Transport to success

Fragile products

Since 2016, the company has been specialising in oat milling, producing oat meal, oat flakes and other products. This means that conveying is a vital part of Norgesmøllene’s processes, as oat flake production involves compressing the oats “down to really thin flakes, and those flakes are quite fragile”, explains Plant Manager Frits Are Løberg. As the Skien production facility is also a multi-floor operation across different buildings, “moving products from A to B in the best way possible is really important for us,” he says.

Traditional pneumatic transport methods risk seriously damaging the flakes, and after unsuccessfully trying out other transport systems Norgesmøllene decided to trial Bühler’s TUBO tubular push conveyor. The TUBO’s free-flowing Tubit elements are able to convey products far more gently than by conventional methods, which as well as drastically reducing breakages also increases efficiency.

Gentle action

TUBO’s gentle action also helps to guarantee optimum levels of food safety, which is priority number one for Norgesmøllene. It means the company can meet Norway’s stringent food safety requirements and also deliver the extremely high-quality products that its customers have come to expect. Another huge advantage of the TUBO is its simplicity and ease of maintenance. “It’s really self-cleaning and the wear and tear is quite low,” says Frits Are Løberg. “That’s also really important – that it’s a reliable solution.”

“We have a really good relationship with Bühler. If we have a breakage or a breakdown they will provide us with technicians immediately. We’re always looking for the best solutions to handle our tasks, and Bühler have the best machinery and the best solutions for the milling industry.” Frits Are Løberg, Plant Manager, Norgesmøllene.