Like A Fish Cut By Water

Think of salmon and you will inevitably thing of water, the persistent battle to return upstream each and every year.

What you might not think of immediately is water jet cutting and yet the two are now heavily linked.

Let us explain.

Water jet cutting is most known for cutting parts for industry. It is the go-to choice for those who require parts cut with perfect accuracy and where there can be no damage caused by heat. 

As we have written about in the past, it is also used by those seeking to be creative – sculptors, public art exhibitions and more.

Now, it is also a key component of the food industry.

If you think of those delicious salmon portions you can buy at the supermarket, they have to be cut  by someone. Or something.

There is, of course, no replacement for the fishmonger. A fresh fish skilfully filleted and portioned by the fishmonger is a wonderful thing. However, much of modern foot production is on an altogether larger scale. The humble fishmonger cannot portion millions of salmon fillets.

A Modern Solution

The Valka Cutter is a solution.

The water jet cutting technology is combined with 3D imaging and X-rays to create a solution that assesses each salmon as it arrives on the production belt and then cuts it efficiently to reduce wastage.

The cutting can create evenly-sized portions, or a mix – for instance a top loin portion (a valuable part of the fish) along with other evenly-sized non top loin portions.

Bones can be detected, cut around and then they are automatically removed as the salmon fillets make their way down the production line.

A huge number of salmon portions can be processed in this way with no need for intervention bar standard quality control checks. 

Efficient is a key benefit – cutting down on waste –  and so too time as this is a quick way to quickly process high volume.

However, using water jet cutting for food production could also have health benefits. The food is being cut by a sterile water jet while the fact that there is not a need for a large amount of labour might be appealing at a time when coronavirus outbreaks in food processing plants have been a semi-regular occurrence.

The video below produced by Valka gives an interesting oversight into how their technology works.

It is a superb example of how something as relatively simple as water jet cutting is leading to huge economies of scale and efficiencies.

Water jet cutting might be a simple concept – using water to cut through an object – but it is the refinement that makes it so compelling. 

The inclusion of an abrasive garnet turns it into a force that can cut through virtually any material.

A cutting head that can move in multiple planes enables water jet cutting to cut complex parts in a single motion.

And now, the combination of water jet cutting with other technology such as 3D imaging turns it into a smart technology that can adapt cuts to objects of different sizes (food portioning for instance).

At TMC Waterjet, as a leading UK water jet cutter we are always interested to see how other companies around the globe are utilising the technology.

What is common is that ever-more businesses and industries looking for a competitive advantage are turning to water jet cutting.

If you would like to discuss whether the technology could be of benefit to your production line – food or otherwise – please contact us for an obligation-free conversation.

Work with the UK’s leading Water Jet Cutters

At TMC, we are a water jet cutter who serve the whole of the UK and increasingly Europe too, with clients across the content trusting us to work on their projects.

Despite our success, we remain a company that focusses on every client and work on projects of all sizes.

If you think water jet cutting might be of use for your project, please do get in touch for an obligation-free chat.

Call us on 01625 610 441 or use our Contact Form.