The Most-Read Articles of 2017
We’ve officially waved goodbye to 2017, so we thought we’d roundup and countdown some of the most-read articles on the HPS blog in 2017. Take a look at our reader-favourites below and discover the posts you may have missed – both pigging or industry-related.
Soft Drinks and the UK Sugar Tax
This blog article looks at the Sugar Tax on the Soft Drinks Industry that will be introduced in the UK in April 2018.
Officially referred to as the Soft Drinks Industry Levy, the idea behind the tax is to help tackle obesity and cardiovascular diseases and diabetes amongst younger generations. The blog article evaluates the options that soft drink manufacturers have and whether the proposed tax presents a problem or opportunity.
Read More: Soft Drinks and the UK Sugar Tax
There’s Pigging, and there’s Pigging!
Another of our popular blog posts focuses on the similarities and differences between pigging in the process industries (such as food, beverage, household products, confectionery, plus more) and pigging in the oil, water, gas and utility industries.
Although both types of pigging often get confused, this blog article looks at the different objectives between the two and how the design, application and control systems also differ.
Read More: There’s Pigging, and There’s Pigging!
What’s The Best Pipeline Pig?
Because there are so many pigs to choose from for industrial processes and hygienic or sanitary applications, this blog post provides information, advice, and guidance to help you choose the right type of pipeline pig that is suitable for your pipeline size and application.
The blog also looks at some of the problems commonly associated with certain types of pig, including product bypass and contamination. It also examines the effectiveness of alternative pigging technologies, such as ice pigging.
Read More: What’s the Best Type of Pipeline Pig for Process Hygienic and Sanitary Applications
Hygienic Pipeline Cleaning
When producing or processing food or beverages that are fit for human consumption, it’s imperative that companies have stringent hygiene standards in place.
This blog article looks at the role of hygienic and pipeline cleaning in hygienic and sanitary processing environments. This includes pipe system design, the Clean in Place (CIP) process and how pigging fits in with CIP.
Read More: Hygienic Pipeline Cleaning
Pipeline Pig Tracking
This blog article focuses on ‘Pig Tracking’ and how to track and locate the position of the pig (or pigs) in a liquid processing system. Pig tracking is fundamental since the safety and effectiveness of the pigging system depend on knowing the location of the pig within the pipe at all times.
Some of the ways to track a pig include using non-intrusive pig detection and also using magnetised pigs which can be accurately and reliably detected.
Read More: Pipeline Pig Tracking
Pig Launchers and Pig Receivers
Pig launchers and pig receivers are a fundamental component of an HPS pigging system. This blog article focuses on the role of both of them in hygienic (or sanitary) process pigging systems. This includes information on what they are and the key functions of the equipment.
Read More: Pig Launchers and Pig Receivers
How To Prevent Aeration During Liquid Processing
Aeration and foaming can lead to major problems in many pipeline processes. This blog article looks at the causes of aeration in pipelines and how to stop liquid foaming in pipelines using a double-pig pigging system.
If a product has a tendency to foam, or risks being compromised by coming into contact air (i.e. wine) whether it’s before a run, after a flush, CIP or product changeover, using a double-pig pigging system is strongly recommended.
Read More: How to Prevent Aeration During Liquid Processing
How Do Pigs Move Along Pipes?
This blog article looks at the propellants i.e. gas or liquid which are used in industrial process pigging to move the pigs along the pipes or tubing.
It also focuses on the pressure required to pig a system and the speed at which the pig travels along the length of the pipe. What’s more, this blog also provides information and guidance on why to choose a particular propellant and the types of gases that can be used to propel the pig.
Read More: How Do Pigs Move Along Pipes?
And our top 3 blog posts of 2017 are:
3. Beer Industry: Environmental Concerns and Regulations
Coming in third place is our blog article focused on the beer industry and the challenges that it must overcome, including environmental issues and looming government regulation.
It also looks at the role of pigging systems and how they can deliver significant gains for breweries, including improving their efficiency, reducing contamination issues and helping to improve their environmental sustainability.
Read More: Beer Industry: Environmental Concerns and Regulations
2. Facing Challenges in the Chocolate and Confectionery Industry
This blog article looks at the biggest challenges facing the chocolate and confectionery industry, which includes raw material prices increasing, government regulation and competitive pressure. It also focuses on how manufacturers can overcome these challenges, by either charging higher prices or turning to cheaper raw material alternatives instead.
More and more chocolate and confectionery manufacturers are also using pigging, to recover as much valuable product during the manufacturing process as possible. Therefore, this blog goes on to explain the significant benefits that pigging offers chocolate production.
Read More: Facing Challenges in the Chocolate and Confectionery Industry
1. The Impact of Industry 4.0
Our most popular blog post of 2017 features ‘Industry 4.0’, which is also referred to as the ‘Fourth Industry Revolution’. This blog article focuses on the challenges and opportunities that the revolution brings, especially for food and drink manufacturers who are set to benefit considerably from the implementation of the revolution.
The blog also looks at the role of pigging systems, in particular, automatic pigging solutions, and how they may be influenced, changed, or be part of, Industry 4.0.
Read More: The Impact of Industry 4.0
Thank You for Reading the HPS Blog
Thank you to all those who read our blog articles last year. We hope you found them valuable and enjoyed reading them as much as we enjoyed writing them.
We’re looking forward to writing more blogs in 2018! If you would like to vote for your favourite blog of 2017, please get in touch with us. We’d love to hear your thoughts! Alternatively, if you have any suggestions, or have any requests for future blog posts, please contact HPS.