CASE STUDIES
International food processor increases throughput, uptime and product qualityÂ
PROBLEM
A food processing client produces an energy bar that is mixed together based on a recipe that varies by product, flows continuously out of a mixer on to a conveyor and into different pieces of equipment. The original problem was that different segments of the process were running at different speeds and the continuous product flow that had a dough consistency would bunch up or stretch out as the speeds varied. The customer tried different methods to coordinate the process from combining the ingredients in the mixer to packaging, but it was difficult and often resulted in product waste, quality problems, low energy efficiency, increased downtime, and capacity constraints.Â
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SOLUTION
ACS successfully provided an integrated control system solution linked the disparate production equipment together in a network of PLCs and Wonderware’s manufacturing software. ACS’s unique integrated solution enabled the entire system to be controlled from one touch screen on the production floor. We developed a single screen that gave operators master speed control of the entire process all the way from recipe generation and raw material into final wrapped product ready for distribution. Part of the solution also optimized the operation of the long cooling tunnel, the largest energy user and resulted in significant electricity savings.Â
We also provided a database historian that collects production data captured throughout the process. This enables the plant management team to extract data out of the historian so they can analyze key production metrics and identify process improvements.Â
RESULTS
The immediate benefits were increased throughput, decreased downtime and improved product quality. Energy savings followed and management had the process transparency they desperately needed and the ability to systematically create continuous process improvements.
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