Daniela says there are greater forces at work too. “Supply


chains are becoming increasingly digitalised in general, and food safety is no different. While still in its nascent stages, food safety digitalisation – enabled by real-time data collection and networking from production systems such as product inspection machines – is without doubt a major trend in the wider food and beverage manufacturing industry. Confectionery companies are not immune to this imperative. Their customers and end-consumers will demand greater supply chain transparency, and automated product inspection technology will have a key role to play.”


The future of weighing and detection systems?


Technology and detection systems are constantly being developed to meet market demands. In confectionery, the requirements are usually for compact, high-speed and highly sensitive product inspection systems with advanced product handling capabilities. Not to mention, today’s confectionery market is being changed by the need for sustainability. More people are now aware that it is crucial to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions and take better care of our planet’s limited resources. Retailers and consumers want to see food manufacturers addressing these concerns by implementing sustainable business practices and taking active measures to minimise food waste. New technologies will help achieve this, and so too will the gathering, analysis, and application of data. “Confectionery manufacturers can expect more developments in these regards, alongside further advances in combination machine technology that help companies with limited floor space to pack more product inspection into their plant. The digitalisation of the supply chain previously mentioned will see increasing progress with software integration and cloud-based networking, linking product inspection into ERP and other systems that will make supply chain transparency, facilitating instant track and trace, a reality,” muses Daniela.


KennedysConfection.com “That’s why all of our sorting platforms are connectable


to TOMRA Insight, a web-based data platform that gathers sorting data in near real-time and stores this securely in the cloud,” agrees Christian. “Live data can be reacted to immediately (and remotely) to optimise machine settings; historical data can be processed into actionable information to unlock improvements in machine performance,” he says. The extent of these improvements varies according to


the type of food product being processed, but the potential is huge. “Downtime can be reduced by monitoring machine health, supporting the management of predictive and condition-based maintenance, and preventing unscheduled machine shutdowns. Throughput can be maximised by evaluating throughput variations to optimise sorting equipment. Operating costs can be reduced by identifying gaps in production and analysing root causes. And sorting to target quality can be enhanced by having accurate material-composition data. Such data analysis will become increasingly valuable as we move into a digitised future, with the power to transform sorting from an operational process into a strategic management tool.” The growing importance of data, digitalisation, and machine networking will further accelerate investments in machine technologies such as optical sorters. And these investments will pay back by making food production more resource- efficient, more cost-efficient, and ultimately more profitable.


Kennedy’s Confection April 2022 29


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44