Success in the CPG industry with specialized process control

Customer demand for product customization, sustainability pressures, rapidly changing market, and supply chain factors all mean Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) companies need new solutions to maximize asset value, operate more sustainably and empower workers. And today, manufacturing agility is more important than ever.

 

When we look at addressing the needs of CPG industries and take the production of craft beer as an example, the small-batch environment, seasonal varieties, and customer requests can be difficult to manage, especially when it’s more and more difficult to get the right ingredients at the right time.

 

To survive and thrive in today’s manufacturing environment, companies need to be flexible enough to respond and adapt to sudden changes. And one of the best ways to achieve this agility is by embracing industrial digitization. For example, the right Manufacturing Execution System (MES) with access to business and operational data of an operation can enable real-time linkage between a plant’s various systems and then coordinate them in real time to meet the overall needs of the business.

 

This approach has the following benefits:

• Close Manufacturing Execution System (MES)  integration aligns production operations to market demand in real time, reducing the time it takes to deliver new and existing products.
• Adaptable, agile solutions route more production to unused or under-used assets, optimizing plant performance and throughput.

 

Manufacturers can optimize asset use and still be agile enough to meet customer and market demands while dealing with today’s supply chain realities. Not only do they get the most out of their investment in production equipment, but they also need to operate more sustainably and efficiently.

 

brewmaxx by ProLeiT helps Dogfish Head Craft Brewing grow and succeed

 

ProLeiT Plant iT/ brewmaxx are Process Control Systems with MES inside, making it easier to integrate the various systems in a typical production facility. They play supervisory roles for all assets and their control systems to synchronize production flow through the entire plant. This close integration makes batch management, for example, simpler and more efficient to accomplish. Plant iT and brewmaxx can be used with most edge control systems from today’s leading manufacturers.

 

The Process Control Systems with MES inside ProLeiT Plant iT/ brewmaxx are adaptable to match the business requirements of CPG companies. The approach has proven successful in a range of applications from dairy and baked goods to life science, household and personal care, including the following example in craft brewing with Dogfish Head.

 

In 1995, Delaware’s first brewpub opened in Rehoboth Beach, beginning the success story of the Dogfish Head Craft Brewery. Twenty-three years later, they ranked #12 in the top 50 US craft brewing companies.

 

In 2017, Dogfish Head implemented brewmaxx in their cellar facility. ProLeiT employees drew upon their extensive brewing process experience to help deliver a fast, trouble-free start up of the system. According to Mark Toma, Controls Engineer, “It has been pretty amazing, every single one of these guys has a tremendous amount of experience in the brewing industry from across the world. They have really been partners throughout the process and have gone above and beyond expectations. “

 

Dogfish Head can now design their beer production more effectively and efficiently while being well-prepared for future expansions.

 

Industry-specific functionality based on application technical knowledge is built into every Plant iT and brewmaxx system. This is all available out of the box, making it faster and easier to build high-performance control systems to meet the needs of CPG customers.

 

More powerful when used with EcoStruxure

 

Deploying Plant iT and brewmaxx with the EcoStruxure platform makes it easier to access all the production data you need from plant assets, together with the ability to link that data to information from enterprise business systems.

 

Business data can be included in operational decisions, and operational information can be included in business decisions. The result is one homogenous business management system. For example, the EcoStruxure platform, including Modicon M580 controllers, makes it even easier for CPG production data to help optimize process (or operational) efficiency, supply chain agility and energy sustainability.

 

Connecting Plant iT and brewmaxx with EcoStruxure provides CPG manufacturers with access to the insights they need to significantly improve operational effectiveness.

 

Some specific benefits are as follows:

• Access to our extensive industry knowledge, including proven reference architectures which help improve system performance and reduce design cost and risk.
• Plant iT and brewmaxx systems are configured rather than programmed from scratch reducing design errors, cost, and time to market.
• Plant iT and brewmaxx with MES inside and EcoStruxure help reduce material losses/waste and rework.
• Modular, open architecture minimizes high upfront investments and avoids complete system overhauls.
• It’s an intuitive, easy-to-use system that allows faster, more effective training and on-boarding of staff.

 

The EcoStruxure platform also allows access to advisor software for additional industry insights such as:

• EcoStruxure Augmented Operator Advisor
• EcoStruxure Plant Advisor – Clean-in-Place

 

Better together

 

Plant iT and brewmaxx is a powerful Process Control System with MES inside designed to easily integrate with current operational and business systems. Combining Plant iT and brewmaxx with EcoStruxure (including Modicon M580 and advisor software) delivers even more effective manufacturing business management systems.

 

Discover how this powerful combination can help CPG manufacturers grow while becoming more profitable and sustainable.