Italian snacks firm reports major production upturn with TNA equipment lines

Italian snacks manufacturer Preziosi has reported a notable upturn in production capacity that has delivered business growth, following installation of upgraded equipment lines from TNA, writes Neill Barston.

The Australian-headquartered firm worked with the European business over the past two years to enhance its operations, including installing an integrated potato chip line, as well as advanced pellet-frying systems, plus distribution, seasoning and packaging systems that it noted had made a significant positive operational impact.

Taking a holistic approach to the installation, the packaging and processing specialist has brought about a 76% increase in snacks production volumes, as its engineers identified core areas for efficiency boosting with the newly placed equipment.

According to the Preziosi, within the space of 12 months, production capacity nearly doubled from  from 17 to 30 million kilos of product per year, as it sought to maintain its position amid a highly competitive market.

As the business, located in Melfi, Southern Italy, acknowledged, with economic conditions being constrained across many locations in Europe, including within Italy, many consumers have become increasing cost-conscious.

This has resulted in them turning to budget areas of the market, often within private-label goods, which resulted in the company needing to find a complete solutions provider in response to the heightened level of demand.

“Preziosi had a very short amount of time to plan and execute the project,” said Eric Geling, Chief Sales Officer at TNA solutions. “Any delays would have impacted the company’s private label contracts. However, working with a complete solutions partner greatly minimised the risk during the installation phase. Our objective was to ensure that each machine delivers on its promise, from the highest output level to the lowest downtime.”

Snack line installation
As tna asserted, it is believed to occupy a uniquely strong position to deliver equipment for the entire potato snack production line, which aligns well with Preziosi’s main goal of increasing production capacity.

Consequently, the Australian firm’s high-performance potato chip line includes washing, cutting, frying, distribution, seasoning, and high-speed packaging, enabling Preziosi to operate at speeds of up to 1,500kg/hour. The extra installation of a new pellet frying system in place of  existing fryer doubled line capacity to 600kg/hour.

“Despite a number of challenges, including the need to keep production going while navigating a complex installation process, with help from TNA, we managed to overcome these hurdles while also achieving steady growth of over 20%,” said Lorenzo Caporaletti, President and CEO of Preziosi Food. “Our requirements were not only cutting-edge technology; we also wanted to manage the installation and improve the plant within a strict 12-month period without stopping or slowing production. It required a lot of creative thinking from both sides.”

With Preziosi producing over 300 SKUs of snacks across potato chips, pellets and extruded items, one of the main aims of the project was to not compromise on the company’s commitment to delivering high-quality, safe and controlled products.

The high-performance TNA continuous frying system, for example, included patented opti-flow technology, which ensured consistency in each batch and reduced rejects. Lowering the outfeed temperature of the oil inside the fryer to 150°C via a double heat exchanger also reduced acrylamide formation, greater colour intensity, and a crunchier product overall.

“Our application engineer, Arnaud Jansse, oversees our Food Technology Centre,” added Geling. “Leveraging his 30 years of experience, he and his team were able to work with Preziosi to fine-tune the frying process, ensuring each product delivered was as perfect as it could be. Following this, the implementation of our tna roflo vibratory and horizontal conveyor systems took care of those products, reducing breakages and, therefore, shards in the final package while increasing distribution speeds.”

The deployment of multiple tna on-machine seasoning systems (OMS) delivered seamless changeovers and easy operation across multiple products simultaneously. This, coupled with five new market-leading tna robag packaging systems, has helped the Italian business to significantly enhance its overall manufacturing capabilities.