IPCO is a major supplier of chocolate forming equipment with systems for industrial ingredients – chips, chunks, drops and blocks – and decorative products such as shavings, rolls, pencils, blossoms and many more.
IPCO is the world’s leading supplier of stainless and carbon steel belts for the food processing industry, for applications including baking, cooling, freezing, drying, steaming and more. The company also manufacturers a range of food processing systems including chocolate forming equipment, casting lines and freezing solutions for instant coffee.
Chocolate forming/moulding equipment,
Systems designed for the production of industrial ingredients – chips, chunks, drops and blocks – and decorative products such as shavings, rolls, pencils, blossoms and many more.
A wide range of production components means the company can tailor systems to suit different needs, with solutions for everything from low cost, rapid deployment start-ups to high capacity multi-layer systems.
IPCO’s high capacity solutions are based around the Rotoform rotary drop depositor, and the latest model in this series is the Rotoform HP (High Performance). Specifically designed for chocolate processing, the RF HP has opened the door to new levels of productivity in chocolate chip forming.
A pump delivers the molten chocolate to the Rotoform via heated piping. The Rotoform itself consists of a heated stator – which is supplied with liquid chocolate – and a perforated rotating shell that turns concentrically around the stator to deposit drops of chocolate onto a continuously running steel belt. A system of baffles and internal nozzles provides uniform pressure across the whole belt width, ensuring that chips are of uniform shape and size.
The circumferential speed of the Rotoform is synchronized with the speed of the belt; drops are therefore deposited without deformation. The heat of the drops is transferred to cooling air blown onto the product and also to the belt itself. A short cooling time means that very little oxygen can penetrate the product.
Chips are free flowing for easy handling, storage and dosing. Chips of different sizes – from 30,000 to 300 pcs/kg – can be produced by simply changing the shell.
IPCO has developed a range of triple pass cooling systems that enable high throughput rates while minimising floorspace requirements. The product is deposited on the first belt and adheres to the underside for the second pass. It is then removed on to a second conveyor for a third pass.
Steel belts
IPCO steel belts are highly versatile, maintaining strength and flexibility at temperatures from minus 80°C to +750°C. They can be supplied in solid or perforated form and can be manufactured to virtually any length or width.
Key advantage of steel belt-based food processing is the ability to maintain high standards of hygiene: the lack of crevices in a solid steel belt means nowhere for bacteria to hide, and the flat surface enables fast, easy cleaning.
A high quality bake oven belt will have certain mechanical properties ‘engineered in’ at the production stage. A flat, straight smooth belt ensures reliable operation and clean release at the end of the oven with minimal risk of damage to fragile products.
With no gaps or crevices for dirt to hide in, steel belts are easier to clean than other belt types, and IPCO can support customers with an innovative and highly effective belt cleaning service based on high power laser technology.
The company also supplies a wide range of conveyor components covering everything from tensioning, drive stations and drums to tracking systems, break points and graphite stations, and is able to help customers improve oven performance and reliability through system upgrades.
IPCO has been involved in conveyor design for decades, often working hand in hand with oven builders to ensure that an oven reaches its full potential. This experience has delivered in an in-depth understand of how a belt interacts with the many other component parts that make up a bake oven system. As a result, IPCO can deliver inspection and maintenance services that go beyond the belt, with investigations encompassing the entire line to understand how the system as a whole is performing.
