Tong rolls out cutting-edge technology to proven vegetable grader

Continuing its strong start to 2014, Tong is adding a new, state-of-the-art update to its popular Lift Roller Grader.

The UK’s leading designer and manufacturer of handling and sorting equipment for the vegetable industry will now offer its Auto-Touch HMI controls on all new models of its lift roller grading machines. The company’s Auto-Touch touchscreen control panel will allow grade bands on the machine to be altered in seconds, significantly improving ease of use, throughput volumes and handling speed by removing the need for more time-consuming manual adjustments.

Flexible in their use for a wide range of crops including potatoes, carrots, parsnips, brussel sprouts, swedes and bulbs, Tong Lift Roller Graders are manufactured based on customer grade band requirements and crop type, with the option of adjusting grade band settings to suit different crop varieties and contract demands.

The addition of Tong’s Auto-Touch HMI Controls to its lift roller grading range is the latest technological advancement to be added to the company’s product range after the touch screen controls proved to be invaluable in fine-tuning the control and performance of Tong’s market leading EasyClean separator within its Caretaker mobile vegetable grading range.

Simon Lee, sales manager at Tong Engineering, said: “Its flexibility and versatility have made the Lift Roller Grader one of our most popular grading machines on a wide range of crops that are not suited to screen grading.

“After supplying a large number of these systems to growers and packers worldwide, we’re now offering the latest technology with it to ensure it provides the efficiency, reliability and usability that our customers demand of it.”

Edward Tong, operations director at Tong Engineering, said: “While standard controls are still available on all of our grading machines, these new technology-driven options can offer considerable advantages.

“Where changing of the grade bands is normally a manual process which ultimately means some downtime while the roller settings are manually adjusted, our Auto-Touch HMI controls will mean that at the touch of the button the roller setting can be changed instantly.

“Not only that, as many of our customers have several different contracts to fulfill within tight deadlines, the HMI control unit can be set with pre-determined programs, each with a different combination of grade bands, set to suit different contract demands. Having the option to select any one of the programs within seconds allows users to switch between crop varieties and contracts within minutes, offering huge savings in time, labour and ultimately cost.

“As well as Auto-Touch HMI controls, all of our new Lift Roller Graders come with Tong’s Blue Inverter Technology, integrating inverter direct driven motors to increase energy efficiency.

“What’s more, all mild steel painted machinery is now finished with our new SPECTRACON® coating, which combines a solvent-based epoxy primer with a high-performance finish layer, providing unrivalled corrosion resistance, excellent durability and outstanding appearance.”