Preventing contamination from beverage hoses on floor
Hey all,
Background- Our site is a beverage manufacturer that produces cold brew coffee. We are working towards acquiring SQF certification by the end of the year.
Our site uses medium to long beverage/production hoses that run on flooring to reach our desired tanks/packaging line. Once production is started it is rare for the hoses to move besides from the end of the work day.
The concern is product contamination, is this something that can be remedied by having training surrounding ways to hook up hoses with best practices. Or would the best way be to invest in sanitary hose guards? (added link below)
https://www.processs...rd-hose-support
Hi SabaSQF, welcome to the forum! That hose support looks pretty cool - just one thing: how are you going to clean it? If you're sure it's cleanable - go ahead. We're keeping our hoses out of the floor by hooking a nozzle head on a wheeled cart side, works fine so far.
Just wondering if anybody of this forum uses the hose supports and their opinion.
Hey all,
Background- Our site is a beverage manufacturer that produces cold brew coffee. We are working towards acquiring SQF certification by the end of the year.
Our site uses medium to long beverage/production hoses that run on flooring to reach our desired tanks/packaging line. Once production is started it is rare for the hoses to move besides from the end of the work day.
The concern is product contamination, is this something that can be remedied by having training surrounding ways to hook up hoses with best practices. Or would the best way be to invest in sanitary hose guards? (added link below)
https://www.processs...rd-hose-support
I've used something similar. They are easy to use. As for cleaning - not difficult. We had one that could adjust to different hose sizes.
An AIB auditor at a different job had recommended them. I then brought the concept to my current job. The plant engineer loved them.
We have some of those hose supports but we feel more comfortable by having the hoses lay on carts and only use the hose supports when all the carts are being used. Both the carts and hose supports are relatively easy to keep clean.
The sanitary supports that you are showing on the link in conjunction with site specific hooks can keep the hoses off the floor. if you use carts or other supports sometimes its difficult to keep hoses secured while shuffling, moving and handling occurs.
The hose supports are a clever solution here. I can see potential for an auditor to really hammer the sanitation of those rings, but I think it can be managed and it seems to fulfill the requirement of keeping the hose off the ground.
As you're getting into the swing of SQF, documentation and the like, you'll need to make sure the cleaning of those rings (or any support) is well written into the sanitation SOPs. One thing an auditor might decide to hit is making sure enough of those rings are used to always keep the hose off the ground. Telling an auditor that the production crews know to not let the hose sag will not be enough: you'll need to mention such a practice in your startup/line assembly SOP's, make sure production staff has documented training on that updated SOP, and *might* need to include checking the hose is off the ground in a startup checklist type document.
My learning curve getting into SQF was the reality that if it isn't written, it didn't happen. If you tell an auditor someone checks to make sure the hose is supported, you'll need to be able to prove it.
Hey all,
Background- Our site is a beverage manufacturer that produces cold brew coffee. We are working towards acquiring SQF certification by the end of the year.
Our site uses medium to long beverage/production hoses that run on flooring to reach our desired tanks/packaging line. Once production is started it is rare for the hoses to move besides from the end of the work day.
The concern is product contamination, is this something that can be remedied by having training surrounding ways to hook up hoses with best practices. Or would the best way be to invest in sanitary hose guards? (added link below)
https://www.processs...rd-hose-support
Hi SabaSQF,
:welcome:
Welcome to the IFSQN forums.
The hose guards would be better than nothing.
I don’t think that hoses conveying finished product should run along the floor and as you have identified, people are handling these hoses then connecting them to tanks/packaging lines so hygienic procedures for this would be essential.
Kind regards,
Tony
Ive seen the doughnuts that you are looking at or the "horse" used. Links below.
https://www.grainger...wE&gclsrc=aw.ds
Thanks for the replies, really appreciated!
The only thing to manage with the doughnuts is ensuring they are kept clean (clean with outside of hose) and they are not damaged.
Plus they are a lot cheaper than hose stands.