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WECO, a member of the Duravant Food Sorting and Handling Solutions group, will introduce its new 360Tek optical sorter for blueberries at PACK EXPO International in Booth S-2860. Separating product with fine defects, extraneous vegetable matter (EVM) and jumbo berries, this small, high-capacity sorter can inspect up to 8,000 lbs. (3,600 kg) of berries per hour. Located at the end of WECO’s modular Sortivator fresh-pack line for blueberry cleaning and sorting, the affordable 360Tek maximizes product quality while reducing labor requirements.
“Consumer expectations for blueberry quality are rising—shoppers now want flawless fruit in every clamshell. Our new 360Tek sorter is the perfect addition to our Sortivator portfolio of solutions, helping packers achieve the most accurate final sort possible in the smallest footprint,” said Eric Horner, Vice President of WECO. “With its unique roller design, the 360Tek is half the size of similar fine defect sorters on the market while achieving twice the throughput, maintaining consistently high performance and offering a superior ROI. It’s a gamechanger for the blueberry industry.”
WECO’s 360Tek removes products with a wide range of defects including scars, splits and rubs, as well as EVM like stems and flowers. It can also separate large, jumbo berries into a separate stream. To present a complete 360-degree view of each piece of fruit for inspection, the 360Tek conveys berries over a series of hourglass-shaped rollers. Digital color cameras take up to 16 photos of each berry as it rotates, and advanced machine-learning algorithms analyze the color, size and shape of every object to make sophisticated sort decisions. Air nozzles positioned between the rollers gently deflect objects identified for separation.
