MAJOR ACTIVITIES

1) APPLIED INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT :

Sugar Technology department completed more than 57 R & D projects, which lead the sugar industry to improve the technical efficiency, productivity and quality of finished product. Notable applied research projects are

a) Development of computer controlled self intelligent juice flow stabilization system.
b) Improvement in sugar quality.
c) Conservation of steam and power for sugar manufacturing.
d) Development of automatic direct cane sampling and analysis system for cane payment based on sucrose content.
e) Reduction in emission of SO2 from sugar mills.
f) Plantation white sugar production by single sulphitation method.
g) Zero raw water requirement for sugar mills.
h) Development of Individual mill extraction method.
i) Beet juice extraction and processing along with sugarcane juice.
j) Development of melter for low grade sugar melting in syrup.

2) EXTENSION AND ADVISORY SERVICES TO SUGAR MILLS:

Every year more than 250 visits are being paid by the technologists to sugar mills for extending consultancy services on the following technical issues.

a) Increase in capacity utilization of the plant and sugar quality.
b) Reduction of sugar losses in manufacturing process.
c) Conservation of steam and power.
d) Zero water requirement and minimizing effluent generation in sugar mills.
e) Optimization of process chemicals dosage.
f) Logic for automation at different stations in boiling house

MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS IN EXTENSION AND ADVISORY SERVICES

1. Reduction in Steam Consumption:
The steam consumption of Maharashtra Sugar Mills is reduced from 50% on cane to less than 40% on cane and some of sugar factories operated
with 33% on cane and even below.

2. Sugar loss in boiling house reduced from 1.5-1.7 to 1.1-1.4 % on cane.

3. Improvement in Sugar Quality:

The colour audit cell of department is able to reduce ICUMSA colour value of sugar below 90 from 150 to 160 units and some mills are
able to achieve as low as around 50 IU.

4. Development of Technology for water conservation:
During last decade there is almost 50% reduction in raw water consumption of most of the sugar mills in the state.

5. Reduction in down time:
Achieved reduction in Hrs. lost % available hours from 25% to almost 10% resulting the industry to improve the productivity and capacity utilization.
There are some mills which are able to achieve down time as low as below 3%.

6. Improvement in capacity utilization: Capacity utilization of overall Maharashtra sugar mills is increased from 90 % to 106 %.

7. Reduction in ‘C’ massecuite purity: More than 84% of Maharashtra sugar mills succeeded to reduce C m/c purity below 61 which caused to reduce
sugar loss in final molasses.

8. Department has developed the software to prepare various reports in manufacturing process of sugar mills.

9. Expansion & Modernization: Prepared more than 103 Detailed Project reports for expansion/ modernization / refined sugar production.

10. Preparation of Tender Technical Specifications: Scrutiny of design and drawing of boiling house equipment.

11. Publications of Technical Papers

A total of 274 Nos. of technical papers were published on various subjects.


ANALYTICAL ACTIVITY:

NABL Accredited Sugar Laboratory:

Well established NABL accredited Sugar Laboratory for analysis of 19 parameters of Plantation White Sugar, Raw Sugar and Final Molasses. The results obtained in this laboratory are accepted worldwide.

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