When a food processor is qualifying a new packaging machine, the due diligence process is comprehensive: engineering drawings are reviewed part by part, hygienic design criteria are checked against internal specs, and auditors work through a machine component by component. For customers of Triangle Package Machinery Co., much of that is avoided as it is the only vertical form/fill/seal (V/F/F/S) manufacturer in the world to hold 3-A certification — specifically under the 3-A Sanitary Standard for Equipment for Packaging Non-Fluid Products (27-08). It’s a distinction the Chicago-based equipment maker first earned in 2010 and successfully defended through re-verification in 2022. But according to the people closest to it, the certification’s value runs deeper than a badge on a spec sheet.
“If we can extend the product zone requirements across the whole machine, it makes peace of mind easier for the customer,” said Kyle Wilson, director of engineering at Triangle.
