Sinclair Knight Merz provided construction/commissioning services and all engineering services for the wet processing area for a new nutritional products plant at Dargaville, New Zealand. The plant is capable of producing a wide range of products such as baby food, enriched milk powders for children, and dietary supplements. The bulk ingredients, powder and liquid, may be either dairy or non-dairy (or both). The process includes:
- reception, weighing and rehydration of bulk powders
- batch blending of rehydrated products with dairy and non-dairy liquids and trace additives such as vitamins and minerals
- heat-treatment prior to evaporation and spray drying
- storage.
The plant was designed to process three 60 t batches per day. The design incorporated the flexibility to produce a wide range of formulations with varying physical properties. Services provided by Sinclair Knight Merz included:
- process plant – detailed process design, including P&IDs, equipment specification, plant and piping layouts and control system design
- utilities – detailed assessment of requirements for services including electrical, CIP, chilled water, steam, process water, and compressed air. This was followed up with the design and specification of additional capacity and interfaces with, and distribution within, the new plant
- procurement – prepared specifications, called and assessed tenders, and administered the contracts for the supply of specialist process and utility plant items such as the homogeniser, re-hydration plant, tanks and silos, MCCs and chilled water plant. We also specified and called bids for the purchase of specialist plant items such as valves, heat exchangers, and instruments
- construction supervision, commissioning management and planning.