When manufacturing technology and IT combine – enhanced production.

These days, across many of the world’s industrial sectors, manufacturing processes are becoming increasingly more automated and intelligent for large and small companies alike; information technology (IT) and artificial intelligence (AI) having been added into the mix with the promotion of Industry 4 technologies.

A NEW ERA

Manufacturing and information technology used to be two very distinct sectors, Milton Keynes-based, elumatec (suppliers of a range of high quality machining centres, saws and small machinery for the processing of aluminium, steel and PVC-U) remind us.

Not any longer. When machines can be equipped with wireless technologies that don’t simply monitor and control, but make decisions, optimise workflows and prevent breakdowns, we are clearly in a new era. But while this new industrial revolution has clear benefits, they argue, adoption rates are not what they could be, they in turn observe.

INDUSTRY 4.0

Industry 4.0 is a term used to describe the fourth industrial revolution, which involves the integration of emerging technologies such as analytics, the Internet of Things (IoT) and machine learning into manufacturing. This new approach to industry focuses on automating processes and using data-driven insights to optimise performance for enhanced efficiency, productivity and customer experience.

Perhaps the jargon and buzzwords are off-putting. “Industrial Internet of Things”, “machine learning”, “cyber physical systems” – all of these terms, or their acronyms, can easily alienate the engineer proud of his time-honed skill, or the machine operator scheduling processes with a blend of experience and gut feel, they suggest.

“Maybe the skills gap is the reason. Or could it be that the hype is just too much? It’s easy to become jaded by tales of developments that offer benefits beyond our wildest dreams. I expect there are many causes, but I know two things…” says Neil Parton, the company’s managing director.

“A manufacturer that’s going to thrive long term needs to have alignment between its operational strategy and its digital one. The systems should not be in opposition.

“Despite being branded as a major revolution, transformation can be gradual. Industry 4.0 technologies can be implemented in small, simple and manageable steps which can make a significant difference.

“Let’s look at the kinds of things these technologies make possible and why they matter.”

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST?

“We all know that the world has changed. News reports tell us about labour and skills shortages. There is disruption in supply chains. Energy prices have rocketed. Uncertainty isn’t a short-term issue but the new normal,” Neil Parton continues.

Neil Parton, elumatec’s managing director.

“In this climate, Darwin’s survival of the fittest theories can just as easily be applied to manufacturing businesses as to plant or animal species. Those manufacturers that have eliminated waste will be stronger. The ones that can turnaround orders faster will secure the deal. The ones whose machines monitor themselves won’t suffer breakdowns. The ones that model new products using augmented or virtual reality don’t have to wait weeks for a physical prototype before they can test the concept.

“Over time, those adopting Industry 4.0 technologies will gain a competitive edge. They will be more efficient, more responsive and more adaptable. They will be the survivors.

“This isn’t an industrial revolution that we should be resisting or avoiding. It’s one we should embrace. And while the IT boffins throw about all their buzzwords, in simple terms all this is possible because information is collected, analysed and used to improve how things are done. The processors can do it faster than we can, that’s all.”

SO HOW DO WE GO ABOUT ADOPTION?

“The short answer is by taking small, well-planned steps. Leaping in could alienate employees, provoking resistance. Without adequate planning, investments could be made in digitising processes that were already working optimally,” Neil Parton advises.

“Instead, an organisation should look at their people, their processes, their existing technology, the challenges they face and the opportunities they could exploit. Then they should identify the issues that Industry 4.0 technologies could solve.

“If that sounds too simple, apologies. I understand that in-depth consideration is required, and that investments must be sound. But I also know how many of elumatec’s customers, for instance, are singing the praises of our Industry 4.0 eluCloud software. I know customers want machinery where performance is optimised by these technologies. There’s already a lot of interest in our new Industry 4.0 ready eluCloud SBZ 155 and the SBZ 125/85 machining centres, for example.”

