[Software] MARCO Software Promotes Production at Unilever’s Ice Cream Facility

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The unique MARCO Trac-IT factory floor efficiency system plays a vital role in Gloucester’s Unilever UK ice cream factory.

It focuses on the compounding and mixing process, and the incoming raw materials, and is the first of an ongoing project to bring improved control, visibility, and efficiency to key parts of Gloucester’s production facility. It’s a phase.

In addition to the software, the supply range includes a driver-operated weighing bridge, a DataMaster recipe formulation scale, and a pit-mounted bulk weighing floor scale. Unilever is the world’s largest manufacturer and currently operates ice cream factories around the world. Its ubiquitous “Heart Brand” products are sold in more than 40 countries around the world, and the well-known Walls * brand maintains leadership in the UK market.

Although very efficient when implemented correctly, ERP systems suffer from what is called “unexplained loss” and it is widely accepted that it usually results from a discrepancy between raw material usage and waste. (SAP usually calculates based on set target values, and in general, these losses accumulate as actual usage changes.) MARCO Trac-IT is a system such as SAP. It was specially developed to address these shortcomings by continuously updating with live data from. An important point on the factory floor.

 

Unilever Gloucester’s SAP administrator Neil Drew and his colleagues were keenly aware of these losses and realized that the mixing room was showing a “black hole” in terms of accurate data. The recipe structure was based on an old manual input system that was susceptible to human error and lacked proper cross-checking to maintain optimal efficiency. By the time the data arrived at SAP, it was historic and often inaccurate. This had a direct impact on raw material use and inventory control.

 

“The business of converting raw materials into finished products suffers unexplained losses unless an effective manufacturing execution system is in place. With Trac-IT, full control, full reportability, We have reduced mistakes and created an environment where all actions are logged. This clear operational visibility has reduced raw material inventory levels. MARCO staff are very throughout. Kindly, the installation was carried out with minimal disruption to our operations. The MARCO system is continually evolving and is now in the process of putting other areas in the factory under the umbrella of Trac-IT. At – Neil Drew, Unileaver ”

Seeing MARCO Trac-IT running at another Unilever plant, it was decided to investigate whether this would help solve the current shortcomings, and after a lengthy discussion and presentation, the deal went to MARCO. Awarded.

 

When the delivery driver arrives at the main gate, a swipe card will be issued with the data related to the particular delivery programmed. When you arrive at the weighing bridge, swipe this card through the reader and enter the delivery note number. Weighing is possible if this complies with the information stored in MARCO Trac-IT.

The driver is then guided to the correct unloading location. Remote cameras in front of and behind the weighing bridge provide a permanent record of the vehicle’s position on the weighing bridge to ensure that the weighing is legal. After ejecting an empty vehicle, it is weighed again and the net delivery weight is immediately transferred to SAP via MARCO Trac-IT.

Mixing plants are central to the production process, and delays and problems here have a direct impact on productivity. During recipe creation, SAP acts as a master and undergoes a conformity cross-check with the MARCO Trac-IT data exchange module.

 

When SAP submits a planning work order for a particular batch requirement, a bill of materials (BOM) for manual assembly of raw materials is sent to the appropriate MARCO DataMaster weighing terminal. The terminal screen will display clear operator instructions and the associated barcode scanner will ensure that the materials are added in the correct order. An easy-to-use bar chart on the DataMaster screen assists the operator throughout the weighing process to ensure that the weight of the ingredient is within a preset goal. Ingredient addition errors are automatically flagged to prevent further progress without supervisory intervention.

 

Once each ingredient or submix is collated, the individual barcode labels that accompany them are printed on the way to the mixer.

 

Manual addition is controlled directly via MARCO Trac-IT and the mixing plant system controls semi-automatic bulk material addition. MARCO Trac-IT ensures that all ingredients and submixes needed for a particular batch have been added to the mixer. When the bulk dispense is complete, the mixed plant system transfers the results to MARCO Trac-IT, where this real-time information is collated with the work order for business along with the manual assembly data and returned to SAP.

 

When the raw material is withdrawn from inventory and ready for mixing, SAP automatically downgrades the inventory level based on actual usage. As an additional control, Trac-IT keeps a record of these materials until they are placed in the mixer.

“The business of converting raw materials into finished products suffers unexplained losses unless an effective manufacturing execution system is in place, such as James White Director Select Equip, Australia’s exclusive distributor for MARCO. Become.”

 

MARCO Software Promotes Production at Unilever’s Ice Cream Facility