< Previous30 Food & Drink International www.fdiforum.net CONTROL AND AUTOMATION A utomation is widely recognised as essential in the modern food industry, especially as Industry 4.0 approaches take hold. With slim margins, high demand, a need to produce more for less, and a competitive environment, automation can improve productivity, efficiency, accuracy, flexibility, boost cost savings, reduce waste, and differentiate a business. While food manufacturing has been recognised as relatively slow to embrace modern aspects of automation, these have become increasingly important as labour shortages and expenses rise. For instance in the UK, according to NatWest, by 2024 a third of the food and drink industry’s workforce will be due to retire, leaving it 140,000 people short. The food industry therefore looks to innovative automation solutions to plug gaps, seeing it reach for instance most aspects of food processing, with smart machines, like intelligent robotics, along with sensors, and AI all becoming more commonplace, especially as technology prices start to decline and advances in technology continue to push ahead. Automation extends to ovens, mixers, cutting machines, sorting equipment, wrapping equipment, filling equipment, Automatic Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and much more in the food industry. This is drastically altering how employees work at food facilities, seeing them move away from the assembly line and instead take up a position in a control room where they are tasked with making sure operations work smoothly, modifying processes and dealing with any problems that arise. Roles in food manufacturing are becoming more technically skilled, appealing for staff to Advancing with automation Implementing automation presents the opportunity to address growing demand on the food industry while removing the barriers to optimal efficiency created with a mainly flesh and blood workforce. 30-33.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:00 Page 1Food & Drink International 31 www.fdiforum.net CONTROL AND AUTOMATION The world’s first self-calibrating temperature probe The TrustSens TM371 temperature sensor from Endress+Hauser features unique technology that provides fully automated inline self-calibration without process interruption. The sensor’s self-calibration function saves time and costs by converting a normally manual exercise into a fully automated procedure. This reduces the need for calibration equipment, frees up on-site engineers for other activities and reduces the risk of product wastage caused by incorrect temperature measurement. Any drift of the inbuilt temperature sensor would be quickly detected rather than waiting to be discovered during the next manual calibration cycle. Designed for use in hygienic applications in the food & beverage industry, TrustSens is fully compliant with FDA and GMP guidelines. An audit- compliant calibration certificate is digitally produced and stored within the temperature probe, ready to be downloaded at any time. For more information, visit www.uk.endress.com/tm371. program automated equipment and deploy Artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) to optimise performance. The shift in job requirements takes staff away from potentially dangerous roles, eradicating injuries, and by reducing human contact with products, automation reduces chance of contamination and instances of human error, allowing for more consistent products and higher accuracy in tasks like weighing. Across primary and secondary processing automation has seen an uptick as its benefits become more widely recognised, particularly regarding robotics. In the past, use of robotics in primary processing was limited due to differences in the shape, size and weight of raw foods and ingredients, but now, improvements in sensing and soft gripping, enabling a gentle hold to be taken on delicate products such as fruits without causing damage, are allowing robots to handle many raw foods. Advances in vision systems have also helped in this, and are seeing picking and placing robots in particular increase in use outside of the production line, with vision systems helping in the identification of products, allowing for better handling and sorting, while robots with intelligent vision systems are enabling specific placement of products on a belt to be completed with high accuracy. Automation is implemented well in monotonous and repetitive tasks that can result in high employee turnover and quality problems due to lost focus, such as the transportation of goods, where humans are replaced with AGVs, and in potentially dangerous tasks like cutting and slicing. Products must often © Shutterstock/ Surasak_Photo © SMC 32 Á 30-33.