ADOPTION

“When it comes to successful adoption, I would propose the following steps,” says Neil Parton.

1. Understand where you are now. Learn about where Industry 4.0 technology could improve your operation. Get advice and talk to your peers.

2. Draft a plan. Include not only the technology you want to adopt, but also the impact on stakeholders.

3. Share your vision internally and with key partners.

Ensure your team are on-board. Secure funding. Ensure resources are adequate. Think about training or recruiting to solve any skills gaps. 4. Start with the quick wins. Upgrade your existing systems if possible. 5. Keep moving forward. Overnight miracles are rare but long-term benefits can be huge. 6. And throughout the process, review, review, review…

“I’m a big believer in the power of Industry 4.0. I know the possibilities it offers can transform struggling businesses into success stories that other manufacturers would love to emulate. But there’s a big proviso: does it make sense for your operation and its objectives?

Always consider whether the technology aligns with your strategy. Does it offer something your market wants? If it doesn’t, why do it?” Neil Parton concludes.

THE WORLD’S FIRST DIGITAL SANDWICH HAS BEEN DELIVERED

“Alongside a cross-industry consortium of food manufacturers, universities and tech developers, IMS Evolve’s Internet of Things (IoT) technology recently enabled end to end traceability of ingredients in the production of a pre-packaged sandwich during a live demonstration,” reports Edward Porter, director of IoT solutions at IMS Evolve.

The government-backed project, aptly named The Digital Sandwich, received £4m of funding from UK Research and Innovation to support the development of enhanced traceability along the food supply chain back in 2020. Now, over two years on, the world’s first digital sandwich - where every ingredient is tracked all the way from farm through to assembly and delivery - has been made. So, how does it work?

“Advanced IoT, blockchain and artificial intelligence is combined and deployed across the stages of the supply chain to gather data, such as temperature and location information, of the separate ingredients; in this demonstrator, a humble sandwich,” explains Edward Porter.

“By containing and analysing this data within the digital world, information can be collected, monitored, and managed in real time. This allows full data sets to be viewed holistically to provide a conclusive oversight of a product’s journey and conditions throughout its supply chain lifecycle.

Grote Company’s robotic solutions help maker of prepackaged sandwiches increase production by nearly 50%

Grote Company’s robotic solutions for the sandwich industry can help to increase production and improve accuracy by automating high-volume, low-value tasks.

Grote recently worked with Martel Foods, a family-owned manufacturer of ready-toeat products based in Canada, to help the company ramp up production of its prepackaged sandwiches.

Grote assisted Martel in the automation of its production line with equipment designed in the UK by Grote’s robotics team, built at Grote’s facilities in the U.S. and the UK, and sold and serviced by Pemberton & Associates, Grote’s representative in Canada. The equipment includes a 3D vision system, a 4-axis Stäubli HE robot, and custom end-of-arm tooling surrounded by guarding. It’s built into their existing sandwich assembly line, which features Grote’s Bread Denester and Ultrasonic Sandwich Cutter.

By automating sandwich “lidding” (putting the top piece of bread on a sandwich), Martel can now produce 52 sandwiches a minute, which marks a nearly 50% increase and replaces one operator per shift, freeing workers’ time to complete less mundane tasks.

The new equipment has helped Martel close the gap between full automation and manual labour. In addition, it works seamlessly with the rest of the Grote equipment on the line.

Martel envisions using more robotic technology in the future. The company looks to robotics to increase efficiency, as well as to fill in when there’s a lack of skilled workers.

In addition to Martel, this wrap-cutting solution serves as another example of how Grote’s solutions are helping customers increase both production and quality.

“Like many industries today, the food industry is facing labour challenges,” says John Truscott, Technology Director, Grote Company. “Some jobs – like assembling sandwiches in a cold environment – are ideal for automation. Staff turnover can be very high, and automation can help fill those gaps. New developments in product handling, such as hygienic end-of-arm tooling, are coming into play. Meanwhile, the people who currently hold those roles can stay employed and be offered the opportunity to take on more skilled positions.”

