the force of nature

Ghirardelli
FOOD PROCESSING CASE STUDYENSURES CLEAN ENVIRONMENTS FOR CONTINUOUS
MANUFACTURING AND INCREASES PRODUCTION TIMECOMPANY

Ghirardelli Chocolate
Company

BENEFITS

Ghirardelli was able to reduce its clean-up time by more than 60
percent.

APPLICATION

In addition to saving time and people resources, the production
Cleaning conveyor chains teams found the system to be user-friendly and a complement toand rails
their lean manufacturing initiatives.

COLD JET SYSTEM
Aero 40

With fewer people required to clean and the ability to clean in lesstime, Ghirardelli has been able to reduce its maintenance costs
and production downtime.

“OUR ALLERGEN CLEANUP PROCESS REQUIRED UP TO 500 MAN HOURS AT TIMES TO ENSURE
THAT WE WERE OPERATING AN ALLERGEN-FREE AND SAFE WORK ENVIRONMENT.”

THE SITUATION

Incorporated in 1852, Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is amanufacturer and marketer of premium chocolates andchocolate products. Ghirardelli controls the entire chocolate
manufacturing process, from cocoa bean to finishedproduct. This control over the manufacturing process,combined with Ghirardelli’s proprietary bean blend andunique methods of roasting and processing, ensure thehighest quality and richest chocolate products. Ghirardelliis part of the Lindt and Sprungli Group of companies.

THE PROBLEM

One of the issues Ghirardelli grapples with in its
manufacturing process is deploying cleaning solutions
that are efficient and safe and help maintain clean, allergen
free environments for continuous manufacturing. Whenit comes to manufacturing the world’s finest chocolates,
Ghirardelli is a company that emphasizes even theminutest details. Ensuring that non-nut containing products
do not contain nuts, for example, is a critical concern for theAmericas + 1800 337 9423

CS.2017.08.08

company, as well as its consumers who have come to rely
on Ghirardelli for its quality. The company’s traditional
cleaning methods included manually scraping chocolate
and food particulates from chains and rails on its
production line using brushes and scrapers. The process
was time consuming and tedious, and required that thecompany shut-down production and allocate extensive
resources. With new product lines to launch and a highstandard of profitability, Ghirardelli has been looking forways to implement cleaning methods that will reduce
people resources and time while still maintaining a safe,
clean and allergen-free manufacturing environment.
In an effort to enhance its cleaning process, Ghirardellidecided to evaluate new cleaning methods and systems.
Ghirardelli isn’t willing to cut corners so it needed a cleaning
solution that is reliable, efficient, easy to use and thatprovided the level of cleanliness that the company needed
to manufacture multiple, independent food products. InEMEA +32 (0) 13 53 95 47 Germany +49 (0) 6551 9606-0
www.coldjet.com
www.icetechworld.com

Asia-Pacific +81 (0)3 6869 2665

“COLD JET HAS HELPED US BECOME A BETTER, CLEANER MANUFACTURER, AND THE DRY ICE
CLEANING SYSTEM TRULY ADDS VALUE TO OUR ORGANIZATION’S OPERATIONS.”
addition, whatever method or system Ghirardelli selected,
it needed to help the company increase profitability with
its new product lines, rather than add to any production
costs. Among the processes the company researched wassteam cleaning, which used portable steamers and custom
made brushes and scrapers. However, while they wereeffective in cleaning the equipment, the steamers proved
to be inefficient. Ghirardelli also evaluated several different makes and models of other alternative cleaning systems, including those which utilized dry ice.
“Ghirardelli is committed to lean manufacturing and ourmanual clean-up process was both time consuming andinefficient,” said Tony Tai, Production Supervisor at Ghirardelli.
“Our allergen cleanup process required up to 500 man
hours at times to ensure that we were operating anallergen-free and safe work environment. We neededa new solution that was more efficient and provided theenvironment that is required to produce the variety andbreadth of products that we manufacture. We looked ata lot of solutions, and ultimately, Cold Jet’s dry ice cleaningsystems proved to be the best.”

