Dust gets in everywhere
Fine sugar and bagasse dust is hard on seals, speakers and ports. IP68 sealing and the rugged build are the reason a handset can be rinsed after a shift on a mill floor.
Brazil · Raízen
Explosion proof mobile phone for Raízen sugar-ethanol mills
An explosion proof mobile phone for Raízen in Brazil has to cope with two hazards at once: ethanol vapour in the distillery and combustible dust from sugar and bagasse. Raízen is a joint venture of Shell and Cosan and one of the largest sugarcane processors in the world, with its mills concentrated in São Paulo state and Mato Grosso do Sul. This page is for the safety, industrial and IT teams who decide what a person may carry across a mill floor. The IS-04Z1 is designed around intrinsic safety rather than a flameproof enclosure.
Launching Q4 2026 · IECEx certification programme in progress
Local approvalINMETRO · Portaria 115/2022Zone 1 / Zone 21 · certification in progress
AvailabilityQ4 2026via authorised distributors
The sites · Raízen
Explosion proof mobile phone use at Raízen's sugar and ethanol mills in Brazil
A sugar and ethanol mill is a small industrial town. Cane arrives by truck, is washed and crushed, and the juice goes to sugar boilers or to fermentation and distillation. The fibre left over, bagasse, fuels the boilers that supply steam and electricity to the mill and often to the grid. Each stage has its own hazard. Raízen's sites are spread across the agricultural interior, so a handset is used far from head office and the safety specialists are a drive away. Mills run through the harvest, the safra, and are overhauled between harvests.
Areas of a mill
- Cane reception and milling
- Crushing, with bagasse generated and conveyed to the boilers.
- Bagasse storage and boilers
- Fibre and fine particles that burn easily, with fire risk in storage and on conveyors.
- Sugar drying and bagging
- Fine sugar dust, a known combustible dust, in dryers, silos and packing.
- Fermentation and distillation
- Ethanol vapour in columns, with tanks and pumps around them.
- Ethanol storage and loading
- Tank farms and truck loading where vapour collects at the vents.
- Cogeneration and electrical plant
- Steam turbines and switchrooms, mostly not classified.
- Offices and laboratories
- Quality control and administration outside the classified boundary.
Hazard types
- Ethanol vapour
- Flammable vapour, covered by IIC equipment, found in the distillery and storage.
- Sugar dust
- Combustible dust in dryers and conveying, with Zone 21 and 22 classification.
- Bagasse dust and fibre
- Fine organic material around conveyors, with fire and dust risk.
- Mixed areas
- Places where vapour and dust are both possible, such as loading bays.
- Seasonal contractors
- Extra crews for the harvest and the overhaul between harvests.
- Fuel and agricultural machinery
- Field equipment and refuelling outside the process areas.
- Fire-fighting systems
- Hydrants and foam systems that need regular inspection.
Built for local conditions
What the safra does to a handset
A mill's year has two parts: a harvest in which everything runs at once, and an interval for maintenance. A fleet of handsets has to suit both.
IP ratingIP68
Battery4,000 mAh
Camera50 MP
OSAndroid 16
Heat and wet washdown
Mill floors are warm and are hosed down regularly. The handset is sealed for immersion and washdown, but the washing routine should be agreed with the site safety officer.
Temporary crews in the harvest
Mills bring in extra staff for the safra. Enrolment in an existing MDM console issues a managed handset to each team and removes it when the season ends.
Distance from head office
Mills are far from the corporate office. Remote management through Android Enterprise means policy and app updates can be applied without a visit.
Both gas and dust in one walk
The design target covers Zone 1 gas and Zone 21 dust, so an operator on a round between the distillery and the sugar plant carries a single device.
Use cases · Raízen
Where the IS-04Z1 goes to work at Raízen.
Distillery01
Fermentation and distillation rounds
An operator records column temperatures and tank levels, photographs a leaking flange and reports it from inside the classified area. The record replaces a round sheet signed at the end of the shift.
Energy02
Boiler house and bagasse conveyor inspection
Conveyors carrying bagasse are inspected for build-up and heat. A handset logs a location and a photograph, and the maintenance team sees where fibre is accumulating.
Maintenance03
Inter-harvest overhaul
Between harvests, contractors overhaul crushers, boilers and distillation columns. A managed fleet gives each crew the same job pack and is cleared when they finish.
Questions · Raízen
Frequently asked questions
Is the IS-04Z1 certified for use at Raízen mills yet?
No. The device is pre-launch, and IECEx, ATEX and the Brazilian INMETRO certification are in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
Does one handset cover both ethanol vapour and sugar dust?
The design target is Zone 1 gas and Zone 21 dust. Whether a particular area is covered depends on its classification, which the mill's safety team sets.
Does Raízen's shareholder structure change who we speak to?
Raízen is a company in its own right. Its procurement and safety procedures are separate from those of its shareholders, so a supplier deals with Raízen directly.
How does the harvest season affect an evaluation?
A trial is easiest during the inter-harvest period, when plant is stopped and safety staff have time. A trial in the safra is possible, but plan for less access.
Enquiry · Raízen
Ask about the IS-04Z1 for Raízen, Brazil
Tell us the site, the zone and gas group, and roughly how many handsets. The SAMS team replies by email with the datasheet and the certification schedule for Brazil. The IS-04Z1 is pre-launch and certification is in progress, so there is no list price yet; indicative pricing is issued in writing against a stated quantity and site.
Enquiry · Raízen
Launching Q4 2026
Evaluating the IS-04Z1 for this site?
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule for your market.