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:00 Page 232 Food & Drink International www.fdiforum.net CONTROL AND AUTOMATION SICK’s 2D quality inspection smart SensorApp is ever present SICK has launched Presence Inspection, a freely-downloadable, easy-to-set-up SensorApp for its Inspector P family of programmable 2D vision cameras. The addition extends the performance and versatility of SICK’s 2D ‘plug and play’ offering for presence/absence quality inspection, validation and process control tasks in food and drinks manufacture. The SICK Presence Inspection 1.0 SensorApp has been developed in SICK’s AppSpace software environment to enable simple and economical pass/fail quality inspection tasks onboard the Inspector P smart camera family as standard. Coupled with a versatile choice of camera optics, the Presence Inspection’s image processing capability can encompass wide fields of view and resolutions between 1 and 4 megapixels. Presence Inspection can be downloaded from the SICK AppPool and a simple, web- based Graphic User Interface guides the user to configure a selection of tools for image analysis to suit the application. Easy user set-up and operation is therefore assured without the need for software skills or programming. For more information, visit www.sick.co.uk. be sliced in a manner consistent with a brand, or delicately to a high degree of accuracy with limited waste. Pre- programmed robots can perform this job with more precision and speed than humans, creating identical cuts every time. From simple machines to vision guided robots, automation can speed up cutting lines and improve safety in a highly hazardous sector of food production in terms of both worker and food safety. Advanced robotic cutting has the potential to automate the task of dismembering bigger animals, particularly those that cannot be dealt with via fixed station automated cutting - often used for example with chickens. Robotic butchery has been a difficult task to automate as each cut is based on shape and position of flesh and bones, and all animal carcasses are different. However, innovation has seen robotics combined with machine vision and other sensing abilities that automatically scope fat and structural characteristics of a carcass. Sensors can calculate dimensions of carcasses to help with precision and automated arms clamp on to the carcass while other arms use knives to cut them. Meanwhile, another robot can then sort the cuts and move them to conveyor belts, to be weighed and packed by further robots down the line, all with minimal human supervision. Automation extends to the most delicate of processes such as cake decorating, to meet demand in secondary production, where decoration by hand is no longer viable due to fast- paced production lines. With robotic arms piping icing onto cakes and performing intricate decorating, thanks to 3D and 2D vision technology, automation offers a perfect finish despite if the surface of the cakes or their sizes are inconsistent, reducing waste and as a result costs. Integrating automation today, and making the most of it, comes in hand with more intense data collection, data- based decision making powered by advanced analytics, and the IoT – which all come together in the current focus on embracing Industry 4.0. Though IoT is still relatively new to food production, a desire for deeper insight into the process of manufacturing, in order to boost production, efficiency and make savings, is seeing IoT technologies such as wireless sensors become more prevalent. With wireless sensors, automated processes, equipment and machinery can send and receive real time data, be closely monitored and processors are able to gain more control over and discover how to streamline operations, make and sell products faster and gain more profit. IoT sensors can be utilised for many purposes from checking equipment status and performance, to speed of lines, flow rates, temperature and other conditions. Many companies supplying these sensors usefully allow for alerts to be sent to smart phones and mobile devices. Wireless sensors also beneficially enable the automation of maintenance by providing constant updates on the health of process equipment like conveyors, pumps, and fans, and collecting data on the equipment’s performance which can then be used to predict when it will need to be replaced or repaired before is breaks, and can send advanced warnings for this. Being able to predict when maintenance is required reduces downtime for repairs and prevents productivity loss while also reducing the 30-33.