CLAUSE chooses Delta Neu for optimum cleanliness and safety in its Drôme plant

CLAUSE, THE SEED COMPANY, PROTECTS ITS PERSONNEL BY ENSURING OPTIMUM CLEANLINESS AND SAFETY IN ITS FACILITIES. BY MAKING ALL OF ITS WORKSHOPS COMPLIANT WITH THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION’S ATEX DIRECTIVES, IT HAS BECOME ONE OF THE MOST ADVANCED COMPANIES IN THIS RESPECT.

When expanding its Portes-lès-Valence production site, CLAUSE was determined to maintain the high standards of cleanliness of its premises, in a very dust-sensitive sector: seeds. A special budget was devoted to this requirement, in particular to ensure that all new installations would comply with the European ATEX directives. DELTA NEU, the industrial air quality specialist, installed the system to ensure optimum safety of Clause’s personnel and workshops.

DUST HANDLING

In certain sectors, the production process can generate large amounts of dust. This occurs in the bulk sector, and the bulk food sector in particular. In such cases, protective measures for the benefit of personnel and equipment are essential. These measures must take the following aspects into consideration: dust removal to prevent its inhalation by personnel, floor cleaning, machine maintenance, and ATEX issues.
DELTA NEU specialises in the design, construction, and installation of devices to implement these measures. Their ventilation and dust extraction installations apply technological solutions aimed at achieving this goal of protection. Ventilation (extraction of pollutants) and dust extraction (removal and retrieval of pollutants), applied generally in the workshop or at source, with dust capture using suitable extraction hoods or shields, are two methods of treating the ambient air. These techniques can be supplemented by a high-depression vacuum system powerful enough to clean off the dust residue from the floor and machines.


POTENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE ATMOSPHERES

The combination of dust suspended in the air (whatever the type of dust, except mineral dust) with an ignition source (recent introduction of the risk related to mechanical operations) can cause a risk of explosion. That is why the European Commission has published the ATEX directives concerning potentially explosive atmospheres.
(ATEX: ATmosphère EXplosible, which is French for ‘potentially explosive atmosphere’.)
These directives define a risk level related to the quantity and probability of dust in the air, beyond which specific measures must be applied. These measures apply to both the air within the workshop and the air in certain dust extraction devices, where the confinement of dust in an enclosed space can increase the risk of explosion.


HOW THE ATEX DIRECTIVES ARE APPLIED AT CLAUSE

Even though compliance with the ATEX directives was supposed to be enforced from 2006 onwards, not many French companies are compliant at present. This delay is partly due to the lack of information and awareness, the need to train all the personnel involved in risk analysis and compliance monitoring, and the amount of investment required.
The seed industry is sensitive to this risk, however, and the larger companies have certain mechanisms to protect themselves from accidents.
CLAUSE is a model company in this respect. Clause believes it is worth making an investment in order to improve the working conditions in its workshops. To satisfy its requirements, the pollutants generated on the workstations must be captured, transported, and filtered, and dust extraction and ventilation installations must be put in operation. The ambient air in the Clause workshops is not itself subject to ATEX classification. However, the combination of the types of dust being handled and the fact that they are confined in the dust extraction units does give rise to an ATEX compliance requirement, in connection with the classification of risk areas determined inside the device.
Not many companies fully implement the recommendations in this area; often because of a lack of information. That is where Delta Neu can help: with its ATEX expertise, Delta Neu can always propose a dust extraction system that will offer the most extensive safety guarantees. As well as eliminating risks related to static electricity, other features include duct networks equipped with equipotential connections, ATEX-certified explosion vents and explosion decouplers, etc.

Vacuum unit in the seed sorting shop at Clause’s plant in Valence

CLAUSE is a vegetable and flower seed research and production company that sells its products wholesale. It is the seventh vegetable seed company in the world, and ranks first in France. Clause is a subsidiary of the Limagrain Group, an international co-operative specialising in the improvement and enhancement of plants. It is the Number One seed company in Europe, and fourth in the world.