Factory Automation

To eliminate the production errors which can occur during the weighing, dispensing, mixing of raw materials, and packing, Sanderson has a range of solutions which automate the business processes within the factory.

Production automation software improves efficiency in food manufacturing to bring many cost saving benefits:

• Reduces labour costs.
• Reduces waste, spoilt batches and stock holding.
• Improves operational visibility and control.
• Increases productivity and throughput.
• Increases profitability.

Remove manual processes and paperwork at critical control points using factory automation software.
Sanderson factory floor data capture (FFDC) helps to give you new levels of management reporting and traceability. Functions of the factory automation software system include:

• Touch screen technology – robust and easy to use.
• A record of factory floor staff activity – through the use of swipe cards.
• A record of actual weights – enabling ‘actual’ cost analysis.
• Real-time updates against the plan.
• Real-time management and OEE reporting.

Production automation software solutions offered include:

Weigh scale integration

Automates the recording of weight data from desktop scales and weigh stations and allocates the stock to the production order.

Automated ingredient dispensing

Automates the dispensing of ingredients from bulk containers into batch bins and allocates the stock to the production order.

Silo and mixer integration

Automates the accurate delivery of raw materials to mixers and, for bulk ingredients, records the delivered weights and allocates the stock to the production order automatically.

Vessel level control

Continuously monitors weights in bulk vessels to stop raw materials running empty. An alarm is triggered when reserves are running low, to avoid production delays.

Package coding management

Automatically downloads the required information for the product labelling, extracted from the recipe management system and production schedule.

Weighbridge integration

Auto record before and after weights with net weight calculated.

Fresh produce grader integration

Auto updates count sizes against pool information.

Grape receipt integration

Chemistry analysis direct from the probes is updated into the systems LIP tables.

Vinwizard integration

Integration with Vinwizard tank monitoring system to obtain set points, temperatures etc., and supply doser information.