ABOUT GROTE COMPANY’S ROBOTIC SOLUTIONS

With 50 years of experience in the food production industry, Grote partners with proven industrial robot manufacturers to integrate hygienic, high-performing four and six-axis robots into its high-care lines.

Grote develops robotic solutions to accommodate square sandwiches, bagels, subs, or wraps. Designed to exibly handle a variety of actions and sandwich assembly applications, formats and SKUs, the technology can automate:

● Alignment

● De-lidding and lidding

● Pick and place in packaging (skilleting)

● Stacking

Each robot performs up to 60 actions per minute. Both single and twin-lane solutions are available.

By incorporating robotic solutions into production lines, food production companies can increase food safety, improve overall plant safety, increase quality and yield, and ensure the highest levels of hygiene.

“Ultimately, this data can be used to scientifically calculate use-by and sell-by dates for greater accuracy and safety. Furthermore, this level of visibility and connectivity instantly improves the knowledge, communication, and efficiency across the entire chain whilst enabling effective traceability, it is proposed.

“This innovative technology creates a ‘digital layer’ across the whole supply chain. It brings disparate systems and siloed organisations of all sizes and technological maturity into one, standardised platform so that suppliers, retailers, and customers can validate the safety and provenance of a product, it is argued.

“Furthermore, by opening up effective lines of communication and increasing end to end visibility across supply chain organisations, challenges that have historically impaired supply chains, such as food waste, low productivity and limited oversight and reactivity to demand, can begin to be tackled head on.”

After being in development for two years, the project’s first live demonstration took place at the end of 2022 in the University of Lincoln’s National Centre for Food Manufacturing, where the technology was used to demonstrate the complete traceability of each ingredient in a sandwich all the way from farm to fork. Following this successful demonstration, IMS Evolve, alongside the other consortium members, say that they now aim to continue developing and advancing the platform to conclude the project later this year. The principles established in the demonstration are intended to be both scalable to the entire food industry, and adaptable to other industries with similar resourcing and supply patterns - the power of the digital world providing endless opportunities, it is widely felt.

The sector has, and still is, facing many challenges, from the response to Covid and the conflict in Europe, to increasing consumer sustainability demands and inflating prices in everything from produce to energy, the company acknowledge. However, technology – like that used in The Digital Sandwich – has the opportunity to revolutionise the food supply and manufacturing industry by enabling efficiency and agility to be built into a robust platform that not only provides suppliers and consumers with effective food traceability but creates a shift in how the provenance of food and supply chain management is viewed, they emphasise.

PROPER TASTY’S ECO-PACKAGING DRIVE

Artisan wholesale sandwich maker, Proper Tasty, from Northallerton in Yorkshire has a local production facility the envy of most national food to go suppliers. Handmaking up to 15,000 sandwiches weekly, their classic wedge - all packaged in fully recyclable natural Kraft card and plantbased film – now accounts for over 50% of sales, they report.

Delivering fresh sandwiches, sub-rolls, wraps and stotties to North East independents, shops, cafés, garage forecourts and major blue chip corporates, Proper Tasty also supplies its sliced and gourmet range to Yorkshirebased English Heritage tearooms and café sites. They aim to deliver the highest quality, using regionally sourced ingredients and where possible, fully-recyclable eco-packaging to reduce waste - all equal factors that underpin this discerning ethical sandwich maker.

Evolving from a sandwich van and sandwich café concept in 2012 to a contract catering van delivery service, keeping money circulating through the local economy was Proper Tasty’s founding mission. Having grown to a five-van delivery business, the pandemic curveball meant the company’s ambitious managing director had to re-evaluate the firm’s future business approach. The company sold its five vans, streamlined its operation and ploughed everything back into its wholesale business model.

