Clean in Place

Sanitation Systems that Use Existing Plumbing

The more common usage refers to pieces of automated equipment that are designed with the capability to be cleaned by circulating water and sanitation chemicals through built-in plumbing systems. Once the equipment is cleaned, it often goes through a Sanitizing in Place (SIP) process.

After this is complete, the cleaning solutions are returned to their reservoirs to be re-circulated. Then, after being thoroughly rinsed, the interior surfaces are ready to continue production. Maximum cleaning is achieved by adjusting the time, temperature, and mechanical force used.

CIP Sanitation Systems Benefits

There are a number of advantages to equipment designed with CIP capability:

• Repeatability: Because the process is automated, it can be tuned to deliver the required results precisely and then reliably repeated every time it is used.
• Efficiency: The primary efficiency advantage of these systems is the amount of time saved. Thorough cleaning is accomplished quickly, and production can start again as soon as possible. Other efficiencies include better use of water and sanitation chemicals.
• Safety: Employees are no longer required to reach inside of or even enter potentially dangerous equipment, and so one source of potential industrial accidents is eliminated. Additionally, employee contact with sanitation chemicals and other potentially hazardous substances is significantly reduced by using Clean in Place methods.

There Are a Variety of Clean in Place Systems Available

There is considerable competition between designers and manufacturers of CIP equipment for just about every process application in the food processing industry. The technology of spray balls, spray heads, and other delivery systems, as well as automated control, pumps and all the other supporting systems have been developing rapidly. Because CIP systems require a substantial investment in equipment and training, most companies consider them when beginning design and new construction projects or as part of major retrofits.