Of all the major industries, food and beverage is perhaps the most heavily regulated.

This is for good reason, of course, since food safety violations in controlled environments can result in foodborne illnesses and death (in the most severe cases).

Another thing that could be just as troubling are the immediate consequences processors and distributors face if something like this were to happen at their facilities. We’re talking: fines and penalties, media scrutiny, and even shutdowns.

One could also say it would damage their corporate reputation, while calling into question the oversight practices of the food & beverage industry as whole.

But let’s face it, the FDA, SQF, USDA and others aren’t going to stand by and let this happen.

Quite the opposite, actually, considering their likelihood of issuing violation notices rather than risk leaving anything to chance on their watch.

So the real question is:

How do facilities and operations specialists—responsible for maintaining the safety and sanitation of controlled environments—put their best foot forward when facing regulatory audits and inspections?

To answer this, we must first uncover 5 major food safety and compliance risks that could land you in hot waters with the powers-that-be, if left unchecked.

Only then can you actually know what steps to take to stop regulators from breathing down your neck!

RISKS THAT MUST BE CONTROLLED AT
FOOD & BEVERAGE FACILITIES

1. CORROSION

Given daily sanitation procedures, involving extreme moisture and harsh chemicals, corrosion is one of the most critical threats to food quality and safety. In fact, according to NACE International, the world’s leading corrosion control organization, yearly corrosion-related costs in the food & beverage industry exceed $2 billion.

For this reason, regulators are never content to let rusty surfaces that can contaminate food and beverage products—either through direct or indirect contact—go unresolved.

Instead, in environments where they are most easily exposed, such as processing and packaging, they’ll almost certainly hand down some form of punishment if, for whatever reason, they deem surrounding equipment or materials no longer suitable in resisting corrosion.

2. CONDENSATION

Aside from the fact that condensed water droplets can contaminate food and beverage products—through all sorts of impurities and microorganisms—they also create slipping and falling hazards on the ground. Studies have shown, for instance, that 30% percent of workplace injuries in the food & beverage industry can be traced back to accidental slips.

This is particularly the case in high-moisture environments that involve two-way air exchanges on a continuous basis, like cold storage facilities where warm air makes its way through the top of the cooler or freezer and cold air escapes along the bottom.

So, in the event your cold storage facilities are prone to heavy traffic, what this means is that it won’t take long for regulators to call out accumulated condensation displayed by obvious water marks and puddles that put on-duty personnel in harm’s way.

3. INFESTATIONS

Infestation threats involving any number of bugs, insects, and pests are of dangerous concern for food safety, as they have been shown to spread diseases, damage products, and compromise the integrity of food and beverage environments.

So while there are many alternatives out there that claim to “boost pest control,” most of them do so after intrusions have taken place. Keep in mind, however, that in specific areas where bugs and insects are likely to convene—such as warehouse and dumpster openings—this can happen almost regularly.

As for regulators, their first order of business won’t be to help you get rid of these pests. They’ll be far more concerned with how they were able to breach your defenses in the first place, perhaps handing out a violation notice in the process.

4. OCCUPATIONAL ACCIDENTS

The potential for accidents in fast-paced industrial environments isn’t something that should be taken lightly, especially when they can lead to severe injuries and production losses that someone eventually has to answer for.

So, before it’s too late and the damage is done, the very best thing you can do, starting now, is mitigate any potential accident risks by making sure not to overlook any equipment that can break easily and cause bodily harm.

Once that’s out the way you can go back to work knowing you’ve done everything in your power to ensure the safety and security of your facilities, which means regulators won’t be able to say or do anything that you won’t be prepared for.

5. AIRBORNE CONTAMINATION

Whether in liquid or solid form, what most contaminants, specifically bioaerosols, have in common is that they travel by air, infusing anything they touch with harmful microbes. As Food Safety Magazine puts it, these very same airborne contaminants pose a “substantial risk” to products such as dairy, raw meats, and fruit juices.

Of the various sources for airborne contamination some of most common ones include inefficient process and equipment filters, which allow water and dust to make their way into areas where food and beverage products are being packaged or prepared.

And since regulators are all too aware of this, you can be sure they’ll be paying extra-close attention to any sort of gaps where bacteria and viruses, found within bioaerosols, can easily cause Salmonella, E. coli, and Lysteria—just to name a few.

In today’s rugged industrial environments tasked with achieving bigger and better results—faster—most roll-up doors just don’t cut it anymore when compared to what’s out there.

Operations and facilities specialists at fast-paced industrial plants, warehouses, and distributors are finding this out the hard way.

Whether it’s through frequent accidents and collision damage, downtime, or emergency maintenance costs that are increasingly hard to swallow, low performance roll-up doors are killing operational efficiency.

What’s worse?

This can pose great risks to a company’s bottom line, corporate reputation, and (in the worst cases) even the job security of the specialists responsible for making sure facilities are running smoothly and delivering results.

Fortunately, it doesn’t have to end this way.

That’s because leading companies in blue chip industries are trading in their rolling steel doors for a special type of door that’s safer, more durable, and better equipped to handle your high-traffic applications, without fail: impactable rubber doors.

So what makes them the top roll-up door for industrial facilities prone to accidental damage?

Below is everything you need to know about these 3 indestructible solutions that outperform the competition!

IMPACTABLE ROLL-UP DOORS ELIMINATE
EMERGENCY DOWNTIME

1. MAXSPEED™

Known by its makers as the “toughest high speed rubber door on the market,” MaxSpeed™ is unmistakably suited for large openings across logistics and transportation facilities, such as airport terminals and bus stations, as well as manufacturing, distribution, and utilities facilities that rely on fast, continuous heavy-duty operation.

But more than just its ultra-efficient opening speeds and safe springless design, what makes MaxSpeed™ the ultimate roll-up door of its kind is its unique ability to make unexpected downtime and emergencies a thing of the past, with its fully impactable breakaway system and 1,000,000 cycle rating.

So while this alone is enough to satisfy even the most stringent demands for reliable security across busy openings prone to impact damage, nothing puts operations and facilities specialists more at ease than the peace of mind that comes standard with the lifetime warranty on all MaxSpeed™ rubber curtains!

2. MAXDOCK™

Earning its nickname as “the last dock door you’ll ever buy,” MaxDock™ is a high-efficiency replacement to damage-prone sectional doors that are all too common across busy warehouses in the logistics and distribution, manufacturing, food & beverage, and pharmaceutical industries.

Featuring a fully impactable design, along with its breakaway bottom bar that resets itself automatically when struck by forklifts and other moving objects, this rubber dock door also provides the advantage of saving you thousands of dollars in emergency repair costs across multiple positions every single year.

But as with all things concerning the safety and security of warehouse and loading dock operations, MaxDock™ wouldn’t be complete without its lifetime rubber curtain warranty and standard 1,000,000 cycle rating—there to take the risk off your shoulders and help you keep up with the pace of business!

3. MAXPRO™

A high performance solution for rugged industrial openings, MaxPro™ is a superior alternative to rolling steel doors and an ideal fit for warehouses, manufacturing plants as well as utilities and transportation stations that rely on uninterrupted facility access no matter what.

By combining its impactable, springless design with only 5 moving parts—including a powerful direct-drive motor rated for over 1,000,000 cycles—MaxPro™ doesn’t just deliver extreme toughness and security all-year-round, it also gets rid of emergency threats associated with virtually any type of door accident.

And since you might have guessed that MaxPro’s™ advanced rubber curtain is backed by a lifetime warranty (like all PerforMax® models), the other thing you should know is that it can also be equipped with a custom array of safety features, for those who simply can’t tolerate unwelcome surprises any longer!