols, proteins, polysaccharides, sugars, and microbiological loads — while preserving valuable ingredients that contribute to taste, aroma, and color.
Fourage works with its end-user spirits and wine producers to provide the most cost-effective and efficient filtration skids based on the producers’ unique product and process requirements. As a result, they must have the right resources to let them refine their designs and build filtration skids without having to make extensive investments in finding and integrating multiple components.
The AVENTICS G3 Platform provided Fourage with a modular and easy-to-assemble solution. The G3 offers application, performance, and maintenance improvements, making it a reliable solution in the panel. (Image courtesy of Emerson).
The Solution: A complete pneumatics control panel
Fourage CTI faced a complicated challenge: There was strong demand for its filtration systems, but supply chain constraints made it difficult to source all the components to operate the filtration skid. The time and effort to obtain and integrate these components threatened to interrupt skid manufacturing and delivery to its customers.
That’s why Fourage partnered with Emerson to create a complete, turnkey pneumatic control panel solution with all valves and other control devices preassembled and ready to install. The integrated panel includes a full cabinet with panel mounting and plexiglass door. While Fourage CTI and Emerson had partnered ten years prior, this was the first time Emerson provided a complete solution for Fourage.
The panel combined a range of Emerson devices with products sourced from other suppliers. The components include:
Filter: For the skid, Fourage needed prefiltration, coalescent filtration, charcoal filters, and nitrogen filters.
Regulator: The AVENTICS AS2 pressure regulator used in the panel provides significant flexibility. Multiple regulators can be set in line while custom-configuring the pressure required from each regulator. On top of the AS2 pressure regulator is a bicolor screen. If there is a pressure issue, the screen turns red to provide a quick and simple visual diagnosis for the operator.
AVENTICS G3 Electronic Fieldbus Valve Platform: A modular and flexible solution designed to replace conventional hardwired systems, the G3 platform provided an easy-to-assemble and easy-to-commission solution to pilot the process valves and the filtration system’s pumps.
The G3’s functionality allows programmable logic controllers to more efficiently turn valves on and off and to channel data from sensors, lights, relays, individual valves, or other I/O devices via various industrial networks.
Proportional Control Valves: Two types of proportional control valves were needed as part of the complete panel. Proportional pressure regulation allows handles the aseptic valve opening to regulate the filtered fluid. To do this, Emerson’s AVENTICS 617 Sentronic LP was chosen, as it provides better regulation, response time, and precision. Emerson’s FlowtronicD 607 flow rate control valve regulates the movement of cleaning shell into the pipes. The product provides real-time control, giving Fourage precise control of the cleaning system’s speed.
The Impact: Simplifying sourcing and speeding time to market
In total, Emerson provided three complete panels. The installation took only eight weeks and proved to be seamless; there were no issues with skid integration. The complete panel solution eliminated multiple headaches for Fourage: Rather than scour suppliers looking for different components and then spending engineering time integrating them all together, the solution saved time and provided a tested and proven solution with all pneumatic control functionality pre-installed and ready to be integrated into each filtration skid. Emerson worked closely with the Fourage team to develop a solution that would work specifically for the company’s needs.
Emerson
emerson.com/en-us
Filed Under: Controls (not motion controls)
