Long Island Spirits distillery improves its throughput of hand sanitizer bottles with a centrifugal separator
Used in a variety of settings, from medical to domestic, hand sanitizer is used to decrease and kill infectious agents, such as bacteria, on the hands. It is one of the many products that has seen a surge in production due to the ongoing global COVID19 pandemic, and its alcohol content means that this must be distilled before being processed, packaged, and sold.
With 85 years’ experience, such longevity is reflected in Russell Finex’s experience of making machines that are not only multi-purpose, but long-lasting and highly efficient at adapting to and operating in any process line.
Innovating to support key industries
Founded in 2007, Long Island Spirits is the 100th distillery in the United States (where there are now over 1,600), and reputable for its sustainable distillery practices. Originally, Long Island Spirits found Russell Finex after searching for a Liquid Solid Separator to include as part of its distilling process to make vodka to help with the efficient and sustainable disposal of its by-product. The Russell Liquid Solid Separator™ can easily separate soft, fibrous material from liquid, reducing loss of good product, which initially made it ideal for the company in their process line.
However, with the growth of the COVID19 pandemic, the company turned from making vodka to producing alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Here, this multi-purpose centrifugal separator was slotted neatly into this new production line, to be used as part of the distillation process which allows Long Island Spirits to produce the ethanol that goes into the hand sanitizer.
Since changing its production line, with the Russell Liquid Solid Separator™ as a crucial part of it, the company have been able to produce over 50,000 bottles of hand sanitizer in both 8oz and 16oz bottles.
Improving distilling quality
Richard Stabile, Founder and Master Distiller at Long Island Spirits had this to say about the quality of their Russell equipment, regarding their main process line: "Our new Russell Liquid Solid Separator has dramatically reduced our bi-product discharge into our septic system and allowed us to share our bi-product as animal feed with our local farmers. This new process has truly enhanced many of our sustainable practices with the added benefit of saving us on our annual septic costs.”
Not only does this show the innovative design of the Russell Liquid Solid Separator™, but the versatility of the unit – saving the company costs and being of further use to adapt into a new production process. Once the demand for hand sanitizer has reduced, Long Island Spirits will return to utilizing this installation to make vodka, but for now the company is doing its part to help their local community with Russell Finex machinery.
About Russell Finex
Founded in 1934, Russell Finex is a global company specializing in the manufacture of industrial sieves, separators, and filtration equipment. Servicing many key industries from food and beverage, pharmaceutical, to water processing and recycling, Russell Finex is proud to help and support such industries during this current global pandemic.
Contact us today to find out how we can provide a solution to fit your requirements.
