INDUSTRY 4.0/IIOT
PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH! strengthening safety and sustainability
To avoid both physical and psychological stress, and
contamination, it makes sense to move, sort or transport goods and raw materials mechanically rather than manually
Patricia Torres, industry marketing manager Food & Commodities EMEA at Omron, says automation, robotics, image processing and AI all offer valuable support in achieving zero touch processes
P
lease do not touch! You have probably encountered prompts like these while shopping. However, with the Covid-19
pandemic, shortage of skilled workers and efforts to increase efficiency, the “zero touch” trend is now entering a new round. Companies and manufacturers worldwide are looking for new ways to automate manual activities, thereby relieving and protecting employees, but also optimising processes and improving product quality. For “zero touch” to succeed, companies in the food, beverage and consumer goods industries need to find appropriate technology support.
Valuable assets Human resources, aka employees, are the most valuable asset for companies in the F&B industry. Food firms should always focus on the skills of the employees and think of strategies on how to deploy or retrain them in order to fulfil more value-adding tasks. Changes in the production environment such as high-mix-low- volume, product diversity and sustainability approaches, coupled with an acute shortage of skilled workers, represent a major challenge in this respect. The pandemic and the associated
social distancing requirements pose additional demands on hygiene and safety. In this context, the many manual tasks in the
production environment tie up staff resources. Manual processes are often expensive and even dangerous. Manual workflows may increase health and safety risks, such as injuries or accidents but also risks in relation to the ongoing pandemic. Human-machine interactions are further challenges to address in this respect. Moreover, there are many routine tasks that quickly become boring and sometimes even frustrating. Instead, the valuable employee might be better trained and deployed for more value-adding tasks. But which processes should be automated to improve efficiency, safety and sustainability?
Repetitive tasks Typical examples of areas where employees perform manual tasks are those that are repetitive such as sorting and classifying goods, aligning and orienting, as well as the filling and labelling of containers. Since they interact with machines, also taking over transport tasks, and often standing for many hours, there is an increased risk of postural
defects or accidents at the conveyor. Furthermore, repetitive tasks can become very expensive in terms of money and productivity due to long term illnesses or heavy rotation in the workforce. Added to these, there are manual tasks
where employees have to lift and handle boxes and cartons in order to palletise, box and unbox goods. Other areas where employees work manually are WIP and replenishment, the moving of finished goods, but also quality inspection and warehousing challenges that can all represent a physical strain and be psychologically stressful due to constant repetition.
Utilising talent It is essential to make such processes become more efficient, minimising interruptions, while protecting employees and making better use of their talents. Robotics and automation solutions can help by transporting, sorting or palletising loads – both in mass and customised production. A concrete practical example: fully
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