The heart of the hydro cutter is the knife block. The knife block has a tunnel-shaped passage with firmly mounted knives that cut potatoes into strips. This knife block Is mounted into the knife block holder which consists of an alignment tube called a Venturi with a profiled polyurethane lining that inserts the potato lengthways into the knife block. Thanks to the precise aiming capacity of this tube, the tubers are lined up in a way the longest strips can be achieved.

Maximize French Fry Length

The length of the end product is for a large part determined by the way the raw product is cut. To ensure the best possible cut, a solid pre-sorting installation will make the difference to get the longest fries and the least amount of product waste. Processors gain a lot by making sure that especially the smaller potatoes are sorted correctly. By using multiple hydro cutting systems with different sizes of inlets, the potatoes are transported to the matching size hydro cutter for the longest French fries.

Optimize French Fry Production 

Hydro cutting systems are installed all over the world by Kiremko. Sometimes up to six stations are set up in a single French fry line to ensure the highest possible yield and the perfect cutting of potatoes into long French fries. Kiremko configures every cutting line to make sure that it is capable of handling different qualities and sizes of raw product.   

Kiremko’s hydro cutting innovation includes an RFID tag system to monitor knife usage and prevent cutting mistakes. The KnifeGuard system measures lifespan, sharpness, and alignment, eliminating errors and improving product yield.

Kiremko offers customized alignment tubes and knife blocks for different cutting sizes and shapes. Read more about the KnifeGuard by clicking the link here.

Hydro cutting systems such as Kiremko’s QuadraFlow, feature single or double knife block holders with a switcher. The switcher is a special version of the knife holder system. When an active knife block is blocked, caused by any number of unexpected reasons, or when blade sharpness is no longer sufficient, the second knife block with alignment tube automatically takes over. This prevents downtime of the line.

Because the system will indicate in time when the knives inside the hydro cutters need to be changed, there will be no  scenario in which the product is damaged by blunt knifes. That makes the system contribute to an excellent end product and also decreases the amount of operators needed to operate the line.

In addition to the knife block, the product pump that pumps water through the cutting line that carries the potatoes, is of great importance for an effective cutting process. The stainless steel VPCK single-vane impeller pump has been developed with the aim of designing and building a pump to achieve the lowest degree of product damage possible. The development was carried out with CFD model analysis. Data from this analysis helped to create an ideal flow pattern which has been converted into an optimized pump designs. Tests with different designs of pumps, both former Kiremko style pumps and competition brands,  have shown that the damage to products carried through the system is the lowest with the VPCK pump.

Revolutionizing French Fry Production: Advanced Water Flow Optimization

Recently Kiremko extensively researched the water flow in peeling and cutting lines of a French fry line. Together with students from the University of Utrecht and Kiremko’s in house CFD engineer, the groundwork was laid for further enhancements of the cutting line. Foam formation causes products pumps to run more erratically and abates the cutting results. By optimizing the water flow in the cutting system, we are able to lower the air impact on the water, minimizing the formation of foam and the use of antifoam consumption. These studies are all possible due to the increasing possibilities of CFD computable fluid dynamics programs.