Equipment Snapshot: Stable Micro Systems has developed the ideal solution for food manufacturers looking to quickly and accurately measure the density of their products. This gives users an insight into the structure and quality of foods like bread or aerated confectionery, and can give a good representation of mouthfeel – all of which can be used to inform future formulations, processing parameters and storage conditions.

Stable Micro Systems’ Volscan Profiler is a benchtop laser-based scanner that goes beyond the traditional measurements of volume and dimensional profiles to now offer data on density. As a non-contact measurement system, the Volscan Profiler is particularly effective for products that are brittle or porous, providing a fast and precise method for measuring both uniform and non-uniform products.

Jo Smewing, business development director at Stable Micro Systems, comments, “Two loaves of bread may look to be the exact same size but can vary in density, which is why careful measurement is vital for a clearer picture. Traditionally, displacement methods have been used to measure density but this method lacks both accuracy and convenience. The Volscan Profiler can build a complete picture of a range of food products, from marshmallows to bread rolls, for more stringent quality control.

The rapid 3D digitisation of products offered by the rig enables the automatic calculations of several detailed dimension related parameters, the results of which can be interrogated for immediate use of future retrieval in a variety of data formats. Additionally, Stable Micro Systems has launched an additional, innovative product support that supports circular disposal inserts magnetically, allowing for quick and simple removal and replacement during tests.