Ratchet basket press

Date or time period: 1925

In France in 1925, the horizontal rotating plate press was introduced by Joseph Vaslin. By turning the basket press on its side, making it rotatable, and incorporating in-situ chains, the press cake could be crumbled automatically. This was a major advantage over vertical basket presses that required considerable manual labour for crumbling and emptying. This press was only mass produced after Gaston Bernier, head of Constructions Méca-Métalliques Chalonnaises (now Bucher-Vaslin) purchased the process in 1945.

REFERENCES: Vaslin (1925), Vaslin (1927), Rankine (1996), Anjou Musee (2011), French museum portal – inventory #995.7.2.