Marijuana Business Magazine - January 2017

All the drying crates in the ware- house are painted with anti-microbial paint and fitted with exhaust systems and dehumidifiers. They’re also elec- tronically temperature and moisture monitored, so staff can check levels in the dry rooms through a mobile app. “If anything goes a little haywire, we get notified and can send some- one up immediately to the crate to fix the issue,” Pelzner said. Anti-Contamination a Priority TCD expects to dry and trim 65,000-100,000 pounds of canna- bis through next fall – and with that volume, anti-contamination practices are top of mind. TCD has teams of 36 trimmers who work with two quality-control leads and a floor manager in client-specific rows, and there are never more than two clients’ products on each trim- ming floor at any given time. Trim staffers use a vacuum, isopro- pyl alcohol to remove buildup, and hydrogen peroxide to kill bacteria on trim bins, separation bins, scissors, trim trays, tables and chairs. They also replace butcher paper on tables for every client’s product. Anyone who steps on to the trim- ming floor is required to wear medical booties, and floors are swept daily and mopped weekly. Trimmers also wear gloves that are never reused. TCD is transparent with its clients and has an open-door policy, mean- ing clients can peek in on operations at any time. The result of TCD’s diligent anti- contamination efforts: zero events of cross-contamination as of this past fall. “The diligence in our anti-cross- contamination work is how we’ve gotten where we are,” Pelzner said. “Anyone can trim bud. It’s how we trim and how we guarantee your product is safe in our hands.” Looking ahead, such diligence could allow CannaGuard, TCD and the other businesses that make up OmniTek Holdings to become trend- setters for the marijuana industry. “Our ultimate goal is to have this really beautiful cycle, where Canna- Guard starts with a company during the application and works with them through the licensing period. Then, once they’re licensed, TCD can help them take their product to market, or help them find products to fill their shelves,” said Stokes, the CEO. “We’re building new infrastructure, policies, processes and software from the ground up.” ◆ Our temperature control products follow the highest international standards for environmental sensitivity and awareness, protecting the planet while providing you with unparalled temperature control in your extraction or short path distillation system. Extractionchiller.com Extraction • Rotary Evaporator • Short Path Distillation • Cold Trap W E B ELIEVE IN G REEN B ECAUSE A G REEN E ARTH IS THE B EST K IND OF E ARTH