Specifying, designing and optimising refrigeration systems 305 15.1.4 Future use All the information collected so far and the decisions taken will be from existing production. Another question that needs to be asked is, will there be any changes in the use of the chiller/freezer in the future? In practice the answer to this question must always be 'yes. Looking back into the past no meat processor has remained static and within the foreseeable life of a chiller/freezer, anything between 10 and 50 years judging by present quantified in as much detail as possible? s be envisaged and can these be It is still not possible at this stage in the design to finalise the factory layout and operation. However, some estimate of how the factory will be operated, how it will be laid out, the size of chiller/freezer needed, and so on must be made at this point. This must be kept flexible until engineering specification has been formulated (see later). It is common practice for the factory layout and operation to be decided in advance writing the chilling/freezing specification. Lack of flexibility in changing these is often responsible for poor chiller performance once the factory is completed 5.1.5 Plant layout Chilling or freezing is one operation in a sequence of operations. It influ- ences the whole system and interacts with it. An idea must be obtained of how the room is to be loaded, unloaded and cleaned, and these operations must always be intimately involved with those of the slaughter line, the sales team, the cutting and boning room, and the loading bay. Questions that need to be addressed include where will meat be sorted for orders?" and where will meat not sold be stored until a future date There is often a conflict of interests within a chiller/freezer. In practice the chiller/freezer is often used as a marshalling yard for sorting orders and as a place for storing car casses that have not been sold. If it is intended that either of these opera- tions are to take place in the chiller/freezer the design must be made much more flexible in order to cover the conditions needed in a marshalling area or a refrigerated store Meat must be loaded into and out of the freezer or chiller and the process may be continuous, batch or semicontinuous. In the case of batch and semi- continuous processes, holding areas will be required at the beginning and nd of the process in order to even out flows of material from adjacent processes. The time available for the process will be in part dictated by the space available; a slow process will take more space than a fast process, for a given throughput. It may also be dictated by commercial constraints, such as the delivery of 'l-day-old meat to distribution outlets. The above specifications will dictate the processing conditions. Most processes use air as a processing medium and its temperature, velocity and relative humidity are all usually critical to the process. The processes may15.1.4 Future use All the information collected so far, and the decisions taken, will be from existing production. Another question that needs to be asked is, will there be any changes in the use of the chiller/freezer in the future? In practice the answer to this question must always be ‘yes’. Looking back into the past, no meat processor has remained static and within the foreseeable life of a chiller/freezer, anything between 10 and 50 years (judging by present chiller/freezer population), can any changes be envisaged and can these be quantified in as much detail as possible? It is still not possible at this stage in the design to finalise the factory layout and operation. However, some estimate of how the factory will be operated, how it will be laid out, the size of chiller/freezer needed, and so on must be made at this point. This must be kept flexible until the engineering specification has been formulated (see later). It is common practice for the factory layout and operation to be decided in advance of writing the chilling/freezing specification. Lack of flexibility in changing these is often responsible for poor chiller performance once the factory is completed. 15.1.5 Plant layout Chilling or freezing is one operation in a sequence of operations. It influ￾ences the whole system and interacts with it. An idea must be obtained of how the room is to be loaded, unloaded and cleaned, and these operations must always be intimately involved with those of the slaughter line, the sales team, the cutting and boning room, and the loading bay. Questions that need to be addressed include ‘where will meat be sorted for orders?’ and ‘where will meat not sold be stored until a future date?’ There is often a conflict of interests within a chiller/freezer. In practice the chiller/freezer is often used as a marshalling yard for sorting orders and as a place for storing car￾casses that have not been sold. If it is intended that either of these opera￾tions are to take place in the chiller/freezer the design must be made much more flexible in order to cover the conditions needed in a marshalling area or a refrigerated store. Meat must be loaded into and out of the freezer or chiller and the process may be continuous, batch or semicontinuous. In the case of batch and semi￾continuous processes, holding areas will be required at the beginning and end of the process in order to even out flows of material from adjacent processes. The time available for the process will be in part dictated by the space available; a slow process will take more space than a fast process, for a given throughput. It may also be dictated by commercial constraints, such as the delivery of ‘1-day-old’ meat to distribution outlets. The above specifications will dictate the processing conditions. Most processes use air as a processing medium and its temperature, velocity and relative humidity are all usually critical to the process. The processes may Specifying, designing and optimising refrigeration systems 305