During the first visit, it became clear that it was impossible to solve this technical problem, since the goal that we want to achieve is not clear. Therefore, we proposed to collect the necessary data on the operation of the cold block without automation and at minimal cost. This was information about the cycles of the equipment, about its loading, downtime, time for cleaning, distribution of brands and ties with other stages of production.
After two months of data collection, bottlenecks were identified and the causes of production planning difficulties were found. All issues have been removed and all riddles have been solved, taking into account the volume of product manufactured.
We have set up a monitoring system for 40 CCTs, 10 bright beer tanks, 3 bottling lines, 1 CIP station, and 1 pasteurizer.
Round-the-clock control revealed the places where the extract was lost, and made it possible to visualize the entire production stage. The client improved planning, reduced machine downtime and increased output.
And the automation of the cold block turned out to be a non-priority task finally. The bottleneck appeared to be filtering. Our client modernized it and also invested in the synchronization of processes between the bright beer tanks and packaging production. As a result, he was able to increase the storage capacity of unfiltered beer without new tanks and increase the productivity of the entire brewery.
