Full Steam Ahead: Sanitizing with Steam and Water Mixing Stations Whitepaper

Washdown stations ensure cleanliness in food processing, dairy, breweries, wineries, chemical, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, and other industrial facilities where a high-temperature washdown is required.

Traditional cleaning methods include soap, hot water, and sometimes chemical disinfectants. These procedures may require breaking down equipment to ensure all components are efficiently cleaned and sanitized. If chemicals are used to sanitize a processing plant, especially in food and beverage, labor costs, the possibility of safety hazards, and the overall sanitization time increase.

Utilizing a Steam and Water Mixing Valve to Sanitize Processing Plants

Sanitizing your facility or plant using a steam and water mixing valve is one of the most efficient ways. Using steam to heat the water is more beneficial than chemical cleansing because it avoids chemical agents and can reduce labor times and water consumption.

Steam and water mixing valve stations provide instantaneous high-temperature steam-heated water with pressure behind it, which can kill bacteria, sterilize, and break down greases and other residues in processing plants. The World Health Organization states that bacteria are rapidly killed at temperatures between 149°F and 185°F degrees.

There’s also less downtime for dismantling and reassembly when utilizing steam-heated water to sanitize manufacturing equipment. Steam is sterile as well as being an excellent carrier of heat. Harmful chemicals are also used less or not at all, allowing for more uptime and a safer environment for personnel; while they are doing their jobs.

Not just anyone can utilize high-temperature steam and water mixing washdown stations. Plant personnel must be trained on proper use to ensure safety because the goal is to sanitize, and the goal of the plant is safety.

STVM® Steam & Water Washdown Station

STVM Steam and Water Mixing Valve Washdown Station

ThermOmegaTech’s STVM® Steam & Water Washdown Station has been designed to put the safety of maintenance operators first. Every STVM® Washdown Station is built-to-last and has two built-in safety features – interlocking ball valves to prevent steam-only operation and an automatic shut-off when output is 15°F over the unit’s temperature set-point (either 150°F or 185°F) or when cold water flow is interrupted.

This Washdown Station also incorporates unique Venturi mixing technology to deliver water at the required temperature quickly, quietly, and on demand.

The ‘ST’ in STVM stands for ‘Silent Type,’ meaning it is quieter than other washdown mixing stations. The Venturi effect mixes water in smoother than other steam-to-water mixing stations on the market, which can cause cavitation downstream of the mixing valve.

The steam-supplied station is a self-contained mechanical control unit, so it doesn’t require external hookups for electrical, instrumentation controls, or compressed air.

Find out how the STVM washdown station can efficiently clean your facility. Read more and download the Full Steam Ahead Whitepaper.

2022: ThermOmegaTech’s Year in Review

2022 was a fantastic year, thanks to our customers! ThermOmegaTech® has been able to meet its goals despite facing industry-wide supply chain issues. Let’s celebrate ThermOmegaTech’s Year in Review!

2022 HIGHLIGHTS

Here are some of the significant accomplishments we are celebrating from our Industrial Market:

  • Andy Reichlin joined our team in March as our Industrial National Sales Manager. Andy has held roles in communications, marketing, and sales, managing national distribution networks for various industrial products, including bearings and pumps, over the last 20 years. His expertise has helped us to grow our distribution network and support our authorized distributors.
  • We hosted our first inaugural Distributor Advisory Council, which included representation from six authorized distributors. This was incredibly beneficial as they were able to tour our facility, and we could share ideas and resources for the upcoming year.
  • We also added two new U.S. distributors, Industrial and Construction Enterprises and Schimberg Co., and two new International distributors, Glotex and Tubes International.

NEW LITERATURE & VIDEOS

  • We launched an eBook with Food Processing Magazine in November ’22 on how sanitizing food processing facilities with steam-heated water provides a simple and efficient way to maintain a sterile work environment. Download it here.
  • We created a whitepaper on the Steps to Developing an Effective Sanitization Procedure in plants and facilities, which you can download here.
  • We also released this application sheet on Thermostatic Control Valves for Cooling Balancing Applications.
  • We were excited to release this video on HCX and HCS Washdown Stations for Breweries, Wineries & Other Facilities Without Steam. To ensure a high-powered wash that guarantees cleanliness in production facilities, ThermOmegaTech® offers the most economical, safe, and efficient washdown systems and equipment.

TRADESHOWS WE ATTENDED

ASSP Expo 2022: Industrial Safety Trade Show

We had a great time networking and meeting associates at the 2022 ASSP Expo.

