CASE STUDY


a sophisticated Revolution DF Control system,” said Svejkovsky. “This assures each weigher-bagmaker


never has to wait for the product and can run continuously. In addition to producing very accurate bag weights, this allows the on-machine seasoning system, weighers, and bagmakers to operate for longer uninterrupted periods. And that improves overall seasoning and product quality without missed cycles or overweight bags.” That’s certainly true at Better Made,


where Schena says the longer uninterrupted product runs have greatly improved efficiency. Seasoning tumble drum ‘on’ time now averages 5 to 10 minutes, he says, adding that the previous seasoner stopped and started every few seconds. In addition to providing greater


seasoning uniformity and bagmaker efficiency, Schena discovered that longer runs also improve operating effectiveness in other ways. “Longer production runs are allowing us


to revisit our scheduling practices because we can now run the same product fewer times each week to meet orders”, he noted. “Seasoning coverage is perfect. The chips look good. There are no broken chips. And the delivery system is excellent.” “Load cells accurately measure


seasoning delivery to maintain consistent 1­ 0


FastBack seasoners in tandem with Ishida weighers.


coverage and application rates,” said Svejkovsky, adding that ‘the seasoning-to- product ratio is the tightest in the industry thus reducing seasoning usage and improving product quality’. But to realise all of the system’s


advantages, Svejkovsky says it must also be easy for operators to run and simple to clean and change-over. To accomplish this, Better Made chose


to upgrade their line control system to Heat and Control’s ITM-Plant iT, an all-in- one software package that provides pre- loaded control code, OIT code, and MES services. “The system allows us to monitor line


performance in real-time and make adjustments remotely without having a service call,” said Schena. “It helps us get it right without guessing.” “Among its many advantages over


traditional code systems, ITM-Plant iT allows remote – even off-site – monitoring of the performance of individual machines and the line as a whole”, explains Chris Farver, controls and information manager at Heat and Control. “We were able to view real-time and historic trends for the line from 1,300 miles away and successfully address a set-up issue,” says Farver. Better Made uses 50 million pounds of


potatoes every year. It’s four fryers deliver a total of 8,400 pounds per hour of finished potato chips and sticks. Distribution of this volume to the four new seasoning and packaging systems is managed by a FastBack Revolution conveyor system. Seasoned product flows directly from


the seasoning tumble drums into Ishida CCW-R-214 multi-head weighers. Using an extremely fast processor, the Ishida weighers double the number of possible target weight combinations over conventional scale systems to achieve high speed and accuracy with near-zero product giveaway. Each weigher is direct-mounted to an


Ishida Atlas 233-R vertical-form-fill-seal bagmaker which produces tight, wrinkle- free seals at up to 125 bags per minute. n


Potato Processing Int. Magazine - Digital Digest • www.potatobusiness.com 1­ 0


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