When it comes to high-grade lubricants, LH Travis specializes in providing the right products and equipment to a number of industries that operate in Central Florida. One such industry is the food manufacturing and processing sector. Those facilities have stringent requirements on what types of lubricants they can use.
The Basics of Food-Grade Lubricants
Lubricants offered by LH Travis or other suppliers that are used in food processing facilities must meet particular requirements in addition to being suitable industrial-grade lubricants. That means they must effectively protect machine parts from excessive friction, corrosion, oxidation, and wear, and also dissipate heat and transfer power adequately. In some instances, they must also act as a sealant. No matter what, the lubricants must also be compatible with whatever rubber or other sealing materials they’ll come in contact with.
In addition to the standard characteristics of practical machine lubricants, the oils and greases used in food, beverage, and drug processing facilities must exhibit a number of other attributes. For example, the oils used may need to have the ability to dissolve sugars, be non-reactive with plastics and elastomers, or resist degradation caused by water or steam. In all cases, food-grade lubricants need to adhere to regional health and safety standards, plus be tasteless, odorless, physiologically inert, and generally must also be internationally approved.
The consequences of disregarding food safety guidelines for lubricants can be enormous and costly. There are numerous examples of incidents in which thousands of pounds of meat, soft drinks, baby food, or other consumable products had to be recalled because of serious health and safety concerns due to contamination from non-food-grade lubricants. The financial cost of such recalls can be astronomical, and the bad publicity from these types of events can result in long-term loss in terms of public trust and sales.
LH Travis Hits the Spot
When you need the right lubricant in the right amount at the right time and in the right location with the right frequency, count on LH Travis to get you set up right with an automatic lubrication system and products that perfectly fit your needs.