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:00 Page 3Food & Drink International 33 www.fdiforum.net CONTROL AND AUTOMATION • Saves costs • Meets the highest requirements on hygiene • Increases safety and quality • Used in breweries and food & beverage industries www.sera-web.com Contact: 01733 396040 sales.uk@sera-web.com YOUR EXPERTS IN CLEANING IN PLACE need for constant human supervision over equipment. Further, as the IoT enables connectivity outside of a facility, machinery and equipment sellers can be connected to their products on the floor, allowing them to monitor, troubleshoot and enact preventative maintenance remotely, decreasing site visits, which can be costly. Understanding where to begin is frequently the first hurdle for firms looking to implement smarter manufacturing, automation, IoT and a wider Industry 4.0 strategy. As noted by Bob Hitner, Marketing Manager for SMC Pneumatics (UK) Ltd: “Most people can recognise the benefits of adopting an Industry 4.0 approach but “where do I start” is often their first question. We see Industry 4.0 as being a natural progression towards smarter manufacturing, with smart machines incorporating smart components operating in smart factories. “We help our customers in practical ways, to take a few small steps, to start them on their Industry 4.0 journey. In many cases the starting point is by adopting advanced sensors to measure and monitor pressure or flow. By logging this performance data you can quickly detect any irregularities in your production process. This data can help you introduce preventative maintenance to minimise unplanned stoppages.” As food manufacturers seek to scale up and alter operations to meet demand, automation looks to be key, with, according to market research company Meticulous Research, the global food automation market anticipated to reach $14.3bn by 2025. © Shutterstock/ Scharfsinn 30-33.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:00 Page 434 Food & Drink International www.fdiforum.net MIXING AND BLENDING T aste, texture, colour and even appearance are all factors that are directly influenced by the mixing and blending process. Product consistently is paramount; what goes into one can or pouch package must be exactly the same as the rest of that batch and all the ones before and after it. With so many options available on the market, it’s vital to process optimisation that food and beverage makers find the right solution for their needs. Getting the advice of expert helps to ensure a manufacturer is set up with the right mixing and blending equipment to meet their needs. But those needs are understandably varied, with a staggering amount of food and beverage products available shelves having come into contact with a mixer or blender at some point in their lifecycle. Mixing dry goods together requires different speeds and machinery from what’s required when mixing wet or viscous ingredients. Understanding the difference and installing the right equipment accordingly is vital to process optimisation. Industrial blenders introduce different amounts of energy and high shear and high impact blending systems, all of which can have an effect on a product’s particle size, influencing consistency and texture. This is advantageous for emulsification, powders and thickeners. That last example is especially advantageous as stabilising and thickening agents are crucial to the end texture and quality of many products – such as salad dressings, gummy confectionery, syrups and ice creams. But a number of issues can arise during the manufacturing process when incorporating these gums into a product mix. But incorporating these gums into a product can cause some problems during the manufacturing process, and they can be difficult to disperse and hydrate correctly and efficiently. When added to water, most gums form agglomerates which conventional © Shutterstock/ Surasak_Photo The winning mix Food and Drink International explores the myriad industrial processes that require mixing and blending technologies. 34-38.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:04 Page 1Food & Drink International 35 www.fdiforum.net MIXING AND BLENDING agitators struggle to rapidly break down. But by using high shear equipment, manufacturers are able to avoid these agglomerates from forming and achieve the desired texture, consistency and mouth feel of their products. Industrial blenders aren’t suited to every application and, in some cases, can be of detriment to a product rather than beneficial. Other options include ribbon blenders which boast dual action ribbon-shaped agitators which creates an intimate blend in a short cycle time. Thanks to the nature of this mixer, it’s ideally suited for powder blending applications where thoroughly incorporating products together is paramount. For blends requiring a gentler mixing © Shutterstock/ Itsanan 36 Á 34-38.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:04 Page 236 Food & Drink International www.fdiforum.net MIXING AND BLENDING action, there’s paddle, tumble and vertical blenders. The latter is ideal for a product that is shear sensitive, or where process parameters are critical. The blending action is gentler than the agitators seen in the ribbon blender, so for loose mixers and those of a more delicate nature, this is a better fit. Tumble blending is a rotating mixing machine that, as one can deduce, mixes through a tumbling rotating action. These machines come in a variety of styles depending on the requirements, from intermediate bulk container blender, the V-shaped blender and the double-cone configuration. Agitation is often conflated to mean all types of mixing processes, but this is an oversight, eclipsing the purpose of agitation