Costacurta S.p.A.-VICO is an Italian company specialised in the design and production of metal components for industry and architecture serving international markets. Located in Milan, with two production plants in the province of Lecco, Costacurta boasts a consolidated Made in Italy experience since 1921. The company is active in several areas (Food & Beverage, Energy, Textile, etc.), and its entire product portfolio is made entirely of raw materials made of wires or metal plates:
• Filter elements • Conveyor belts • Products for the Oil & Gas, chemical and petrochemical sectors. Costacurta S.p.A.-VICO produces a wide range of fil er elements and conveyor belts that are used in countless applications in very different industrial sectors. These applications include beer production and pasteurisation.
Brewing and pasteurisation In the field of beer production, Costacurta products generally used are: • VICO-Screen flat panels or slotted plates for Lauter Tun used in wort filtrati n processes (lautering) • VICO-Screen candles for microfitration • conveyor belts for pasteurisation For beer production, Costacurta products used are Wedge wire screens: in flat panels for Lauter Tun and candles for pressure filers, coated with fil ering material. Beer is produced by alcoholic fermentation. In this process, the barley malt grains are ground and mixed with hot water so the enzymes in the malt can be activated. Once the starches have been transformed into sugars, the resulting solution is transferred into a large tank at the base of which there is a false bottom consisting of a wedge wire VICO- Screen or a stainless-steel slotted plate, which acts as a fil er. The solution is drained through the slots in the fil er component, which retain the solid residues inside the tank. The solution drained through the fil er passes to the next processing steps, i.e. boiling and hopping, cooling and oxygenation.
Flat panels for Lauter Tun Costacurta VICO-Screens used in- side the lauter tuns are made of stainless steel, to guarantee the best level of hygiene. VICO-Screen flat panels are obtained by levelling the cylinders produced by the machine. VICO-Screens are suitable for retaining materials, fil ering and screening. Correct filtrati n is fundamental to prevent the skins from passing to the next boiling stage causing the release of bitter substances into the beer. The components have very defini e continuous openings, which allow a high free area and, consequently, very low pressure drop values through the filering surface. The high number of welds also gives a considerable mechanical resistance generally allowing a very long life. The continuous opening and the triangular section of the wires allow only two points of contact between the particles, thus minimising the tendency to clogging. Furthermore, thanks to the particularly smooth surface of the VICO-Screen, the abrasive effect due to the contact between the product and the filering surface is very limited.
On request, VICO-Screen panels can be supplied complete with edging or stiffening elements according to customer specificati ns and drawings. Surface treatments such as degreasing, pickling and electropolishing can also be applied.
Candles VICO-screen candles are used in applications where a high degree of filtrati n is required. In modern filtrtion systems, VICO-screen candles allow high levels of fl id fl w and low and easy maintenance thanks to their simple cleaning and low level of clogging. The use of very thin profil s increases the passage area and allows the filtration of higher volumes of liquid compared to other fil er elements. Thanks to their structure, WWS candles are extremely resist- ant to pressure despite the small size of their wires.
On request, VICO-Screen candles can be supplied with sleeves / sockets. Surface treatments such as high pressure washing, degreasing, pick- ling and electropolishing can also be applied.
Conveyor belts for pasteurisation Pasteurisation is a thermal recovery process aimed at eliminating pathogenic microorganisms inside liquid or semi-liquid foods. It takes place between 60°C and 85°C ~ and in- creases the storage time of the food as well as reducing the risk of bacterial contamination, keeping the quality of the product almost unchanged. This process usually takes place in- side spiral towers or straight tunnels. Spiral towers allow the vertical use of the necessary space to guarantee the food the right transit time inside the pasteurisation equipment. Spiral towers are usually built as single or double towers and can be tailored in different ways to suit existing production processes as well as available space.
Costacurta products used in this application are conveyor belts, which carry the food to be pasteurised inside the pasteurisation system. Thanks to the wide range of geometries, the quality of the steel used and the production process, Costacurta conveyor belts are suitable for all types of continuous pasteurisation machines, guaranteeing the highest level of hygiene and the best process performance.
Why you should choose Costacurta S.p.A.-VICO The advanced quality control systems on materials and production process, allow us to create a high-quality product fully compliant with our customer’s design specifications. Moreover, our wide range of products and high production flexibility allow us to respond to any of our customer’s needs.
