Special reducers for food industry from Neugart

Neugart has been taken on a pioneering role for years in the development of drive
solutions for the food industry. Our standard products even come with optional lubricants
certified under NSF-H1, effectively eliminating contamination. In line with our high product
standards, we take our solutions to the next level.
The Neugart HLAE is the world’s first hygienic design planetary gearbox that also
fulfills the rigorous international hygiene requirements and is 3-A RPSCQC certified. Our
gearbox meets the ever-evolving requirements for food industry components and is therefore
setting new standards. As a member of the European Hygienic Engineering and Design Group
(EHEDG), Neugart is independently pushing ahead with this development.
Neugart’s unique product range affords you the opportunity to always find the ideal
design for your specific application.
Your benefits:
– Cost effective gearbox solutions: Neugart planetary gearboxes use modular designs for
a wide range of flexible configurations and customizations. Because of this, our customers
benefit from a cost-effective acquisition price – without sacrifice to quality.
– Worldwide availability: There is virtually no country in the world that does not
currently use a Neugart gearbox. We have built a network of experienced sales engineers
around the world so that you will always have somebody there for you — no matter your
need, no matter where you are.
Certified Hygienic Design: We are the world’s first manufacturer of planetary
gearboxes to receive 3-A RPSCQC certification under the rigorous and meticulous 3-A
sanitary standards. Our customers can rest assured about our serious commitment to clean
production.
– Dependable even under extreme conditions: Neugart planetary gearboxes can
withstand extensive usage in a wide range of environments. Thanks to their optimized seal
and specific lubricants, our drives also operate at temperatures as low as −40 °C and fulfill the
highest protection classes such as IP 69K.

Case study

“Neugart is professional and operates in a technically flexible way. The result is
outstanding. From a visual point of view, the gearbox fits into our machine design in an
optimum way. I was impressed by the tenacity with which Neugart has optimized the hygienic
design of the gearbox until a standard product could be introduced to the market.”
Andreas Harder
Weber Maschinenbau GmbH Design & Development

“We are dependent on having a partner who reliably provides serial delivery. We made
the conscious decision to work with Neugart due to the many years of reliable collaboration
with the company. In addition to the quick, dynamic reaction time for new technical requests,
Neugart always endeavors to maintain fair pricing.“
Philipp Held
Weber Maschinenbau GmbHStrategic Purchasing

High-tech slicer with open design
Weber Maschinenbau GmbH has and continues to be a trailblazer in the field of
hygienic machine design. “But with Slicer model 906 we have made a pioneering
achievement. This is the world’s first machine of its kind that has been consistently
implemented with an open design,” says Developer Andreas Harder, who played an important
part in the creation of this new generation of food processing machines. “It was only possible
to achieve this concept because we were accompanied by partners and suppliers who were
extremely flexible and reliable,” adds Philipp Held from Weber's Strategic Purchasing
Department.

About the company
Weber Maschinenbau has been producing groundbreaking systems for processing,
refining and slicing sausage, meat, cheese and other foods for 35 years. The portfolio of the
Weber Group is extremely diverse and includes slicers, skinners, food robotics, and product
scanners. The company group, based in the central Hessian town of Breidenbach, is one of the
most important locations for the food processing industry. Customers from all over the world
swear by the service, extensive knowledge and unique product quality of this high-tech
company. Weber currently employs roughly 1000 employees in 14 locations in ten countries.

Task

Weber is the undisputed leader in the field of industrial slicers. Keeping in line with
their own exceptional standards, the company went in a new direction with their Slicer 906.
Driven by existing customers’ observations and increasingly strict food hygiene legislation,
Weber decided to develop a machine with an open design that is extremely innovative and
even easier to clean.
Each installed component is hygienically designed and protected, and can therefore be
installed openly in the machine. This means components are no longer installed and isolated
in enclosed spaces that are not easily accessed. This innovation is incredibly important
because these are the precise areas in which product residue could previously collect,
including bacteria such as listeria or salmonella. In this new design, every component that is
installed can be inspected at any time, meaning that contamination can now be detected and
removed immediately.
At the start of the development, one of Weber’s biggest challenges was the availability
of hygienic design components. Solutions that are easy to clean have been available for years
for machine areas where direct contact with the product occurs. However, hygienic
components are still in their infancy as far as the drivetrain is concerned.
When Weber began to explore their options no adequate solution existed for their
restrictive but necessary requirements. The planetary gearbox’s tasks inside the machine are
manifold. Among other things, the product can be precisely positioned in front of the knife in
the loading shaft via a belt in order to obtain uniform cut thickness. The belts of the
portioning unit are independently activated in the XY direction using a Neugart gearbox. The
sliced product is then accurately positioned for further processing. As a result, the end
products can be stacked, shingled, folded or laid in different shape configurations.

Solution

For this reason, it was quite clear that Weber needed an established partner to help
create an optimal solution. Neugart has supplied planetary gearboxes to Weber for many
years. The requirements for the new gearbox were ambitious, as a completely new gearbox
encased in stainless steel was required.

A newly designed sealing concept had to be implemented in order achieve Weber’s
requirements. All of this had to be done without affecting the normal power density or
performance. At the time, Neugart did not have a hygienic gearbox of this kind in its standard
product portfolio. However, for this particular project Neugart made use of its strengths and
fell back on its well-tried standard product portfolio.
In accordance with Weber’s needs, Neugart made use of the possibility of modifying
standard gearboxes quickly and flexibly. All of the materials that were used had to be certified
in accordance with FDA specifications (U.S. Food and Drug Administration). In fact, even the
lubricant that was used has NSF-H1 certification as a preventative measure against disease
and contamination.

Looking Ahead

The current concept design is forward thinking, and sets the benchmark for the entire
industry. Even competitors are surprised by how consistently this hygienic design idea has
been implemented in this machine. Product users in the USA and the relevant authorities and
organizations have welcomed Weber’s foray into this market sector.

What are slicers?
Slicers are powerful industrial cutting machines for flexible and precise processing of
sausage, ham, meat products and cheese products. Cutting speeds of up to 2000 cuts per
minute can be achieved. Depending on the model, loading and processing can be done for
products up to 1600mm long or even continuous products.