Founder, Byron Evans, of the ‘Local is Best’ awardwinning firm says that Proper Tasty achieves its consistent presentation and reduces food waste by using two efficient four-pack semi-automatic heat sealing machines from British manufacturer, Soken Engineering.

Now employing 25 staff, this means that the company’s adaptive, enterprising team continues to deliver what it does best – pre-packed ‘Proper Tasty’ sandwiches using environmentally-friendly packaging, its fully circular missive being focused on supporting all of the rural region’s greener, fairer and stronger lowcarbon economy goals. Indeed, reducing waste through its procurement of eco-packaging and rebranding of the wedge sandwich range has resulted in a 35% increase in demand among premium customers, they claim.

“The feedback from many customers is that our eco-packaging combined with locally sourced fillings - such as cheeses and eggs from Wensleydale, meat from nearby suppliers, fillings from Driffield and bread from a local bakery - keeps our footprint low and fits with their sustainability ethos. Particularly with prestigious regional customers like English Heritage, where their environmental goals are very aligned to ours,” says Byron Evans.

DOUBLE SHELF LIFE

Handling the switch over to heat sealing the ecopackaged wedge range earlier this year was seamless, report the firm. Designed to adapt to packaging and built to last, the four cavity H535AC heat board sealer from Soken (a subsidiary of British process engineering specialist Jenton International) has given Proper Tasty a consistent quality seal so as to be able to maintain the necessary presentation they require.

The machines also virtually double the shelf life of previously hand-packed pre-cut sandwiches to four days, they claim. Maintaining this level of freshness and achieving an air-tight seal significantly reduces the volume of preventable food waste generated by uneaten sandwiches, reports Byron Evans, and as far as he is aware, no other sandwich supplier in the North East offers such robust environmental credentials.

“Achieving a perfect and consistent quality seal not only protects consumers from sandwich leakage, it provides visual tamper evidence for heightened quality control and also prevents fast-tracking spoilage,” notes Soken manager, Stephen Hawes.

SEALING SUSTAINABILITY SUCCESS

On the busiest days, the Proper Tasty workforce can perfectly present over 2,000 wedged sandwiches, heat sealing eight eco-packaged sandwiches on their two Soken machines every three and a half seconds. The only downside is the team can’t handmake the sandwiches fast enough to match the pace of this semi- automatic air-tight sandwich packing machine, claims Byron Evans!

Compared to conventional, mainstream sandwich production lines, Proper Tasty people take great pride in ‘owning’ their sandwich from start to seal, the company also feel. From preparing and assembling the freshest, locally-sourced ingredients, to layering, slicing and packaging, Byron Evans affirms that their Soken machines supports productivity and subsequent workforce bonus rewards.

Knowing the cycle time of the Soken heat sealing process inevitably assists with real time capacity planning, setting targets and the efficient allocation of resources to specific tasks, affirms Byron. “We are even able to drill down to the packing time,” Byron Evans adds.

Like many food and SME businesses, sourcing staff and catering to rising ingredient and packaging costs are the biggest ongoing challenges. Having a coherent Yorkshire brand and sense of local culture supported by rewards, profit sharing and other incentives, combined with efficient machinery and tools that make people’s jobs easier to perform well, all play their part in building a sustainable business, feels Byron Evans. “The sustainability pressures have certainly escalated and rightly so. Yet, at present there aren’t always financially viable eco-material alternatives for every sandwich sealing machine,” he says.

Nevertheless, following the successful switchover to eco-materials on heat sealed packaged sandwiches, Byron Evans remains determined that Proper Tasty’s full transition to eco-packaging will be complete by the end of the year.

As for the company’s future ambitions, Byron Evans says that he is content with organic growth and continuing to support local businesses. “Our name came about when a consumer took a bite of a sandwich and exclaimed ‘that’s proper tasty’. In today’s uncertain climate, having a solid reputation that can flex to changing demands using machinery with a fast payback to adapt in a sustainable way is the definition of success in my book,” he reflects.