Digital and hygienic load cells for mixers

It makes good sense to use digital load cells for controlling the mixing of ingredients and raw materials in food production. Digital load cells are more accurate and can communicate directly with the dosing equipment, which means that you can dose the individual raw materials and ingredients – both liquid and solid – very accurately in the mixer. This ensures a perfect mixing result – every time.

Eilersen Electric A/S in Denmark are known for their range of digital and hygienic load cells for industrial mixers.

Eilersen load cell with integrated tankleg

Quick and easy installation

The digital load cells from Eilersen are delivered for “Plug & Play” installation. This means that the load cells are supplied calibrated and ready for use. They simply need to be installed under the legs of the mixer and connected to the weighing instrumentation.

As these are digital load cells, the length of the individual load cell cables has no effect on the calibration of the load cells. You can therefore shorten the load cell cable to the desired length.

On the other hand, using analog load cells you cannot shorten the load cell cables without changing the calibration. The load cell cables must therefore be rolled up and placed in a suitable location. This is inconvenient, and a roll of cable can quickly act as a dirt trap in an otherwise clean and hygienic food production environment.

High shear mixer with Eilersen load cells installed at biotech customer

Digital load cells can be read individually

When installing the weighing system, it is possible to read the weight supported by each individual load cell. Most mixers have four legs, which means that two or four load cells can be used under the mixer – depending on the required accuracy.

Of course, it is important that the weight of the mixer is distributed across all four legs so that the installation of the mixer is stable. The distribution of the weight across the legs can be read with the digital load cells, after which the length of the mixer’s legs can be adjusted. When using digital load cells, however, you do not need to have exactly the same weight on all mixer legs, as the load cell’s digital calibration adjusts for uneven distribution of the weight.

With high-shear mixers, strong lateral forces occur on the legs, and thus on the load cells, which is undesirable, as this will usually affect the accuracy and reliability of the weighing system.

However, this does not apply to Eilersen’s digital load cells, which are extremely robust and unaffected by lateral forces, which is why these load cells are used by mixer manufacturers worldwide.

Designed according to EHEDG guidelines

Eilersen’s digital load cells are designed to meet the guidelines for hygienic design as specified by EHEDG. This means that the load cells do not collect dirt and are easy to keep free of bacteria and residues.

As an option, Eilersen can supply 3A-approved tank legs for the mixer, which makes cleaning the mixer and the load cells even easier.

A satisfied German marinade manufacturer

Dahlhoff Feinkost GmbH uses digital load cells for the manufacture of their well-known marinades consisting of ingredients such as vinegar, water, rapeseed oil, liquid sugar and spices.

The dosing of the ingredients in their mixers is fully automatic and controlled using digital load cells from Eilersen.

– We chose Eilersen’s load cells due to their aseptic properties and high resolution and precision. The load cells are also robust and reliable, despite the rather strong vibrations from the mixing, says Tim Füllmich, who is responsible for production at Dahlhoff Feinkost.

Load cells can also be retrofitted to existing mixers

Of course, it is also possible to install digital load cells on existing mixers without load cells, and thus increase their precision and performance.

Eilersen can provide instrumentation for many different weighing tasks. Examples include weighing terminals with built-in intelligent setup and dosing software. Program blocks for EtherNet IP and PROFINET fieldbus communication can also be provided, making it quick and easy to set up the load cells for PLC operation.

Eilersen is a world leader in digital load cells, weighing terminals, scales and weighing solutions for e.g. the food industry. For the past 50 years, the company has developed industrial weighing systems based on proprietary, patented technology and has installations in around 100 countries worldwide.

Reliable weighing solutions

All hardware for Eilersen’s weighing and dosing solutions is extremely reliable and particularly suitable for applications where there are demands for hygienic properties and easy cleaning of production equipment. The weighing cells and weighing terminals have been developed to withstand harsh treatment in a typical production environment necessitating high-pressure cleaning with harsh detergents and disinfectants.