Saarioinen: Traditional Ready Meals Made by Mothers & Purso’s Cleanroom Lighting Solutions

Casseroles, soups, stews, and meatballs are produced at Saarioinen Oy’s Sahalahti factory. Food preparation areas must be easy to clean and maintain hygiene. That’s why Purso developed a special cleanroom cover for SNEP® MODE luminaires.

Cleanroom Lighting: Purso’s Product Development to the Rescue

The lighting at Saarioinen’s Sahalahti factory was 20 to 50 years old, so it was time for an upgrade, says Janne Ahtiainen, the factory’s maintenance supervisor.

Ahtiainen started looking into lighting options in the fall of 2023. Around the same time, the EU RoHS directive came into effect, banning T8 and T5 fluorescent tubes that contained harmful mercury. He reached out to several lighting suppliers to explore alternatives.

— No one had a ready-made product to replace our old cleanroom luminaires, but Purso became excited about developing a completely new solution based on our needs. Partnering with Purso was a natural choice since a stable domestic supplier ensures continuity for the future.

The first hygiene luminaire prototypes were produced in Siuro in the spring of 2024. Purso’s product development engineer, Timo Kuoppa, describes the project as unique, fascinating, and enjoyable: the client had a clear vision of what was needed and wanted to understand the technology required to achieve it. Saarioinen contributed significantly to the development process, for instance, by sending Purso old luminaires that the new ones needed to replace.

— This project wasn’t handled by simply exchanging blueprints; we got to test brand-new prototypes directly at the factory, where we received valuable feedback from installers firsthand, says Kuoppa.

To meet the various technical requirements, the product was fine-tuned based on feedback to achieve the best possible outcome.

— Collaboration with Purso was close and went exceptionally well. We achieved a versatile, functional solution that incorporates the latest technology, Ahtiainen summarizes.

Cleanroom Cover Meets Strict Standards

The food industry has strict standards for both hygiene and lighting. However, Saarioinen does not settle for merely meeting these standards—it has set its own, even more ambitious criteria.

In areas where food is handled, lighting fixtures cannot accumulate dust or other contaminants. They must also withstand regular low-pressure washing with chemicals, and their materials must not shatter.

To meet these requirements, Purso developed a special cleanroom cover. Under the cover is a SNEP® MODE-series luminaire, which can be easily detached from its mount. Since the same luminaires are also used in areas without cleanroom requirements, maintaining a spare parts inventory is simpler. The mounting technology enables extremely fast installation and potential servicing. The solution also allows adaptability—if desired, a completely different luminaire could be placed under the cover.

Purso’s cleanroom cover is compatible with four different SNEP® MODE-series luminaires, making its cleanroom lighting solutions highly versatile. The SNEP® MODE-series luminaires provide design flexibility, as they are suitable for various ceiling heights and different types of spaces. Additionally, they offer a wide range of light outputs and distribution characteristics.

Cleanroom requirements exist not only in the food industry but also, for example, in the electronics industry. Like other lighting products, the cleanroom cover is readily available in SNEP® product selector.

57% Less Energy, More Light, and Improved Fire Safety

The lighting upgrade project had two main objectives: significant energy savings and improved fire safety. A total of 2,000 luminaires are being replaced, including many outside the production areas.

— Purso calculated expected energy savings, which proved to be accurate in practice, says Ahtiainen.

In the production hall, the luminaires are installed at a height of six meters. The lighting level was significantly increased from approximately 600 lux to 1,000 lux. At the same time, substantial energy savings were achieved: instead of the previous 128 W, the new luminaires consume only 55 W. While fluorescent tubes required constant replacement, the new luminaires offer maintenance-free operation.

Fire safety also improved as a result of the upgrade. The wires in the starters of fluorescent tube luminaires can overheat, potentially causing the fixtures to catch fire. This is why outdated technology should be replaced with modern solutions as soon as possible.

Flexible Lighting Deliveries to the Site

At Saarioinen’s Sahalahti factory, production runs in shifts. The luminaires were delivered in batches and installed flexibly to avoid disrupting production. Saarioinen and Purso’s long-term partner, Sonepar, played a key role in coordinating the project.

Purso’s luminaires are packaged in group packs that save both packaging materials and installation time. The positions of the luminaires are clearly marked, eliminating unnecessary time spent unpacking and recycling packaging.

About Saarioinen Oy

Saarioinen, a traditional Finnish family-owned ready meal manufacturer, operates in five locations across Finland, with production facilities in three of them. The company’s journey began in the mid-1950s at Saarioinen Manor in Sahalahti, Kangasala. Today, Saarioinen is Finland’s leading ready meal provider, with an annual turnover of approximately 270 million euros.