Turkey’s leading hazelnut exporter, Durak Findik, has further
increased its production capacity to meet export demand by
investing in automation technologies. By acquiring five new
TOMRA Nimbus BSI+ sorting machines, which will also ensure
product quality and food safety, Durak Findik has increased to 28
the total number of TOMRA machines at its hazelnut processing
facilities in Ordu, Samsun, and Hendek-Sakarya.
As Turkey’s number one hazelnut producer for two years now,
Durak Findik produces 50,000 tons of hazelnut kernels annually,
operating three shifts every day. Some 55% of this output goes
to the domestic market and 45% is for export. The company
supplies global producers, including the world’s major chocolate
brands. To satisfy these world-class customers, food safety and
consistently high product quality are essential. Durak Findik
can achieve these high standards thanks to the advantages
of automation. TOMRA Food’s sorting machines also help the
company maximize efficiency by reducing food waste and
increasing production capacity.
“We have been using TOMRA sorting machines
since 2006. Now we will have two TOMRA
machines at each of our facilities in Ünye and
Samsun, nine in our Sakarya roasting facility, and
15 in our Hendek crushing facility, including the
new TOMRA Nimbus BSI+ sorters. Installation of
our new machines will be completed this month.”
- Durak Findik’s chairman, Kadir Durak
“We increase our capacity in direct proportion
to our production efficiency. In addition
to providing our current customers with
products at the standards they demand, we
increase our production capacity by adding
new customers to our portfolio. We have
continued our investments in automation
technologies without interruption. TOMRA’s
machines have raised our product quality,
ensuring that we meet our customers’ strict
expectations, and have enabled us to achieve
15% additional efficiency and cost savings
compared to manual sorting.”
- Durak Findik’s chairman, Kadir Durak
Mr. Durak observed that the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted
the importance of automation in the food industry. He said: “We
already knew that every major food producer should strengthen
its facilities with automation, but during this period, those who had
already invested in automation had the advantage of being able to
continue production without interruption. It would not have been
possible for us to maintain our production at the required levels if we
operated completely with manual sorting methods. And regardless
of the extraordinary situation, we face at the moment, automation
will always offer advantages. With consumer expectations of food
quality constantly rising, automation is vital to increase product
quality, as well as to improve production efficiency.”
TOMRA Food’s Nimbus BSI+ platform uses unique Biometric
Signature Identification technology to detect all product defects
in nuts – including insect damage, rot, shrivel, and moldy kernels
– even if they are invisible to the human eye. The machine can do
this, ensuring high primary-product and by-product quality, by
employing both near-infrared and visible wavelengths of light.
Mr. Durak added “Even if all product defects were visible to the
human eye, the manual workforce could not be expected to sort
the product with 100% concentration levels and 100% efficiency
for every minute of every shift. But by using TOMRA sorting
machines, it is possible to achieve a constant level of product
quality, and without interruptions. These machines also make
it possible for us to run night shifts, increasing our facilities’
effectiveness during short harvest and production periods.”
“Our BSI technology represents the ultimate
in multi-spectral cameras. We have combined
our application knowledge with superior
imaging capabilities to achieve unrivaled
results. And TOMRA Food’s machines can
handle the full range of nut products: inshell,
raw, roasted, and chopped. Specifying the
optimum machine platform enables us to
deliver the most efficient optical sorting
solution available for each type.”
- Ahmet Koçyiğit, TOMRA Food Turkey Sales Manager
