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Food and Beverage Machinery

Choosing the Right Stainless Steel Fasteners for Your Needs

If you work in machine building for the food industry, you likely have standard stainless steel plates, profiles, and fasteners in stock. After all, without the correct fasteners, machines cannot function. So, why do so many companies choose stainless steel for their machinery? Here are some reasons:

  • Strength: Stainless steel is a robust material that can withstand significant stress.  
  • Corrosion Resistance: It is highly resistant to rust and corrosion, making it ideal for various environments.  
  • Ease of Cleaning: Stainless steel's smooth surface allows for easy cleaning, which is crucial in food processing.  
  • Hygienic and Food Safe: Stainless steel is non-reactive and safe for food contact, ensuring the safety of processed products.  
  • Durability and Low Maintenance: It offers long-lasting performance with minimal maintenance requirements.
Stainless Steel Fasteners for Food & Beverage Industry

Most Commonly Used Fasteners in the Food Industry

Which fasteners do we see the most on the order lists of customers from the food industry?

The Fabory range includes more than 30,000 stainless steel fasteners, which you can order from stock on Fabory.com. Can't find the product you are looking for in the overview? Please let us know, and we will deliver it to you. In addition, we design and manufacture the product ourselves if it does not already exist.
 

Discover our range of stainless steel

Lubrinox: Pre-lubricated Bolts, Screws, and Nuts

Fabory has developed a new line of fasteners known as Lubrinox bolts, nuts, and screws. When using stainless steel fasteners, it is common for the inner and outer threads to seize together, making it difficult to loosen them. While applying a paste can prevent this issue, it requires additional time, and the workpieces and hands must be cleaned afterwards. Lubrinox has been specifically designed for the food industry to provide long-lasting lubrication in connections.

Below are the key advantages of Lubrinox:

  • Prevents galling of stainless steel bolt connections
  • Approved for use in the food industry
  • Pre-applied at Fabory, saving an average of 25 seconds per connection
  • Available in nuts as well
  • Maintains the stainless steel appearance of articles
  • Works effectively in combination with Loctite
  • Eliminates the issue of dirty hands from manual lubrication

Manufacturer of Coolers and Dryers

Geelen Counterflow, a design and production company based in Haelen, is one of the first to test Lubrinox. The lubricated fasteners are incorporated into coolers and dryers specially designed for the food industry. Geelen Counterflow ships several units of these coolers and dryers weekly to locations worldwide.

Due to the extensive use of stainless steel fasteners, the company sought a cost-effective alternative to traditional lubrication methods. René Derckx, the technical purchaser at Geelen Counterflow, stated, “We were curious whether the solution developed by Fabory would meet our needs. The primary requirement was to prevent threads from getting stuck. We wanted to avoid having to cut or drill out a screw.”

Another coating that employees frequently use is significantly thicker. However, the Lubrinox fasteners do not require such a substantial layer. “A thick layer makes it difficult to drive screws by hand, causing them to become overly greasy. If you need to exert force, your fingers tend to slip over the hex. That doesn’t happen with Lubrinox. The feedback from the shop floor during this test has been positive,” he added.

Lubrinox Installed in a Counterflow Cooler Plus
Stainless steel fasteners go into the Counterflow Cooler Plus
Captive Screws and Bolts

Captive Screws and Bolts

Finding a screw or bolt in food is something no one wants to encounter. However, securing fasteners in panels and doors that open and close frequently can be difficult. The Fabory range includes captive screws and bolts that feature a space-saving clip. This innovative locking clip eliminates the need for a locknut behind the panel. Additionally, these screws have a reduced shank, so you no longer need to tap threads into the panel holes. This solution was developed in collaboration with a customer who inspired the idea. We would happily work with you if your application requires a specific range extension. Please get in touch with us.

Hygienic Bolts and Nuts

For a food producer, periodic cleaning and disinfection of machines is essential. Washdown machines require fasteners with specific design features, such as smooth surfaces and minimal voids. We have developed the Fabory Premium Stainless Hygienic fasteners (FPS-H), which feature a smooth, polished surface and rubber sealing rings, to meet these needs.

