Frequently Asked Questions
What does Thermaflo do?
Thermaflo designs, fabricates, and installs the equipment used to make food and beverages.
We have extensive experience in the heat treatment of food and beverages and we also specialise in the design and manufacture of cleaning systems for food and beverage manufacturers, called CIP (clean in place) kitchens. These systems deliver the hot/cold water and cleaning chemicals to the right pieces of equipment at the right time to ensure food/beverage production stays hygienic.
We started off in 1992 (over 30 years ago!) in New Zealand building pasteurisers for dairy processing. We’ve since expanded into Australia, the Pacific Islands and South East Asia.
Our team can assist with almost any process where liquid foods or beverages are produced (like milk or juice), or food products that have a liquid component in the manufacturing process like butter, jams/sauces, cheese, mayonnaise, plant-based dairy alternatives, or ice cream.
We also work with a number of international suppliers to sell, install and commission their food and beverage process equipment into Australia and New Zealand.
What equipment do you supply?
- Pasteurisers / heat treatment solutions
- Blending and mixing plants
- Cheese vats
- Yoghurt plants
- Ice cream plants
- Separators/clarifiers/centrifuges
- Homogenisers
- Mixing and cooking machines
- Bottle & can fillers
- Tub fillers
- Butter wrappers
- CIP Kitchens
- Membrane Filtration / Reverse Osmosis Systems
- Lab-scale equipment
- Containerised process plants
And the wiring and pipework that connects the equipment to the rest of the plant.
Where does your equipment come from?
If we don’t manufacture it ourselves at our New Zealand workshop, we use trusted and internationally available suppliers.
We have agency/distributor arrangements with a number of expert suppliers from around the world.
- For pilot plant/lab-scale equipment we work with Powerpoint International in Japan
- For separators/clarifiers we work with Frautech in Italy
- For homogenisers, we work with FBF Italia in Italy
- For automated pasta filata / stretch-curd cheese (Mozzarella, string cheese, ricotta, processed cheese etc) processes we work with MilkyLab in Italy
- For membrane technology (Reverse osmosis, membrane filtration) we work with European-based technology supplier, MMS Membrane Solutions.
- For bottle fillers we work with Filmatic in South Africa
- For tub fillers, butter wrappers, mini portion fillers, and end of line machines we work with Europe-based Trepko and Filmatic in South Africa
What kind of food and beverage manufacturers do you work with?
A wide variety! From small artisan cheesemakers supplying their handcrafted cheese to their local farmer’s markets, right through to large multi-national companies who produce tens of thousands of litres of product per hour.
We have also completed bespoke projects for R&D organisations, and research food technologists wanting lab-scale equipment to develop new food and beverage products or extract useful compounds from other products.
What process engineering capabilities do you have?
In conjunction with our New Zealand team, we offer end-to-end turnkey solutions, so we have comprehensive in-house expertise for all stages of a project, from initial design through the install, commissioning and project management.
- Our team of process engineers work with clients to design projects, processes and plants.
- Our draftsperson takes these designs and turns them into 3D models.
- The workshop/mechanical team of stainless steel fabricators take these designs and builds the required equipment, tanks and pipework.
- Our electrical team will draw the electrical plans and wire up the equipment ready for commissioning and install. Where required, they will also program the automation and data collection systems.
- The mechanical and electrical teams work together to install the equipment on site.
- The lead process engineer will complete the final commissioning of the installed equipment and hand it over to the client and the operators.
Do you sell second-hand equipment?
We specialise in new equipment, but our sister company, Proquip Solutions – based in Auckland, New Zealand, offer in second hand equipment and asset management.
They source and send equipment around the world, and would be would be happy to assist you with buying or selling second-hand equipment.
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