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FOOD & BEVERAGE
Accurate weighing is a crucial part of the process within food manufacturing applications
of intelligent equipment across processes resulted in severe consequences. For example, Whole Foods Market recalled more than 30 food products that had undeclared food allergens in 2020. From this, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that manufacturers should ensure they have controls in place to prevent the unintentional addition of allergens during manufacturing processes.
The good news is that, one, these costs are avoidable, and two, manufacturers can not only prevent them but also increase overall operational efficiency (OOE) too. This comes as McKinsey Digital revealed that digitalising information intensive processes can cut costs by up to 90 per cent and improve turnaround times by several orders of magnitude.
One way to start is by looking at automation, like the TwinCAT 3 Weighing Library (TF3685), which can integrate a scale directly into the PC-based control system to streamline the weighing process and optimises machine efficiency.
Moreover, it also offers features like high- speed signal filtering, automatic
measurement triggering, zeroing and taring, which are essential for accurate and efficient weighing in food manufacturing applications. Elsewhere, EtherCAT and PC-based control technology can also be used to optimise optical food inspection. For example, industrial equipment supplier, ProSpection Solutions, designed the IP69K-rated Low- Density Foreign Material Detection and Removal System for greater accuracy and efficiency in detecting contaminants in food products. By implementing Beckhoff’s
EtherCAT and PC-based control technologies, the inspection system increased foreign object detection rates up to 500 per cent. After all, quality control in this industry is money, because errors can have significant financial repercussions. Manufacturers have the means to mitigate the risks of unwanted costs and, therefore, must ensure that they have the necessary controls in place, as advised by the FDA.
Beckhoff Automation
www.beckhoff.com
USING DATA-DRIVEN, DIGITAL AUTOMATION TO BOOST PRODUCTION-LINE RELIABILITY
ockwell Automation is working with Icelandic chocolatier Nói Síríus to help the company streamline maintenance and improve production-line performance. Nói Síríus, Iceland’s leading chocolatier and a much-loved household name, needed ways to enhance the reliability and performance of its production line, while also streamlining its support workflows to reduce the burden on the maintenance team and improve productivity.
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After considering a range of options, the company decided to standardise the management of its maintenance operations using Fiix CMMS (computerised maintenance management system) software from Rockwell Automation. Using Fiix, Nói Síríus has been able to capture information about the performance and maintenance status of all its core assembly-line machinery. “This has been a highly collaborative and successful project,” said Asa Arvidsson, regional vice president sales, north region, Rockwell Automation. “Together with Nói Síríus, our consultants helped design new and streamlined maintenance workflows using the Fiix platform. It’s been highly gratifying to see the improvements this has made in such a short time. We very much appreciate the partnership with Nói Síríus and look forward to seeing the results of the predictive-maintenance project.”
Within just four months, the maintenance team went from working mainly on reactive maintenance to spending most of their time on preventative work, designed to avoid downtime before it occurred. The Nói Síríus maintenance team was able to minimise interruptions caused by the need for quick fixes to unforeseen problems using the Fiix intelligent queue-management features. The new CMMS platform enabled the team to work collaboratively with operations staff on prioritising the job queue.
Now, more than six months since the initial deployment, Rockwell Automation and Nói Síríus are working together to network the entire production facility. When this is complete, working with Rockwell Automation consultants, the chocolatier will move to a data-driven, predictive model of maintenance, helping it to further maximise uptime, cut costs and improve productivity.
“Since adopting Fiix software, our maintenance staff are much happier,” said Guðmundur Ingi Einarsson, technical manager, Nói Siríus. “Now, they concentrate on preventing downtime rather than reacting to it. We have the data we need to prioritise our work intelligently and arrive at solutions faster. Furthermore, the predictive-maintenance project promises further improvements in the future.”
www.rockwellautomation.com.
JULY/AUGUST 2024 | PROCESS & CONTROL 35
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