The Importance of Clean Breaks in Production

Scheduled production downtime is often perceived as a loss of profit. In actuality, fewer machine breakdowns mean a more efficient operation, and scheduled downtime for sanitation provides a “clean break.” By definition, a clean break is a production break that involves a documented, verified, and validated cleaning and sanitation process to ensure sterility upon completion. In practice, a clean break is a damage limiting event that defines the maximum quantity that could be recalled in case of a contamination. It assures microbial contamination cannot overlap from one production run to another. Financially, a clean break is like an insurance policy, money spent on something you hope gives you no return on investment. Emotionally, a clean break is peace-of-mind.

Clean breaks are an important component of an effective traceability program. If a recall were to occur, it will include all product that was packed from the last full cleaning and sanitizing event forward. The product that is processed between clean breaks is called a lot. The more frequently clean breaks are established, the smaller the lot. If a facility’s clean break cannot be defended during a recall, then as far as an investigator is concerned, that company did not have one. When that happens, the recall will only grow. In October 2018, McCain Foods recalled 63 different products back to a shipped date of January 1, 2016 because they did not have a more recent clean break.

If contamination is detected, the question of how far back to recall can be painstaking, especially if the decontamination process utilized is not 100% effective. Typical cleaning and sanitization methods can have difficulty guaranteeing that all organisms have been contacted or contacted with the proper effective dosage. Therefore, these techniques may not eliminate all of the organisms, leaving some to reproduce. Modern fumigation methods, such as use of gaseous chlorine dioxide, can completely eliminate all of the organisms and thereby “reset” a facility. Chlorine dioxide gas is able to achieve a complete 6-log sporicidal decontamination of all surfaces within a space, including hard-to-reach areas such as cracks and crevices, because it is a true gas above -40 degrees and its molecule size is smaller than the smallest virus. Once the gas has been removed, the area is safe and does not require additional cleanup. 

Similar to a firebreak in a forest, a clean break provides companies with that line of safety. The strategic use of preventive scheduled downtime leads to a safer, more reliable, more efficient operation. By using chlorine dioxide gas routinely for decontaminating a facility before an issue arises, the chance of a contamination and/or a recall declines drastically, potentially saving money, disruptions to business, and perhaps lives. ClorDiSys’ decontamination method and approach to process control has enabled us to be trusted to keep critical environments safe, including most major pharmaceutical companies and 31 of the Top 100 food manufacturers. If you would like to learn more about clean breaks, how to establish the scope of a project, or our decontamination services in general, please contact us at sales@clordisys.com or complete this form.

Case Study: Equipment Decontamination in a Trailer

Shipping containers and trucks can be used in the chlorine dioxide gas decontamination process multiple ways. For one, the shipping container or truck’s trailer can serve as a temporary chamber where equipment and supplies are put in and sterilized at once. For another, the truck itself can be sterilized without anything in it to produce a clean environment prior to product being loaded. An example of the former would be a sandwich company who filled a standard-sized truck trailer with new equipment to be decontaminated prior to installation within their processing area. The client took this opportunity to not only decontaminate this new, unassembled piece of equipment but include additional equipment from inside as well, really packing the trailer, since chlorine dioxide gas is a true gas at room temperatures that disperses evenly and completely, getting down into all of the cracks and crevices of hard-to-reach areas within crowded spaces. This decontamination service took place right outside in the client’s parking lot, away from the building, allowing production to run as usual inside. Even in the snowy inclement weather that day, our Decontamination Services team was able to complete this job in 5 hours, from set up to clean up, and the incubated biological indicators were found negative, confirming the chlorine dioxide decontamination was successful.

Generally speaking, if the space can be sealed, it can be decontaminated. ClorDiSys' chlorine dioxide gas technology allows for a complete decontamination of your facility, room, equipment, or ductwork with minimal downtime. View a sample of some other decontamination service projects here, and contact us if you have a project you'd like to explore.

Choose Prevention over Recall Apprehension

A recall can be extremely detrimental to a company both at the time of recall and well into the future. Avoid major consequences like production stoppages, adverse media attention, loss of consumer trust, and civil suits or federal investigations by being prepared and investing in routine preventive decontamination. Traditional sanitation methods have difficulty truly eliminating pathogens from hard-to-reach areas.  This is what allows growth niches and harborage sites to become established and create “resident strains” in your facility.  Supplementing your routine sanitation program with a high-level decontamination method can eliminate the pathogens within niches and harborage sites to provide a cleaner and safer environment.

ClorDiSys offers an all-encompassing Preventive Food Safety Program which brings together industry experts from complimentary organizations to help lead the way towards safer food manufacturing. Get an outsider’s perspective on your current Food Safety Program to gain insight and eliminate possible issues that are currently being overlooked. Through a single purchasing source, you can select from a variety of services not offered by a single organization to help find and address the gaps in your food safety program and ensure that your reputation stays in high regard among consumers.

Stop by to chat and learn more at the 20^th Annual Food Safety Summit next week or log in to our Preventive Food Safety Program webinar on May 22^nd.

Case Study: Listeria Decontamination Service

Our Decontamination Service Team has been busy, recently working on multiple projects in Massachusetts, California, Connecticut, and Washington State. One of our more recent projects was helping a company eliminate a listeria problem in the customer's produce blend room. This facility was not in production and was finishing a punch list of installations, upgrades, and maintenance activities. Our Decontamination Team slid in alongside the customer's schedule in order to limit the disruption and enable production to begin as soon as possible.

The almost 500,000 ft³ Blend Room was turned over to our team at 4pm.  At this time, gas injection tubing was run to 10 different locations in order to speed up the natural distribution of the gas.  Gas sample tubing was run to 6 different locations within the Blend Room in order to measure gas concentrations throughout the decontamination process.  This enables our team to confidently control the process, making sure that the entire room has been subjected to the proper dosage of chlorine dioxide gas necessary to achieve a 6-log sporicidal reduction.  Biological Indicators were placed in 20 different locations throughout the space, including placement under trash cans, as well as beneath and behind equipment.  Conveyors, doors, and the HVAC system handling the room were then sealed.  At approximately 11:15pm, gassing started.  At 3:15 am, all areas within the room reached the appropriate dosage, and aeration began.  Upon completion, equipment was removed from the space along with biological indicators.  The next day, Biological Indicators were dropped in growth media and incubated for 36 hours to check if any of the million bacterial spores contained on the indicator were left viable to grow and multiply.  After 36 hours, none of the 20 biological indicators showed any growth, proving that a 6-log sporicidal reduction took place within the Blend Room.  The project was successful and the company was able to start production shortly after.

Visit the ClorDiSys website to learn more about our decontamination services for all industries.