in food processing. Agitators ensure the mixing process achieves a homogenous mix faster. Given that there’s dozens of different kinds of products that require this specific kind of mixing, it’s no surprise that there are different kinds of agitators. From low shear to high shear, agitators can be used to mix, disperse and emulsify making them common on production lines. As we’ve already explored, ensuring the correct mixer or blender is in place can result in huge efficiency and process optimisation gains. This can be taken further still. With continuous mixing and blending, a manufacturer can meet the demand for ever more efficient processes and increase batch throughput. This can be accomplished by using several mixing receptacles © Shutterstock/ Deyan Georgiev Advanced Engineering MIDDLETON LTD mixing is our business l Inline High Shear Mixer l 3 Stage High Shear Mixer l Dispersion Mixer l Fluid Mixers l AdPro l Top Entry High Shear Immersion Mixer l Bottom Entry High Shear Mixer l Sealed Bearing Mixer mixer design and technology Trent Industrial Estate, Duchess Street Shaw, Lancs, OL2 7UT, UK tel: +44 (0)1706 759003 fax: +44(0)1706 759004 email: info@aemixers.com web: www.aemixers.com WE HAVE MOVED Come and see us on Stand B24 34-38.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:04 Page 3Food & Drink International 37 www.fdiforum.net MIXING AND BLENDING Rotronic Instruments (UK) Ltd Crompton Fields, Crompton Way, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 9EE. Tel: +44(0) 1293 571000 Email: instruments@rotronic.co.uk Web: www.rotronic.co.uk Company profile: Rotronic is a global company manufacturing instruments for the precise measurement of water activity, humidity, moisture, temperature, CO2 and differential pressure. Rotronic devices are specified throughout the food and other industries. Experienced engineers can provide measurement solutions for any application. Rotronic has UKAS / ISO 17025 accreditation for Temperature, Humidity and Dew Point calibration. Product profile: Rotronic manufactures water activity analysers to determine the free moisture within food products - a good indicator of product stability and shelf life. Controlling the moisture present improves product quality. Analysers provide measurements in typically less than five minutes. The wide product range includes the AwTherm analyser with full temperature sample control; the HygroLab C1 laboratory analyser for up to four probes, handhelds for making spot-checks and a PC-based solution which is ideal when visiting suppliers’ sites. The sensors can be calibrated to confirm performance. Full technical product information is available on the website. WATER ACTIVITY arranged in such a way that a batch is always being worked on at any given time. However, opting for multiple off- the-shelf options might have the opposite effect and compromise efficiency rather than enabling it. For that reason, manufacturers might be better off opting for a bespoke approach. This equipment is built to exacting customer standards and optimise specific individual processes, meaning they’re purpose-built to a manufacturer’s unique needs. With the growing number of food and drink manufacturers moving towards more specialised optimised processes to maximise quality and minimise cost, no doubt these bespoke options will become more popular still. © Shutterstock/ DenisProduction.com 38 Á 34-38.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:04 Page 438 Food & Drink International www.fdiforum.net MIXING AND BLENDING High shear mixing for CBD oil-based foods and beverages Cannabidiol oil – or CBD oil – is an oil derived from cannabis, but it contains none of the psychoactive ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), so there is no ‘high’ from it. The incorporation of CBD oil into foods and beverages is becoming one of the fastest growing trends in the process industry, but cannabidiol oil has several processing challenges. CBD is mostly supplied in liquid form and depending on the concentration can be a highly viscous liquid making it difficult to blend with water or low viscosity oils. When using agitators “stratification” can occur, so the mixing equipment must be able to blend liquids of different viscosities and reduce the droplet size. If the droplet size is not reduced sufficiently products can appear cloudy rather than clear. The mixing equipment also needs to be reliable as products must remain consistent to ensure the amount of CBD oil incorporated does not exceed guidelines. CBD oil products are potency tested so repeatability is essential. Silverson mixers are increasingly being used for R&D and small scale production in this emerging market as the main mixing challenges associated with CBD oil can be overcome. The entire Silverson product range is able to create stable emulsions in beverages, significantly reduce droplet size for clear gummy sweets, effectively incorporate powdered ingredients into a mix for use in baked goods and batch-to- batch consistency