Key Technology's Optyx� digital sorters are selected by regional processors of batch-fried potato chips/crisps working to satisfy the rising quality expectations of consumers and retailers around the world. Identifying color and opacity, Optyx detects and removes defects such as oil-soaked soft spots, blisters, doubles and clumps as well as green spots, bruises, overcooked black spots and foreign material (FM). Designed for production lines handling up to 1000 to 2000 kg of chips per hour, Optyx 3000 and Optyx 6000 sorters automate inspection to improve product quality and increase yields while reducing labor costs. "We wanted to add a sorter to an existing production line. We considered two suppliers, comparing performance and the price of the system, and selected Key because of their outstanding track record. They have a lot of batch-fried sorters in the field, which are performing well, and their price was attractive," said Tom Keogh, Managing Director of Keogh's Crisps Ltd (Dublin, Ireland). "We measure this sorter's success on the quality of our final product and the improvement in our production costs. We're saving labor in QC because Optyx allowed us to reposition six people over two shifts to elsewhere in the plant." "For batch kettle chip producers like us, having chips stuck together as doubles is a serious problem, because they're not fully cooked. One soft center can turn a bag of chips rancid very quickly. We chose Key because they solved this problem better than others. Optyx removes FM and other defects too, but its ability to detect doubles is what made this sorter really stand out," said John Joseph, Operations Director at Burts Chips (Roborough, England).