Food is the most important thing for people, and food safety comes first. From planting and breeding in the fields, to processing and packaging in factory workshops, to the kitchens and dining tables of thousands of households - the production process, processing links, back-end packaging, and storage links of food and beverages are closely connected with motors, and motors and other production equipment together constitute a complete chain to ensure food safety.
The importance of production line safety and production efficiency in the food production process has gradually increased with the development of enterprises, the concentration of the industry, and the fierce competition on the product side. ABB's low-voltage explosion-proof motor products and solutions have also quietly played an indispensable role in this "hot" industry.
Policy + market work together. Energy-saving transformation of motors has become a general trend in the industry.
2024 is the "Consumption Promotion Year" determined by the Ministry of Commerce. Many provinces and cities have successively issued various policies to promote consumption. The food and beverage industry, as a rigid consumer category closely related to people's livelihood, is regarded as a key area for restoring and expanding consumption, and has become an important place that cannot be ignored in people's livelihood. With the increasing requirements of consumers for food quality, the safety and energy-saving requirements of food companies' processing and packaging production lines are also increasing day by day.
The industry is stable and rising, and market demand promotes the renewal of advanced processing equipment. In 2023, the global market sales of food and beverage processing equipment will be approximately US$74.55 billion, a year-on-year increase of 5.7%. The large demand for food and beverage processing and packaging has led manufacturers to prefer processing equipment with advanced technology. In the past three years, with the development of domestic grain and oil processing enterprises and the gradual increase in new projects, the requirements for motors in key application areas of the industry, such as mills, fans and other products, have also gradually increased, and motor transformation and upgrading has become a general trend.
At present, ABB has cooperated with leading enterprises in the flour processing industry, and more than 5,000 ABB high-efficiency motors have been added to reduce costs and increase efficiency for flour processing factories, greatly reduce the electricity costs of enterprises, improve dust explosion safety performance, and escort the safe operation and production of factories.
With the support of national policies, energy-saving transformation of motors is imperative. In 2023, the National Development and Reform Commission, together with nine departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, issued the "Guiding Opinions on Coordinating Energy Conservation and Carbon Reduction and Recycling to Accelerate the Renovation of Products and Equipment in Key Areas", which clearly stated that by 2025, by coordinating the promotion of the renovation and recycling of products and equipment in key areas, the market share of high-efficiency and energy-saving products and equipment will be further increased - the trend of being equipped with safer and more efficient motors and energy-saving transformation is expected to continue to help the development of the global food processing and packaging market in the near future.
Lean Innovation ABB dust explosion-proof M2QA-FB5 motor energy efficiency upgrade
In the flour milling field such as wheat and flour, the threat of dust cannot be underestimated. When combustible dust is mixed with air in a confined space to form a dust cloud, the dust-air mixture formed will burn quickly under the action of the ignition source, causing a chemical reaction with a sharp increase in temperature and pressure, which is extremely destructive. If a secondary explosion occurs, toxic gases may also be produced. ABB dust explosion-proof motors can greatly reduce the probability of dust explosions, avoid potential safety risks in hazardous areas, and help customers avoid losses caused by processing and production accidents.
In 2025, ABB will launch the M2QA-FB5 motor with a new upgrade to IE5 energy efficiency, which will save customers initial investment costs to a greater extent and provide a safer and more reliable dust explosion-proof solution.
Targeted special upgrade, high temperature resistance and dust prevention. As a dust explosion-proof motor product derived from the M2QA motor designed by ABB, the M2QA-FB series low-voltage dust explosion-proof motor inherits the consistent design advantages of M2QA products and has been specially upgraded for the food industry. The M2QA-FB motor is specially designed for explosive dust environments to ensure the safe and reliable operation of the product in relevant hazardous areas. Its working environment temperature can be as high as 50°C, and the dust explosion-proof level is Ex tb IIIC T130°C Db. By using shell protection, dust is prevented from entering and the surface temperature of the motor is controlled, ensuring that the motor continues to operate safely and reliably in hazardous environments.
Save corporate investment costs and save energy and reduce carbon emissions efficiently. Enterprises upgrading M2QA-FB5 motors not only respond to the call of national policies, but also save energy for enterprise production, reduce electricity expenses, and effectively reduce maintenance costs, ultimately bringing cost savings to customers throughout the life cycle; in addition, ABB also provides high-reliability explosion-proof solutions to effectively improve enterprise production efficiency. According to calculations, taking the flour mill with an annual production capacity of 600,000 tons as an example, upgrading the IE3 national standard level 3 motor to the IE5 national standard level 1 ultra-high energy-efficiency motor is expected to save 1.76 million kWh of energy for the manufacturer each year and reduce electricity expenses by more than 1.5 million yuan. In addition, the arrival of M2QA-FB5 can effectively reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and the carbon emission reduction is expected to reach 1,250 tons, continuously helping to achieve the "dual carbon" development goals.
Continuous investment brings reliable power to the industry. Luo Hui, head of ABB's local IEC low-voltage motor business in my country, said: "ABB's low-voltage motor products have been continuously upgraded through R&D investment and product iteration to innovate the energy efficiency of motor products, responding to the urgent demand for high-efficiency products in the Chinese market and providing more possibilities for various industries, including the food industry. The energy efficiency upgrade of M2QA-FB5 also demonstrates our continued investment in enabling industry and social innovation, bringing sustainable solutions for energy saving and efficiency improvement while helping the industry drive the world."
Looking forward to the future, ABB will continue to delve into the food and beverage industry, and continue to launch more efficient and energy-saving products and solutions based on reliability and safety. Whether it is significantly improving the safety and energy efficiency of food and beverage production lines or taking solid steps on the road to ensuring food safety and promoting green development, empowering the food and beverage industry to provide consumers with more healthy choices, and jointly build a solid foundation for the food industry Production "firewall".