Alfa Laval Extend is sparking a sea change across the Dairy industry

Alfa Laval’s Extend™ is an easy-to-install add-on to heat exchangers that significantly lowers the build-up of bacteria in the equipment, and in doing so prolongs the operational uptime of pasteurizers by reducing the need for, and associated costs of, cleaning in place (CIP).

It does this by sending a weak electrical current through the heat exchanger, which results in a reduction in biofilm of between 90 and 99%. This allows the critical cleaning interval to be safely extended to 12 hours or more, compared to the current industry standard of eight, and it is already showing its value at one of the largest dairy producers in Scandinavia.

The dairy operates two pasteurization lines, each with a total capacity of 70,000 litres per hour, and following the installation of this simple plug-and-play technology, the results over the first year have been striking.

“We closely monitored every aspect of the installation together and eagerly awaited the real-life results. It’s undoubtedly been a shared success,” says Anna Andrys, Strategic Project Manager at Alfa Laval.

Over the course of the year at the dairy, Alfa Laval Extend™ has increased uptime by 50% after reducing cleaning intervals by 30%. That has meant 7,000 m³ of water, 100,000 kWh of energy and 35 tonnes of cleaning chemicals have been saved.

Extend™ can be installed without pausing operations and is available in three different sizes, ensuring compatibility with any heat exchanger operating in dairy production systems, whatever the brand.

Water scarcity and the need for efficient energy use are critical challenges facing the dairy industry and Alfa Laval Extend™ addresses these issues, helping operators operate more sustainably and meet their environmental targets while maximizing productivity.

The technical specifications are as follows:

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