Leading German dairy product manufacturer Goldsteig Käsereien Bayerwald GmbH selected the new MasoSine Certa Sine pump from Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group (WMFTG), Wilmington, Mass., for the production of cream cheese. Here, the gentle handling of the Certa pump is ideal for transferring the sensitive cream used to manufacture mascarpone and delicate whey for ricotta, while its ease of cleaning makes for lower maintenance requirements.  

Goldsteig operates across three plants, employs 620 staff members and produces almost 1,102.3 tons of cheese per year from 223.6 million gallons of milk. In the town of Tittling, near Passau, the Goldsteig plant focusses on the production of Italian specialty cream cheese, such as ricotta and mascarpone.

Pumping operations affect final product quality

"The pumping is an important stage of production, where due care and gentle handling matter most,” says Günter Schlattl, operations manager. "If the shearing forces are too high, then the binding – and thus the structure of the mixture – can be damaged. Ultimately, the final quality of the cream cheese will suffer, and for ricotta and mascarpone, the texture of the end product is essential.”

Since November 2015, Goldsteig has been using a new Certa sine pump for these delicate tasks.

"We have used MasoSine pumps for several years as part of our butter production, so we were already convinced about their low pulse, gentle handling capabilities,” says Schlattl.

Certa is a completely new design of pump based on the sinusoidal positive displacement principle, designed specifically for use in the food and beverage industry, conveying the product more gently than other pump types. Compared with rotary lobe pumps, for example, Certa is said to deliver up to 50% more gentle handling. As a result, the pump is especially well suited for shear-sensitive fluids such as cream or media containing large or delicate particles with no loss to product integrity.

Comprehensive certification

Among the major considerations of pumps destined for use in the food industry is hygiene and clean-in-place (CIP) capability.

“The appropriate certification was crucial for the application in Tittling since we perform a daily CIP clean with caustic,” says Schlattl. “After one of our first CIP operations following installation, we opened the pump to check the results and found that it was totally clean – simply outstanding.”

In Certa pumps, the number of components in contact with the product has been minimized in order ensure ease of cleaning. As a result, the pump is also steam-in-place (SIP) capable.

Due to its CIP and SIP capability, Certa is certified to 3A and EHEDG EL Class I. Furthermore, all components in contact with the product meet the requirements for food contact as per EC 1935/2004 and the FDA. Certa is available with flows of up to almost 11,095 gallons per hour.

Low maintenance and energy efficient

The Goldsteig team is particularly satisfied with the reliability of the new Certa pump.

“Since installation, our Certa pump has been running without a single hitch,” says Schlattl. “To date, we have not had to replace any parts, even though it is running a double shift daily for up to 12 hours."

In Certa pumps, there is less need for maintenance, as the number of consumables has been reduced in comparison with previous generation models.

"Should we expand or introduce a new product range, we will definitely rely on another Certa,” adds Schlattl.