By partnering with a supplier that can provide turnkey solutions, manufacturers can optimize processes both up and down the production line.
This article was published in the December 2022 issue of Pet Food Processing magazine. Read this and other articles in this issue in our December digital issue.
As the pet food and treat business grows, more and more ready-made solutions are available to help processors build more efficient and productive plants.
Greg Jacob, senior vice president of processing and sterilization for Covington, La.-based ProMach Allpax, noted that the trend toward turnkey pet food sterilization chambers began decades ago and has accelerated in recent years with a variety of key pieces of equipment. more often. Factors important to the operation of the enterprise and trends in product production. First, automated sterilization lines significantly reduce the labor required to run a business that has historically had high employee turnover and is now a major challenge.
“A turnkey retort line allows one project manager to liaise with multiple suppliers, and a single-site FAT (Factory Acceptance Test) allows for thorough line commissioning, allowing for rapid commercial production,” says Jacob. “With a turnkey system, universal parts availability, documentation, PLC code and a single phone number to contact support technicians, the cost of ownership is reduced and customer support is increased. Finally, retorts are extremely flexible assets that can support today’s market. growing container specifications.”
Jim Gajdusek, vice president of sales for Cozzini in Elk Grove Village, Ill., noted that the pet food industry has begun to follow the human food industry’s lead in integrating systems, so off-the-shelf solutions aren’t that different.
“In reality, preparing a hot dog for human consumption is not much different than preparing pate or other pet food—the real difference is in the ingredients, but the device doesn’t care whether the end user has two legs or four,” he said. said. “We see many pet food buyers using meats and proteins that are certified for industrial use. Depending on the manufacturer, the high-quality meat in these products is often suitable for human consumption.”
Tyler Cundiff, president of Gray Food & Beverage Group in Lexington, Ky., noted that demand among pet food manufacturers for turnkey services has certainly been a growing trend over the past six to seven years. However, it is difficult to characterize ready-made solutions along one dimension.
“Generally speaking, turnkey services mean that one service provider will provide end-to-end engineering, procurement, project management, installation and commissioning for a specific project scope,” says Tyler Cundiff of Gray.
Turnkey can mean many different things to different people in this industry, and we understand that there are some key project priorities that need to be established with the client before we determine the most flexible solution and the most suitable turnkey version. Very important. ” he said. “Generally speaking, a turnkey service means that one service provider will provide end-to-end design, procurement, project management, installation and commissioning for a specific project scope of work.”
One thing transformers need to know is that the quality and capabilities of a turnkey approach depend largely on the size of the project, the capabilities of the partners, and their ability to handle most of the integrated services themselves.
“Some turnkey projects may involve the delivery of single operations or system units as part of a larger project, while other turnkey delivery models involve one main project partner contracted to provide all services for the entire life of the investment in the project,” Cundiff said. “This is sometimes called EPC delivery.”
“In our expanded, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, we process, manufacture, assemble and test equipment under our own roof,” Cundiff said. “For customers in the food and pet food industry, we create unique, custom, large-scale machines. large-scale systems where quality is fully guaranteed. Control. Because we offer a broader range of turnkey services, we can provide additional services for equipment orders, including installation, automation, control panels and robotic applications.”
The company’s manufacturing operations are designed to be flexible and responsive to the needs of pet food companies.
“This allows us to provide customized solutions, from the design and construction of turnkey systems to the production of individual parts and assemblies,” Cundiff said.
In the industry, many companies offer comprehensive end-to-end solutions. Over the past few years, Gray has responded to its clients’ needs by building a portfolio of companies that offer a comprehensive suite of services that enable the company to leverage its own resources to handle virtually any aspect of a project.
“We can then offer these services on a discrete basis or on a fully integrated turnkey basis,” Cundiff said. “This allows our clients to move from purely integrated project delivery to flexible project delivery. At Gray we call it ours. EPMC capabilities, meaning we design, supply, manufacture and implement any or all parts of your pet food processing project.”
The revolutionary concept allowed the company to add specialized sanitary stainless steel equipment and skid production to its own service offerings. This component, combined with Gray’s deep digitalization, automation and robotics capabilities, as well as traditional EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) companies, sets the standard for how turnkey projects will be delivered in the future.
According to Gray, the company’s turnkey solutions can integrate almost every aspect of a project. All areas of construction are coordinated within unified systems and processes.
“The value of service is obvious, but the most recognized value is project team cohesion,” Cundiff said. “When civil engineers, control system programmers, construction project managers, process equipment designers, architects, packaging engineers and facility managers work together on their third, fourth or fifth project, the benefits are clear.”
“No matter what a customer needs or wants, they turn to our inspection team and we provide a comprehensive approach,” said Jim Gajdusek of Cozzini.
“We have sufficient personnel and engineers in various fields including mechanical, engineering, electrical, project management, etc.,” Gadusek said. “The bottom line is that we are a fully integrated control group and we design and package the control systems ourselves. Whatever the client needs or wants is done by our management team and we do it as a turnkey service. We provide it all.”
With the ProMach brand, Allpax can now expand its range of turnkey products before and after the sterilization chamber, ranging from process kitchens to palletizers/stretch packaging. ProMach can integrate individual units into a production line or provide a complete solution for an entire production line.
Jacob said: “A key component of the supply, which has recently become standard for turnkey stills, is a combination of steam and water recovery systems designed, manufactured and integrated by Allpax to reduce energy consumption and improve plant sustainability. integrated overall dynamic OEE measurement, as well as predictive and predictive maintenance packages that improve ongoing line efficiency through data collection and provide visibility across the entire production line.”
The plant faces challenges in accommodating further growth as labor shortages are expected to be an ongoing problem and internal engineering support continues to decline.
Jacob said: “Investing in the latest technology and partnering with an OEM supplier that provides excellent support and integrated production lines provides the best opportunity to leverage engineering expertise across the entire production line and will ensure the highest production line efficiency and rapid return on investment. and positioning for further growth in the future.”
As with most industries today, trying to compensate for lost workers during the pandemic is a challenge many pet food companies are facing.
“Companies are having a hard time recruiting talent,” Gadusek said. “Automation is critical to achieving this goal. We call this “blunt point” – not necessarily referring to the worker, but it involves moving the pallet from point A. Moving on to point B, this can be done without the use of a person and let that person do something similar to their skill level, which provides more efficient use of time and effort, not to mention lower wages.”
Cozzini offers turnkey solutions for one- or two-component systems with computer logic that processes recipes and delivers the right ingredients to the mixing station at the right time and in the right order.
“We can also program the number of steps in a recipe,” Gadusek said. “Operators don’t have to rely on their memory to make sure the sequence is correct. We can do this anywhere from very small to very large. We also provide systems for small operators. It’s all about efficiency. the more, the more accurate it will be.”
Due to the explosive demand for pet food and the global scale of this demand, coupled with rising cost pressures, pet food manufacturers must take advantage of all available synergies and innovations. If innovation is used correctly, results-based, focused on the right priorities and collaborates with the right partners, pet food companies can unlock enormous potential to increase production, reduce costs, maximize workforce, and improve employee experience and safety to ensure all regulatory requirements today and tomorrow.
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Post time: Aug-02-2024