FEATURE FOOD PROCESSING & PACKAGING PLANNING FOR POST-PANDEMIC PRODUCTION
releasing human labour to do value-added tasks, which is absolutely crucial for producers going forward. Furthermore, automation can fill a lack of experts in the labour market. Collaborative and mobile robots can work alongside their human colleagues to assist in lifting or transporting goods and materials, while fulfilling tasks employees cannot do because of distance or safety rules. 2. Product quality and traceability
Food and beverage companies can start to set the course for life after the pandemic using automation to boost productivity and competitiveness. Omron says manufacturers should focus their resources on four perspectives: workforce, product and packaging quality, production flexibility and sustainability
T
he coronavirus pandemic has posed immense challenges to companies of
all sizes across all industries. According to Deloitte Global, food and beverage (F&B) companies are facing reduced consumption as well as disrupted supply chains. But how can manufacturers adapt their business strategies and production processes, factories and machinery to the new circumstances – both in terms of the pandemic and in the long term? The current crisis offers a chance to rethink outdated procedures and use automation to boost productivity, efficiency and quality. F&B companies that want to prepare for the future should be appraising the opportunities that robotics, sensor technology and holistic automation approaches provide. Automation in this context does not only
mean robotics or artificial intelligence, but a well-thought-out overall structure of fixed, collaborative and mobile robotics; plus monitoring and control technology, sensors and vision technology tailored to production requirements. In addition, the various stakeholders and market drivers should not be considered in isolation, but as a whole and integrated into the future production strategy. 1. Collaboration and factory harmony
are key The first aspect to be considered in this respect are the employees, the workforce perspective of factory automation. Robert
10 OCTOBER 2020 | PROCESS & CONTROL
Brooks, Omron Europe’s industry manager Food and Beverage, said: “At the moment, there are millions of people employed in these sectors. This number has an enormous impact on producers in terms of costs, but also primarily in terms of the health and safety of human resources. The pandemic has led to developments such as social distancing and tighter safety regulations that companies need to adhere to. Automation can help in overcoming this challenge while also improving security and efficiency in the longer term.” A simple example is a cobot or mobile
robot solution that can relieve employees from challenging and repetitive tasks so they can focus on more value-added roles. Daniela Moles, communication expert at
Omron Solution Partner LCS Group, explained: “We carried out a project where we implemented a fully automatic system for the handling of heavy rolls of fabric that weigh up to 30 kilos. These rolls were previously handled by humans. Automating this exhausting task meant that the company could support its employees while also boosting efficiency and productivity. The value of automation is in the mix of humans plus machines, robots and AI. Collaboration is key.” While robots deliver speed and accuracy
advantages, human colleagues can take care of business-critical issues, customer communication and daily individual tasks. Regarding ROI, companies should focus on
F&B companies that want to prepare for the future should be appraising the opportunities that robotics, sensor technology and holistic automation approaches provide
These aspects are increasingly important for both manufacturers and customers alike. Barcode quality is one example that is a key element in many applications. Regulations from international organisations like ISO or GS1 are widely adopted, but in addition there may be further project specific specifications driven by suppliers and customers. This leads to a need for reliable systems and tools that ensure a barcode is correct and readable. Additionally, solutions can be adapted so they can also check pack design aspects and package integrity and completeness. Alberto Giordani, product and project manager at Omron Solution Partner Alfacod, said: “Moreover, innovative solutions can understand the quality grade and if it's decreasing before it's too late. They can therefore plan preventive maintenance actions to avoid potentially costly errors. In the food industry, it’s useful to check labels while they are printed by a thermal transfer machine with an integrated barcode verifier on the printer. Customers, especially large distribution companies, want to receive only products with the correct information, labelling and barcodes. If this information is wrong or incomplete, they might return the goods or levy a fine on the supplier.” Information taken from the packaging in
the form of codes is also useful for consumers at the point of purchase. When scanning the code, they can get information about allergens or other specific ingredients, or country of origin. There is a close link between automation and traceability [both internal and external to the manufacturer], ultimately protecting the brand reputation of the producer and reducing costs. 3. Flexibility as the engine of future
food manufacturing Whereas in other industries ‘batch size 1’ is a goal for manufacturers, the food and beverage industry is still closely connected to volumes. But it should still be a priority to act in an increasingly flexible and agile way to fulfil growing customer demand and changing regulations. Mobile robots and flexible production lines provide companies with
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