Personalised Advice for Your Fastening Challenges

Our application engineers provide tailored solutions and advice on various fastening issues, including FDA regulations, hygiene, machinery safety, and corrosion resistance. Our close cooperation with standardisation institutes and technical committees ensures we have high technical knowledge and reliable information and service!

Optimising Processes Together

Fasteners may be a conservative product category, but we at Fabory are committed to continuous innovation. The food industry has trusted Fabory for years to supply stainless steel fasteners because:

  • Our fasteners are designed to enhance efficiency and comply with industry regulations.
  • Smart logistics solutions optimise fastener stock management and reduce the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), leading to greater flexibility and cost control within your organisation.
  • Our Peace of Mind solutions ensure that production operations run smoothly.

Creating Peace of Mind

Fabory offers an extensive selection of over 120,000 fasteners in various designs, sizes, and materials. Managing such a large inventory requires reliable systems. Our smart logistics solutions provide insights into consumption patterns, significantly assisting inventory management. With our RFID solution and Weight Scale Cabinet, you can access your Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) monitor in MyFabory, offering insights into historical consumption and our performance. The combination of tailored solutions and actionable insights is genuinely unique.

Our Application Engineers are here to provide solutions and expert advice on fasteners, designs, and applications. In addition to these services, Fabory's experts conduct calculations and tests to ensure secure connections. We collaborate closely with standardisation bodies and technical committees to maintain high technical knowledge and support. This commitment fosters Peace of Mind, allowing you and your team to focus on your core tasks.

Please get in touch with us to explore the possibilities further.

FastScan Inventory Management

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What fastener materials does Fabory recommend for food and dairy environments?

A2 (AISI 304) stainless steel is often suitable for general food-processing machinery in normal indoor and wet conditions. A4 (AISI 316) provides greater corrosion resistance where chloride exposure, salt, acidic media or aggressive washdown chemicals are present. Final material selection should consider the cleaning chemicals, temperature, exposure conditions and applicable hygienic-design requirements.
2

Are Fabory fasteners suitable for EHEDG or hygienic-design equipment?

Fabory supplies stainless-steel fasteners and FABORY HYGIENIC A4 products for food and dairy machine building. Suitability for equipment designed according to EHEDG principles depends on the specific fastener geometry, installation and complete machine design. Components should minimise crevices and dead spaces and be validated against the applicable hygienic-design requirements and cleaning regime.
3

Can Fabory supply kitted fastener packs for machine assembly lines?

Yes. Fabory can supply customised, pre-sorted fastener kits containing the agreed products and quantities for a machine, maintenance task or sub-assembly. Kitting can reduce internal picking work, simplify material handling and help prevent assembly errors.
4

What ordering options are available for food-industry customers?

Customers can order online through MyFabory, work with their Fabory account manager or use an EDI connection where this has been configured. Fabory Logic also provides Vendor Managed Inventory and smart replenishment solutions for fasteners and C-parts.
5

Does Fabory offer food-industry fasteners from stock?

Fabory offers more than 150,000 fastener solutions across its range, including extensive A2 and A4 stainless-steel selections and products for food and dairy machine building. Stock availability and dispatch time depend on the article, required quantity and delivery location. Current availability can be checked in MyFabory or through your Fabory account manager.

Masters in Fasteners

Assortment

Fabory is the ideal choice for all your fastening needs. Our product portfolio includes a wide range of standard fasteners and custom solutions for various applications, complemented with C-parts.

Fabory Logic

Fabory helps you access Fasteners and C-parts and uses innovative dashboards to provide insights into your consumption, helping you reduce your TCO. Fabory Logic offers RFID, Optical-Eye, Weight Scales, and Merchandiser services.

QA/QC & Engineering

Fabory prioritises quality and reliability, strongly emphasising refined quality management and specialised control systems to support your fastener selection.

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