The Open IIoT group believes food and beverage manufacturers need to take advantage of predictive maintenance, and other smart manufacturing technologies, to help alleviate production challenges they may face.
Food processing and packaging are uniquely fast-paced environments, where the margin for error is slim to none, particularly in the tightly-regulated world of food and beverage production, where a breakdown in the production line can result in a whole batch of products being discarded.
Industry 4.0 advocacy group Open IIoT said that manufacturers seeking to avoid food waste and costly production disruptions have looked to machinery data and predictive maintenance tools as a way to gain greater insight into what is happening on the factory floor, perform essential maintenance when it is required, and anticipate and prevent breakages before it is too late.
“Once you give manufacturers involved in food and beverage manufacturing the ability to visualise data, everything changes,” said Jim Wallace, sales manager at Balluff Australia, and member of Open IIoT.
“It gives them greater control over the production process, and once that data visualisation is paired with predictive maintenance, efficiency and revenue gains are realised.”
So, what is predictive maintenance
This proactive approach uses diagnostic and sensing technologies to monitor the condition of equipment, and predict when maintenance should be performed.
Predictive maintenance tools such as infrared thermography (detecting high temperature), acoustic monitoring (detecting leaks), vibration analysis and oil analysis, alert manufacturers of potential failures.
“Essentially, predictive maintenance uses data to estimate when a machine might fail and cause costly disruptions, so that maintenance can be scheduled before the point of failure, to reduce downtime,” explained Wallace.
“Another benefit is that it gives manufacturers the ability to schedule maintenance when it is most cost-effective, and does not interfere with production, as well as helping to extend the equipment’s lifespan.”
As food and beverage manufacturing is a tightly regulated industry, the strictest hygiene and sanitation standards must be upheld. The need for heightened cleanliness can create a wet environment, which can easily damage important equipment.
“Add on the fact that machines deployed in the food processing industry are highly complex, and challenging to maintain due to the connected system of conveyors, electronic and electrical equipment, and the heightened risk of machinery breakdown becomes abundantly clear,” Wallace added.
Impact of breakages in food & beverage packaging production
According to Wallace, poor maintenance results in unexpected breakages, and even worse, if a machine has missed multiple maintenance cycles due to a lack of monitoring, it may be broken beyond the point of repair.
And Wallace said that in the food industry, these consequences are magnified, because food processing equipment is working with delicate products that have a variety of time requirements to ensure health and safety standards are met.
“Any delays in the production process may result in spoiled goods. Broken machines are unsafe and carry the threat of contaminating food and beverages, or damaging food packaging,” Wallace continued, noting that if any contamination or damage occurs, manufacturers will need to dispose of the goods and restart the production process from scratch, leading to food waste, missed deadlines, and additional costs incurred.
“While predicitive maintenance is key to predicting, and ultimately, avoiding these obstacles, manufacturers in this industry will realise additional benefits when these technologies are combined with data visualisation tools.”
Data visualisation key to remaining competitive
Data visualisation refers to presenting data in a visual context, such as a chart or graph, so that it can be more easily understood. In food and beverage production, this is made possible by adding sensors to machinery to monitor what is happening on the factory floor.
By using IoT connectivity, this information is shared as data that manufacturers can access in real-time and use to make decision.
“Using sensors to transmit real-time data can alert employees when equipment malfunctions, so that they can make the necessary adjustments to avoid goods from becoming contaminated or destroyed,” said Richard Roberts, Industry 4.0 operations manager at Zi-Argus, and fellow Open IIoT member.
“Data insights allow employees to adjust equipment in real-time to get it back to normal functionality, reducing the need to shut down production completely.”
In the food and beverage industry, where contamination is always a risk, data-driven insights have further advantages.
If there are reports of consumers getting sick from products, manufacturers can check machinery data to trace back the food production line, and determine the source of the contaminants. This gives them the facts necessary to decide whether or not a product should be recalled.
Combining predictive maintenance with data visualisation helps to boost equipment reliability, quality standards and production.
What’s holding manufacturers back?
So, with all of these benefits, why is predictive maintenance not more widely adopted by food and beverage manufacturers?
Roberts believes that, compared to other manufacturing industries, the food and beverage sector has historically been a late adopted of digital trends.
“This is often because of the complex manufacturing processes needed to comply with the strict safety, and hygiene standards of this industry, which may result in manufacturing being more hesitant to adopt new solutions,” Roberts explained.
And, although the initial cost of implementation of predictive maintenance and related Industry 4.0 technologies on the factory floor is a factor, Roberts reassures manufacturers that these tools have not only become much more affordable in recent years, but they will soon pay for themselves in gains realised.
“Predictive maintenance is a cost-effective strategy, as it reduces downtime and helps prevent food waste,” Roberts continued.
“Smart connected systems give food and beverage manufacturers a competitive advantage, boost product quality and safety, and increase efficiencies and productivity. There is very little to lose by implementing them.”
