Meeting the refrigeration needs of a vegan protein producer

Quorn Foods, producer of vegan meat-alternative products and meals, turned to GEA to help with a solution for a failing refrigeration system at its Yorkshire facility in the UK. A GEA Grasso Conversion Kit (GGCK) was selected to meet the requirements.

The system was needed immediately and GEA was given a short 10-day period during a planned shutdown within which to complete the installation and to remove the obsolete equipment. It was able to install the compressor conversion kit in half of this allotted time.

In addition to the compressor, a GEA Omni Retrofit Panel control and management system was installed in order to smooth out the previously erratic operation of the refrigeration system. The solution saw Quorn’s refrigeration capacity increased by 7% while also reducing electricity usage by 29%. These operating parameters also helped to reduce the carbon emissions of the refrigeration process.

“Originally we had requested a like-for-like replacement for the failing compressor but GEA offered an alternative, cost-effective solution which was delivered ahead of schedule and without downtime to production. It has been a highly successful project, giving Quorn a payback of less than three years,” said Neal Simmonds, Quorn Foods’ Engineering Site Manager.