is guaranteed. Silverson laboratory mixers can easily be scaled up to production scale equivalents as each Silverson mixer is engineered to the same fine tolerances, allowing customers to keep up with customer demand. To find out more, www.silverson.co.uk, email sales@silverson.co.uk, or call +44(0) 1494 786331. Whatever the processing capabilities of a mixing and blending equipment, one issue still remains – hygiene. Without a thorough washdown and sanitation routine in place between batches, mixers and blenders become a major health risk. When high viscosity food ingredients are mixed together, ingredients closest the vessel walls tend to move slower which affects the overall efficiency of the mixing process. Scrapers are purposefully designed to come into contact with the vessel walls to scrape away sticky ingredients and incorporate them back into the mix. But some particles can become embedded in the scraper itself, creating abrasion on the vessel walls which leads to wear. Ingredients can also collect on the scraper arm, where they can contaminate the next batch. This is just one example, highlighting the wider need for mixing and blenders to be regularly and thoroughly cleaned between batches. This does result in periods of downtime, which can be avoided if a company embraced continuous mixing operations, as outlined previously. Innovation never sleeps for food processing, and updates in mixing and blending technologies offer food manufacturers the chance to regularly evaluate and update their processes which, in turn, helps boost efficiency, process optimisation and improve product consistency. © Shutterstock/ Surasak_Photo 34-38.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:04 Page 5Food & Drink International 39 www.fdiforum.net GULFOOD MANUFACTURING Uelzena Ingredients Uelzena Ingredients, a business unit of the Uelzena group, will present its milk- based food ingredients range at Gulfood Manufacturing 2018 in Dubai. All products are produced in group-owned production plants in Northern Germany. Uelzena Ingredients is distributed by the headquarter Uelzena eG as well as Uelzena’s subsidiary company WS Warmsener Spezialitäten GmbH, a specialist for sweetened condensed milk. The product portfolio includes low heat and medium heat skimmed milk powder, sweet buttermilk powder, butter, anhydrous milk fats and sweetened condensed milk. Uelzena eG and Warmsener Spezialitäten GmbH hold all the necessary certifications and most of the products are certified according to kosher and halal requirements. One of Uelzena’s strengths is the broad range of filling and packaging options for industrial and export needs that range from small containers weighing 10 kg to entire tank truck loads. We supply large branded manufacturers of confectionery products, baked goods, ice cream and delicatessen. Tel: +49(0) 581 806-0 Web: www.ingredients.uelzena.com Email: info@ingredients.uelzena.com Stand: S-B95 Growing food safety and waste concerns and a desire to get produce to market faster and more affordable are now driving innovation and impacting the equipment producers choose in a fiercely competitive F&B market. Gulfood Manufacturing 2019 will address these and other industry issues with the latest in processing technology on show across 81,000 square metres of exhibition space. Tailored networking opportunities afforded at the mega event will also shape the industry’s future, with sector- wide collaboration crucial to meeting the challenges, according to Swiss flavours manufacturing powerhouse Givaudan. The firm is making its Gulfood Manufacturing debut this year, aiming to use the platform to seek out partners to “co-create and innovate”. Another Gulfood Manufacturing debutant from Switzerland, Firmenich, the world’s largest privately-owned fragrance and flavour company, will be demonstrating its innovations for fat and salt reduction, MSG replacers, taste enhancers and alternative ‘green’ protein solutions amid the trend for sugar reduction and going ‘natural’, which is driving technological innovation. FoodTech Summit will address the future of food Firmenich’s sugar reduction expertise will be leveraged at the second Gulfood Manufacturing FoodTech Summit when the company’s VP of Taste, Imad Farhat, will discuss the latest developments. The second edition of the Summit will bring together international F&B experts and industry leaders, key decision makers and innovators to discuss global market developments and the latest solutions helping the industry improve efficiency, productivity, and quality. Sharing the FoodTech Summit platform will be Sudarsan Thattai, the CIO of Lineage, who will explore 40 Á Gulfood Manufacturing Gulfood Manufacturing, the largest food and beverage processing and packaging show in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, will lift the lid on the reinvention of food production when it returns for its sixth edition from 29-31 October at Dubai World Trade Centre. 39-41.qxp_Layout 1 23/09/2019 11:06 Page 1Next >