The food industry needs to operate efficiently to ensure quick delivery of produce, so it is as fresh as possible for customers. To meet this standard, reliable air compressors with a proven track record of success are required.
Air compressor faults take time to repair and that downtime also threatens required delivery objectives, especially for fresh produce going to market.
It is for this reason David Malthouse, BSC Product Specialist, says the company only works with leading air compressor manufacturers.
He says the BSC teams’ product knowledge combined with proven products, enables BSC customers to get the best outcome for their processing plants.
One such air compressor manufacturer is Peerless. Troy Jamieson, Peerless National Sales and Marketing Representative says every machine the company supplies comes with a recommended service guidance.
“At each factory we also run and test everything so that when we supply the product to BSC we know we have tested it for a good two to three hours or more,” Jamieson says.
He says in the food industry it is really important to have both the right compressor and the right filtration.
“Air compressors can start delivering air from 1 litre to 6500+ litres, that is why it is very critical we talk to the consumer about what their air requirements are and how that can be best serviced,” Jamieson explains.
This is where BSC and Peerless’ close relationship becomes a critical factor in customer service.
“We work very closely with our partners in the market. They might contact us and say they have a consumer and they want to get advice from the manufacturer. In these circumstances we try and work as a unit to ensure we are quoting the right compressor for the right application,” Jamieson asserts.
David Malthouse at BSC agrees, saying the company use staff knowledge to ensure customers end up with the best suited product.
“Our team have the practical knowledge and expertise to make educated industry relevant recommendations for air compressors, and a vast array of other products, to benefit customers,” Malthouse enthuses.
BSC can supply air compressors to suit various food and manufacturing plant applications from their range of branches throughout Australia.
“BSC can offer customers same day delivery, based on their location, in order to get any processing plant up and running as soon as possible,” Malthouse says.
When purchasing an air compressor, the BSC team are there to support and advise the customer for any application.
“We can calculate and recommend the correct size and volume of air required to service a site. We can also interchange and identify the difference between compressor brands, so the customer is supplied the right one,” Malthouse adds.
“We also recommend service agents for all brands and can offer engineering support through our own engineering section.”
One BSC customer is a major Australian horticulture company, Costa Group, and in May of 2019 they approached BSC in the search of a new air compressor requirement for its Monarto mushroom farm site expansion.
The compressor was required for two new Evolable machines, capable of labelling 240 punnets of mushrooms every minute. In addition to labellers, the compressor also needed to provide air to Costa’s Ishida machine, indexing conveyor and bucket elevator.
The team at BSC Lonsdale, which service the Monarto site turned to Peerless to relay the customer’s needs.
Costa, Peerless and BSC then worked together to determine a suitable screw compressor unit to best suit the Monarto site.
This was the Peerless HQ10/8, capable of delivering 1200LPM or air at 116PSI (8BAR) which can be fully regulated down to the desired PSI settings. It was also fitted with an oil separator and flow meter.
Costa initially had concerns around the oil separator and filtration on the Peerless HQ10/8, which Peerless quickly confirmed exceeds the requirements of the AS/ NZS1715 with regards to particle removal and oil carryover.
After negotiation with pricing and delivery, Costa were satisfied with the end result and proceeded with the order.
Finding the right solution for customers like Costa is what Malthouse likes most about his job.
“The best part of my job is the people,” he says. “My drive is to help all the people I deal with and do my best to solve any issues they have locating required products, to service their efficiency needs.”