Light and food industry

Technology means the knowledge and experience of the means and methods by which a product is made. A technological process is the sum of technological operations carried out one after another to turn raw material into a finished product. A technological operation is a self-contained piece of work done without a break at one workplace by one worker or a team: for example, cutting out fabric or rolling out dough. In making fabric or food the process usually goes through three stages: preparation (cleaning and sorting raw material), shaping (cutting out, cutting, moulding) and assembly of the prepared parts (sewing, mixing, joining). By their job, an enterprise’s equipment falls into three groups: main technological equipment, which works on the product directly; auxiliary equipment, which does not take part in the process but keeps it going (for example ventilation or repair equipment); and transport equipment, which carries, loads and lifts raw material and part-finished products from one machine to another. When a process is planned, the quality requirements for the product and the enterprise’s possibilities are considered together. In a factory or kitchen only trained staff switch machines on, protective clothing is worn and moving parts are never touched.