Steve Valesko

"Although we were primarily interested in the food safety benefits of I.R. pasteurization as well as protecting our brand, we also felt there was an opportunity to optimize the equipment in terms of human safety and ease of maintenance," says Steve Valesko, Butterball vice president of engineering."We also sought to incorporate automation features that would monitor equipment status and notify the operator if the I.R. pasteurizer was approaching a need of service."

The trial run

Valesko, a longtime veteran of the industry, says that although he anticipated the need to customize the new I.R. equipment to Butterball's specs, the engineering and production groups began the move to the new pasteurization equipment by trying standard equipment offered by Unitherm Food Systems of Bristow, Okla.

"They are a major supplier of equipment to our industry, and we were assured that they would work with us to tailor the new equipment to meet our requirements," Valesko says, "so we felt that 'test-driving' the standard equipment would both facilitate and expedite and that process."
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"We ran the initial equipment for about a month," Valesko says."And, although it was quite evident that we would need to make alterations to our final I.R. pasteurization equipment design, that trial period with the 'off the shelf' equipment was highly beneficial.It permitted us to see the equipment in action and redesign it with Unitherm to meet the needs of both our process and our products."

The preliminary trials, held at Butterball's Jonesboro plant, entailed full production runs, checking product temperatures and ensuring that the I.R. pasteurization performed the proper amount of log reduction of foodborne bacteria.

"Our basic concern was to ensure the wholesomeness of our product," Valesko says, and that entailed the necessary protection of our deli products prior to sealing it in the bag."

He adds that some of Butterball's deli customers, including major supermarket chains, have begun to request I.R. pasteurization as an assurance of safety for the meat and poultry products that they slice and sell.

3D for validation

After the trial run, Butterball engineers and process people decided on several upgrades for the I.R. pasteurizing equipment, either to meet their food safety goals or to better integrate with the process.

"What we didn't want was to change the way the equipment operated," Valesko explains.
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"The 3D modeling was one of the beautiful parts of this project," Valesko explains."It allowed us to see exactly what the machine was going to look like.And from highly detailed 3D images we were able to make even further alterations than we would have otherwise, including structural changes to the frame of the machine to where the electrical panel was going to be located, and things like that.If it had been a typical 2D program we probably would not have done that."

Valesko adds that the 3D illustrations helped Unitherm to cooperate fully in adapting or bending its equipment design to meet Butterball's production and quality requirements.

"We worked very well together on the project," he says.Now, we feel assured that the equipment has been design to accomplish what we've set out to do."

He says that although Butterball was responsible for the redesign of I.R. pasteurization system, nothing about the final concept is considered proprietary.

"The improvements that we made had to do with food safety and human safety issues.Those are concerns that are shared by the entire industry," Valesko says.

Dairy processing giant Dean Foods Co., Dallas, said it hired Rick Zuroweste, most recently with Coca-Cola, as chief marketing officer for the company's dairy group. . . . Turkey processor Butterball LLC., Mount Olive, N.C., said it hired Stephen Valesko as vice president of engineering.
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Valesko previously was director of engineering for Boar's Head Provisions Co.

Other additions to Butterball's executive team include Linda Compton, Director of Consumer Affairs and Stephen Valesko, Vice President of Engineering.

"[LiveXchange] was a great opportunity to learn about many different locations and regions of the U.S. in a short time frame and in a relaxed and informal atmosphere," says Steve Valesko, director of engineering and facilities, Boar's Head Provisions Company.

Steve ValeskoDirector, Engineering and FacilitiesBoar's Head Provisions

Steve Valesko has 25 years experience in Facilities Management.Starting out in Engineering for Nabisco as a project engineer, he worked his way up to Project Engineering Manager.After Nabisco, he worked for Perrier Water as Engineering Manager, East region.His responsibilities included engineering for five bottling plants and various distribution centers.Sixteen years ago, he joined Boar's Head Provisions and held positions in Facilities and Plant Management prior to his current position as Director of Engineering and Facilities.

Steve has designed and built or renovated many facilities with project costs ranging from a few hundred thousand dollars to multi million dollars.Through his years of experience, Steve has gained vast knowledge in all areas of facility construction from site search and evaluation to facility design, facility construction, and facility startup.

- Steve Valesko, Facilities Manager for Boars Head Provision Company." I would not put electronic load cells into any meat plant.

"It's very exciting," said Steve Valesko, director of engineering for the manufacturer of premium delicatessen meats."It's good news for the community and the company."

The $18 million project could have a new 40,000- to 50,000-square-foot distribution center completed by November or December, freeing up space in the existing 200,000-square-foot facility on Roost Avenue for manufacturing expansion, Valesko said.

That vacated space will need remodeling before it can be put to manufacturing use, which Valesko said is probably a six-month process.The new distribution center would be on the same property.

"The hiring process for the 115 new jobs will probably begin in 2006," he said.Most of those jobs will be in manufacturing with starting wages at about $9.50 per hour, Valesko said.
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"Holland has been a great location for us, and we've had great people to help make it happen," Valesko said.

MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. , Butterball, LLC, the nation's largest turkey producer, announces that Stephen Valesko has joined the company as Vice President of Engineering.

Based in Butterball's headquarters in Mount Olive, N.C., Valesko will be responsible for the development of strategic and tactical plans for engineering throughout the company.He will also provide technical guidance to ensure sound engineering procedures and effective use of facilities, capital and resources, both physical and environmental.Valesko reports directly to Chief Operating Officer, Joe Nalley.
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"Stephen brings a wealth of experience to Butterball," said Keith Shoemaker, Chief Executive Officer of the company.
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Prior to joining Butterball, LLC, Valesko was the Director of Engineering for Boar's Head Provisions Co., Inc., and has more than 25 years of experience in the food and beverage industry.Valesko holds a Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering from Clarkson University.He began his career as a staff engineer for Nabisco, where he later managed several national and international projects.