Here are some of the great accomplishments that we’d like to share with you from our Rail Division:

  • Increased sales steadily as we moved out of the pandemic and remained the leader in locomotive freeze protection for all the Class I’s in North America.
  • Significant growth in the passenger car freeze protection market thanks to a big focus on the GURU PC® with its electric heater assembly to ensure prospects are aware of the need for freeze protection and options available for passenger cars.
  • Dana Logue, Engineering Project Manager, and Glenn Quinty, Senior Engineering Product Specialist, participated in RT&S Railway Age Virtual Conference: Winter Preparedness. Watch it on demand here!

Here are some of the outstanding accomplishments that we’d like to share with you from our Commercial Plumbing Division, CircuitSolver®:

  • We launched the new CircuitSolver Union Cold Water balancing valve (CSU-CW). This valve automatically and continuously balances a cold water recirculation system to discourage Legionella bacteria colonization and reduce stagnation.
  • Project Manager Eric McTee of ME Engineers details his experience specifying CircuitSolver® over the last few years in this testimonial.
  • We released two new videos, a How it Works video on CircuitSolver® and one on the new Cold Water CircuitSolver® valve.
  • Read more about CircuitSolver’s Year in Review on the CircuitSolver® website.

Here are some of the great accomplishments that we’d like to share with you from our Aerospace and Defense Division:

  • We hired Josh White as our A&D Business Development Manager and are excited about his work in the Aerospace and Defense Division. Josh is a former Air Force One pilot with over 20 years of operational military aviation experience. His expertise and skills in the aerospace industry will help us to develop new processes and streamline our strategies to serve our customers better.
  • We have brought on a new A&D rep J.D. Technologies Global, who works with high-quality, complementary manufacturers of products and services that serve the aerospace, military & defense, medical, and industrial markets. We are very excited about this partnership and proud of the work we’ve done with them in 2022, and looking forward to 2023.
  • Read more about our A&D Division’s Year in Review on the Aerospace & Defense website.

Looking Forward

Our Electronics Affiliate, TJM Electronics, has merged with ThermOmegaTech® and will now operate under the ThermOmegaTech® brand as our Electronics Division! Read about this breaking news here!

Thank you for being a part of our journey, and have a happy New Year! We look forward to working with you in 2023!

In the News: STVM Washdown Station Combines Steam, Water, and Safety in an Easy to Maintain Package

In food processing, dairy, beverage, chemical, petrochemical, and pharmaceutical facilities maintaining a clean environment is critical. High-temperature washdown equipment is used to quickly and efficiently clean and sanitize equipment in place to keep production running on time. These washdown stations mix steam and cold water to provide hot water for facility clean-up.

Maintaining competitor washdown units can be time-consuming due to complex disassembly, special tooling requirements, and non-reusable components. ThermOmegaTech, a leader in self-actuating thermostatic valve technology, supplies an innovative solution to the challenge of difficult to maintain washdown units.

ThermOmegaTech’s STVM Washdown Station delivers a high-temperature wash at a user-defined temperature using our proprietary Silent Venturi Mixing Valve (STVM) to combine steam and water. Our mixing valve’s design is self-scouring, which prevents mineral buildup in tight spaces and reduces maintenance frequency.

STVM Steam & Water Washdown Station

To minimize downtime during routine maintenance, the STVM Washdown Station has a simple cartridge design, which is removed with a wrench and cleaned in a descaling solution before reassembly. The station is in-line serviceable, so the operator simply switches out the STVM Cartridge with a spare and the unit is operating in minutes.

Worker safety is every facility’s priority, so we built it into our washdown’s operation.

“The STVM Washdown Station has two safety features to keep your employees safe. One, the mixing valve is designed to reduce flow if the output temperature exceeds the factory set-point and will completely stop flow 15°F above that,” Nick Tallos, ThermOmegaTech’s VP of Engineering said. “Two, the unit has interlocking steam and water shut-off ball valves, so both inlets shut-off at the same time to prevent accidental steam-only, ‘hose full of steam’ operation.”

Due to the unique design of the STVM Cartridge’s water and steam mixing spool, the unit operates at around 20 decibels less than competitor washdown units. This reduces overall operator stress and improves workplace conditions.

The unit functions completely mechanically and requires no outside source of electricity to operate. Compact and reliable, the STVM Washdown Station is a beneficial addition to any facility.

Originally published in The National Provisioner.