Rotronic provides precise measurement equipment for Havana cigars
27/04/2016 Rotronic Instruments (UK)
Cuba stands for a long tradition of cigar making with top products for the connoisseur. The only way to ensure the high quality is to use reliable measuring equipment.Famous brands like Cohiba, Montecristo and Partagas are often household names, even among the uninitiated. But before a cigar is made, the tobacco must be prepared and made fit for consumption. After harvesting, the tobacco leaves are tied in bundles known as gavillas in the casa de tabaco, and hung up to dry.
The drying process, which takes place in the so-called dry shed, serves to further ripen the tobacco leaves, and reduces the sugar and water content in them. This type of drying takes up to 60 days. During this time, the workers carefully ensure the correct temperature and humidity for the drying process.
The subsequent fermentation serves to develop the aroma, and removes bitter and unpleasant substances from the leaves. The storage and ripening processes involved may take up to several years, in some cases. After the ripening process, the leaves are ready for processing in the cigar factory.
Precise equipment for measuring the optimum equilibrium moisture. The equilibrium moisture is a key factor in the quality of a cigar. There are various methods of determining the equilibrium moisture of cigars. The Rotronic water activity probes work with digital AirChip3000 HygroClip technology, which ensures their high performance and simple, digital adjustment and calibration.
HygroPalm HP23-AW for portable use The HygroPalm offers the perfect solution for water activity measurement on site. The attachment clamp grasps the bundle of tobacco with its holding jaws, and the HygroClip DC2-S in the measuring chamber measures the equilibrium moisture of the tobacco. The values for equilibrium moisture and temperature are transmitted digitally to the connected hand-held, the HygroPalm HP23-AW.
A special measuring chamber, the "barrilito," has been developed for measurement of equilibrium moisture in cigars. The cigars are placed in the "barrilito," which is closed with a height-adjustable, airtight lid.
Measured equilibrium moisture and calculated water content in one device Using a large number of empirical measurements, the technical staff of the "Instituto
del Tabaco" in Havana have found an algorithm that describes a correlation between equilibrium moisture and water content.
This makes it possible to switch the HygroPalm and the application-optimized HygroClip probes between equilibrium moisture measurement and water content calculation.
Jose M. Guardiola, Pedrosa Tabacuba, Cuba says, " The Rotronic HygroPalm HP23-AW evaluation unit is the perfect solution for quality control on site. A stand-alone measurement system that can be used freely and independent of mains."
For more information, please contact:
Rotronic Instruments (UK)
Crompton Fields
Crompton Way
Crawley
West Sussex
RH10 9EE
Tel: +44 1293 571000
Fax: +44 1293 571008
Email: instruments@rotronic.co.uk
Web: www.rotronic.co.uk
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