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Courtesy of L&S Cranberry L&S Cranberry uses Key Technology’s Optyx 6000 series sorter and RemoteMD to monitor product quality and maintain food safety.
L&S Cranberry harvests 8 million pounds of cranberries on average, according to a news release, and is one of the largest suppliers to Ocean Spray Cranberries, the grower-owned agricultural cooperative based in Lakeville-Middleboro, Mass.
The Optyx sorter, installed in 2008, inspects the berries and removes foreign materials. The company added RemoteMD in 2011. It monitors the sorter and alerts technicians if a problem is detected.
The system allows issues to be resolved remotely which helps improve efficiency on the line.
Prior to the company’s installation of the sorter, the cranberries were shipped to Ocean Spray for sorting.
“We installed an Optyx sorter because we saw how successful it was at Ocean Spray,” Kevin Connolly, general manager at L&S Cranberry, said in a release.
The company has been pleased with the results so far.
The sorter uses a combination of color cameras and lasers that can inspect 12,000 pounds of cranberries an hour. The size, shape and color of each berry is monitored to ensure consistency and safety.
Softer berries, called “poppers” are sorted out because they can spoil more quickly, affecting the entire bag.
“Given how short our season is, it’s important that we achieve perfect accuracy from the moment we start up in September,” Connolly said in the release.
The benefits from the RemoteMD installation have also been noticeable he said.
The company added the program in 2011 when they switched from one shift per day to two.
“It also enables me to connect to the sorter from my office or from home, which is especially helpful during the night shift,” Connolly said in the release.
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