Compressors meet the demand for clean air in dairy processing

Tatura Milk Industries, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bega Cheese, has been manufacturing dairy products since 1907 and is the largest Australian-owned supplier of infant formula and the historic dairy brand Tatura.

Tatura processes 80,000 tonnes of dairy products every year, with milk supplied by 65,000 cows from dairy farms located in the immediate area. This milk is used to manufacture a wide range of quality dairy products that serve the Asian, European and local markets.

High-quality clean air is a fundamental component of dairy manufacturing. It ensures that the quality raw dairy ingredients remain uncontaminated during processing. As such, Tatura operates production systems which are marked by the most rigorous benchmarks and specifications.

Kaeser Compressors has satisfied Tatura’s stringent internal benchmarks for air quality in its food-processing operations. Four Kaeser dry-running screw compressors were recently installed at two of the company’s sites to provide absolutely oil-free clean air.

At the first site, Tatura opted for a specially designed Kaeser compressor station. This includes two DSG290-2 series 8 bar dry-running screw compressors, one DSG290-2 SFC series 8 bar frequency controlled dry-running screw compressor, a 13,700 L air receiver, one heated DW series desiccant dryer, one heatless DC series desiccant dryer (standby) and a Sigma Air Manager system (station controller).

Kaeser Compressors Engineering Manager Jeff Coyle said, “This is an extremely effective compressed air system, with energy efficiency at its core. The SFC compressor [frequency control drive] is utilised during all operations to adsorb the minor fluctuations in air demand. When a surge in air demand occurs, one of the DSGs kicks in at full load to supply the extra air in a complete block.

“Direct-drive compressors operate most effectively when operating at maximum capacity, so the Sigma Air Manager (SAM) is programmed to run each compressor at its most efficient levels against fluctuating air demands. Master controllers (SAM) are vital for any multicompressor station. It is an automatic optimisation of the compressor station to match with altered consumption (adaptive behaviour) to achieve maximum cost effectiveness for the entire compressor station.” 

The second compressor station includes a Kaeser DSG290-2 series 8 bar dry-running screw compressor, a 3800 L air receiver and one heated DW series desiccant dryer. An important component of both stations is the heated DW1053 desiccant dryers, which ensure there is no purge loss. There are two purge air outlets connected to an insulating, descending collective line, consequently leaving the compressor room similar to outdoor ambient temperatures.

The Kaeser DSG series dry-running two-stage screw compressors feature water- or air-cooling as required with drive powers up to 355 kW and free air deliveries from 13.5-50 m³/min (fixed speed) or 6.8-51.8 m³/min (frequency controlled).