Case study: La Huerta automates inspection with optical sorter
Food processor La Huerta began operating in 1957 with just a rented ranch and two trucks. Now, the company has grown to become Mexico's leader in frozen fruits and vegetables, holding 65 percent of the market share and distributing products to 11 countries worldwide.
To further its commitment to excellence, La Huerta installed a VERYX optical sorter from Key Technology on its IQF vegetable processing line. VERYX finds and removes all kinds of foreign material (FM) as well as product defects to help achieve superior food safety and quality while reducing labor and improving yield.
“Our commitment to exceptional product quality has always been a foundation of our success,” said Carlos Gutierrez, CEO at La Huerta. “Although manually sorting served us well for many years, we recognized that automation would take our inspection process to the next level. After extensive research into various sorting solutions, VERYX emerged as the clear choice, especially given its ability to handle our diverse product range while delivering the product quality we expect.”
La Huerta, which has has relied on Key's Iso-Flo vibratory conveyors throughout its facility for over 20 years, selected a fully-loaded VERYX C140 equipped with cameras and laser sensors. Key’s advanced Pixel Fusion detection module combines pixel-level input from multiple sensors that are positioned to view product in-air from both sides. This all-sided surface inspection minimizes blind spots to improve removal of FM such as plastic and wood along with product defects.
“When you're processing nine metric tons of vegetables every hour on an around-the-clock basis, consistency is critical,” explained Claudia Picazo, manufacturing manager at La Huerta. “VERYX delivers that consistency and simultaneously allowed us to reallocate four workers per shift who were previously performing visual inspection to other roles in the plant. We've also increased our yield by reducing the volume of good product in the reject stream, which means we're recirculating 35 percent less product than before to recover good product.”
To enhance performance, Key designed La Huerta’s VERYX as an integrated system with two upstream Iso-Flo vibratory conveyors. First, a scalping shaker removes product clusters and small fines prior to sorting. Then, an infeed shaker optimizes product presentation to the sorter's inspection zone to help ensure accurate ejection of FM and defects.
The versatility of VERYX has proven particularly valuable given La Huerta's wide array of products. “We process 12 different types of vegetables on this line, including cauliflower, broccoli, onion, cactus, pepper, carrots, green beans and more, plus each vegetable has multiple subcategories,” said Jisel Betancourt, process engineer at La Huerta. “VERYX's recipe-driven operation lets us quickly adapt our sort parameters for each product's unique characteristics and achieve changeovers in under five minutes.”
La Huerta follows strict sanitation protocols to maintain its certifications and help protect food safety. VERYX easily integrates with the company's cleaning procedures, receiving a thorough washdown with soap, sanitizing spray and water every 24 hours.
If customer support is ever needed, the sorter’s RemoteMD software enables a two-way remote session between the system and a service technician to simplify diagnostics and speed support. “We've worked with Key for years and continue to be impressed by their expertise and exceptional support,” said Luis Picazo, project manager at La Huerta. “Key's service technicians are available 24/7 and always respond when we call. You don't find this kind of support from most suppliers.”
“VERYX has exceeded our expectations,” concluded Mario Gutierrez, purchasing manager at La Huerta. “Our sorter gives us complete confidence that we're always delivering the product quality our customers expect. We're already in the process of adding another VERYX sorter to a different processing line — that's how impressed we are with its performance.”
Key Technology, Inc.
