Mesa is preparing to exhibit at the Interphex expo, a top pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical trade show held each year. Many key people in this industry attend to see new products, meet new customers, and to network with fellow community members. There are over 1000 product lines that represent every product category at the show and 650+ supplies that come to feature their latest innovations.
This year it will be held again at the Javits Center in New York, New York. The show exhibits will be open Tuesday April 23, 2013 through Thursday April 25, 2013. There are also 52 conference sessions that can be attended in 3 days.
While there, Mesa will be highlighting 2 new products: Intenna and Thermowell. DataTrace® InTenna is attached to the vessel by using a standard clamp fitting and sealed inside the vessel through any common service outlet. This enhanced capability means that retort cook cycles will always be able to hit their mark using the real-time feedback of the wireless data. DataTrace® Thermowell Data Logger allows for the addition/removal of the logger without breaking the seal! This logger is ideal for monitoring temperatures in a sealed container such as a can or bottle or for an SIP or CIP system at the typical monitor points where the Thermowell can be welded directly into piping allowing the logger to be easily removed and replaced when desired without shutting down the process. (more…)
The time spent developing a validation series for a retort or an autoclave, trying to get just the right cycle time, vacuum dwell, or steam injection, can be expensive and nail-bitingly tense. For retorts it’s the grueling cycles that may prove to be wasted labor due to an insufficient dwell time.
A typical problem that occurs in the sterilization and cooking industry is the expense of time and labor involved in performing a process that ends with an unsuccessful kill of the target organism or incomplete cooking. This can occur for a variety of reason such as incorrect calculations, miscommunications, or thermocouple sensor failures or malfunctions. This can lead to wasted product and labor, repair costs, re-performing cycles or validations. When forced to make decisions about the cycle without the proper, up-to-date information necessary, the costs go up and they add up quick.
A common need and challenge in the smokehouse industry is the ability to monitor and collect data in a harsh, smoky environment during processes that may take up to several hours to complete. All of this time can be wasted if a process completes and is unsuccessful at the end. Typically a temperature “spot check” is required near or at the end of a process as well, requiring a person to enter a fairly dangerous environment just to collect a data point or two to confirm the process completed successfully. One method that the industry currently uses to aid in the data collection process is wired thermocouple systems. These systems are very costly, require recalibration very frequently and are not very accurate. They also break quite frequently and do not lend themselves well to the industry because a typical worker may not realize the probe is still attached to a cart and damage the probe.
A solution that works very well in circumstances like this would be Mesa Labs DataTrace RF data loggers. Datatrace RF data loggers are well suited to the task of monitoring temperatures in harsh environments. They are made of food safe materials, and are resistant against dropping. They are calibrated very accurately and more importantly, hold their calibration for a year. This can easily reduce the cost of ownership.
Monitoring the temperature of a process or a finished food product presents several challenges for manufacturers today. One must weigh getting accurate readings within the package with the displacement that occurs when placing a data logger within the product. What’s more, no one wants to sift through messy product to locate a data logger but this is what must be done so as not to compromise the seal integrity of the product and generate accurate reading during thermal processing. That is, until now!
Mesa is introducing the DataTrace MPIII Thermowell Data Logger which allows for the addition/removal of the logger without breaking the seal! This logger is ideal for monitoring temperatures in a sealed container such as a can or bottle or for an SIP or CIP system at the typical monitor points where the Thermowell can be welded directly into piping allowing the logger to be easily removed and replaced when desired without shutting down the process. (more…)
Monitoring multiple conditions in a process can be difficult in numerous ways. When the data needs to be logged and stored for immediate retrieval the task can become monumental. This is where the Dual MPRF DataTrace Datalogger comes in handy. The purpose behind this design is to allow two processes to be monitored simultaneously and see that the data captured is stored in the logger and also to broadcast wirelessly for instant feedback on the processes.
A good example of this would be a canning line that requires that the cooker and the food get to two different, but specific temperatures. (more…)
Forbes ranks companies in the United States every year based on their growth rate and level of success. The 100 Best Small Companies in America on this list show strong sales and earnings growth across industries. Candidates must have been publicly traded for at least a year, generate annual revenue between $5 million and $1 billion and boast a stock price no lower than $5 a share. (more…)
Pack Expo took place about two weeks ago in McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago, Illinois. It was a four day event that laid down new records for 2012. This was named the largest Packing and Processing Expo in the world for this year to date. It covered more than 1.1 million net square feet and had close to 2000 diverse exhibiting companies from numerous different countries. This was a affirmative increase of over six percent for space and around seven percent for exhibiting companies from the past show in 2010.
Mesa Labs joined in on the large quantity of attendees to show case our Torqo product line along with our Data loggers which is our DataTrace product line.
Mesa Labs’ DataTrace line of temperature data loggers was featured on the cover of the November issue of Process Heating Magazine. The magazine focuses on temperature control used in a variety of manufacturing processes across different industries.
This issue also featured a comparison chart of sensors that ensure heat and temperature control. The matrix shows which product is best for your company and specific process. Want to learn more about Mesa’s DataTrace data loggers? Visit our Datatrace page.
With no pre or post calibration and quicker, easier sensor placement and removal, wireless data logging systems save a significant amount of setup time in validation and monitoring processes. Whether you’re monitoring temperature, pressure, or relative humidity, wireless systems make the entire procedure faster and easier.
How much time could you save by ditching the thermocouple? Contact us today to learn more about how a wireless data logging system can streamline your process.
RH Data Loggers in Ethylene Oxide Environments
Ethylene Oxide is a widely used sterilization process worldwide. It is a very effective sterilant, but it presents several challenges for the data loggers used to monitor and validate the cycles, not the least of which is the inherent sensor drift that can occur in electrical sensors from usage in Ethylene Oxide environments, particularly with RH (Relative Humidity) data loggers.
All RH data loggers are affected by Ethylene Oxide. In an independent study conducted 2 years ago, it was found that all the RH data loggers used in the study from several manufacturers were affected as soon as they were exposed to EO, some more than others. It has been determined that over time, particles can become embedded in the sensor substrate; this entrapment will cause the sensor calibration drift and this effect is cumulative over time.
With this in mind, there are a few steps one can take to minimize the impact that EO exposure has on RH data loggers:
1. Pre and Post exposure conditioning.
Mesa has developed a procedure to heat the RH data loggers after exposure to EO to accelerate the out gassing of the sensor and bring it back into calibration quicker. In addition, Mesa has EO customers that store their RH loggers in pre-conditioning rooms where they maintain conditions at about 100°F and about 80% RH. This has shown to be a successful way to store the loggers and maintain their calibrations over a longer period of time. (more…)