CS.2017.08.08

THE SOLUTION

In one of the closely monitored initial trials using Cold Jet’s
Aero 40 system, Ghirardelli was able to reduce its clean-up
time by more than 60 percent. In addition to saving timeand people resources, the production team found thesystem to be user-friendly and a complement to their leanmanufacturing initiatives.

Americas + 1800 337 9423

“It’s not easy to cut clean-up costs without cutting corners
but when working with food, you simply don’t take risks,”commented Tai. “Nut allergies are a huge problem today,
and we don’t take that issue lightly. That’s why we decided
to implement a Cold Jet cleaning system.”
Following the initial pilot test, Ghirardelli deployed three
Cold Jet Aero 40 systems, which deliver advanced economical
dry ice cleaning in an environmentally responsible format.
The Aero 40 is a compact, rugged, mobile solution thatallows Ghirardelli to clean its chocolate and candy production
equipment in place and while it is still hot and online. Withfewer people required to clean and the ability to clean inless time, Ghirardelli has been able to reduce its maintenancecosts and production downtime. A faster, more effective
clean allows Ghirardelli to increase the number of production
cycles using the same equipment.
The environmentally responsible dry ice cleaning processuses recycled CO2 in the form of dry ice pellets. The pellets
are accelerated at supersonic speeds using compressed
air and the combination of the velocity and the thermal
gradient of the dry ice removes the contaminants fromthe surface of the equipment. Once the dry ice strikes thesurface of the conveyors, chains and other equipment, it
sublimates, leaving nothing to clean up except the removed
contaminants. Dry ice cleaning is also non-abrasive andnon-conductive, which means Ghirardelli can use the system
without worrying about the wear and tear on equipment
or damaging electronic components. Dry ice cleaning has
also been effectively used in EPA, FDA and USDA inspectedfacilities.

EMEA +32 (0) 13 53 95 47 Germany +49 (0) 6551 9606-0
www.coldjet.com
www.icetechworld.com

Asia-Pacific +81 (0)3 6869 2665

“WE NEEDED A NEW SOLUTION THAT WAS MORE EFFICIENT AND PROVIDED THE ENVIRONMENT THAT ISREQUIRED TO PRODUCE THE VARIETY AND BREADTH OF PRODUCTS THAT WE MANUFACTURE.”

CS.2017.08.08“We tried different models of dry ice cleaners, but eventually
all agreed that the units from Cold Jet were easier to useand more effective,” said Tai. “The Aero 40 machines are fast,efficient, non-toxic and non-abrasive. My production team tells
me repeatedly that Cold Jet’s product is user-friendly and thatit has the best applicator nozzle and attachment of all thosethat we evaluated. Did I mention they are fast? The Aerosystems give us everything we asked for in a cleaning solution,and I’m getting a lot of interest from other plants within ourorganization because of the efficiency and the production
increases we’ve achieved. Cold Jet has helped us becomea better, cleaner manufacturer and the dry ice cleaningsystem truly adds value to our organization’s operations.”
By deploying Cold Jet’s cleaning systems, Ghirardelli has
reduced the time and resources it takes to complete thecompany’s extensive allergen cleanup process. As a result,
Ghirardelli has enhanced its lean initiatives and deployeda cleaning solution that actually helps increase production
and profitability. Ghirardelli is currently looking to expand
its use of dry ice cleaning to other departments and possibly
other plants within the Lindt and Sprungli Chocolate
family of companies.

Americas + 1800 337 9423

“WE TRIED DIFFERENT MODELS OF DRY ICE CLEANERS, BUT
EVENTUALLY ALL AGREED THAT THE UNITS FROM COLD JET
WERE EASIER TO USE AND MORE EFFECTIVE.”

EMEA +32 (0) 13 53 95 47 Germany +49 (0) 6551 9606-0
www.coldjet.com
www.icetechworld.com

Asia-Pacific +81 (0)3 6869 2665