The future of food manufacturing is here. Many manufacturing companies, including food manufacturing companies have started to transition to Industry 4.0, which can help improve many parts of a manufacturing business. The transition of food manufacturing to Industry 4.0 is known as Food Manufacturing 4.0.

The recent pandemic has fueled the transition to Food Manufacturing 4.0 to gain flexibility and efficiencies. Over the past months the food manufacturing industry has undergone many challenges due to the pandemic, in particularly supply chain disruptions and a labour shortage. As a result, food manufacturers are more motivated to transition to Food Manufacturing 4.0.

What is Industry 4.0/ Food Manufacturing 4.0

Industry 4.0 is the enhancement of automation and data exchange technologies in the manufacturing process. This can include adoption of current AI and IoT technology through out the operations, in the machinery, the warehouse and for the workers so that every aspect of an operation can collect data and “talk” to each other.

There are many different ways to add AI and IoT into your current manufacturing system, such as low-cost sensors and field devices embedded with inexpensive microchips. The sensors can not only track production but also measure temperature, ensure consistent quality, balance inventory with demand and many more.

These sensors and microchips can then send the information/data to a few different types of mechanisms depending on an organization’s needs:

• Monitoring – The data is sent directly to an operator for the operator to analyze.

• Automation – The data is sent to computers / cloud to analyze, which then acts upon the insights allowing for the fastest responses without human intervention.

• A mix of the two – The data is sent to computers / cloud to analyze to provide insights and then a human worker can act upon the insights.

The different mechanisms can be combined based on the organizations needs.

For more information on AI and IoT, check out our Artificial Intelligence Of Things blog.

Food Manufacturing 4.0: Supply Chain, Labour Shortages and Increased Efficiency

Supply Chain

The pandemic has caused drastic changes in the food manufacturing supply chain. With Food Manufacturing 4.0 implemented, AI can predict disruptions before they happen and help choose the best course of action to reduce risk. These predictive analytics will help provide insight that managers can utilize to keep the company nimble and ready. AI can also help maintain accurate inventory and the handling of cash flow, which, during a crisis, is ever important.

Inventory sensors for warehouse management can help ensure proper inventory tracking. Sensors can alert workers when supplies are low so more can be ordered before they run out. Alternatively, the IoT can automatically reorder items that are low without having human review , making the process even faster and more efficient. Technology can also predict when to order product based on past supply and demand history.

Labour Shortages

Even prior to the pandemic, many food manufacturing plants had productivity issues related to  sick or unproductive workers. Introducing IoT and automation can lead to a safer workplace which could mean less production disruption and more profits..

One suggestion to keeping workers safe is wearable technology such as smartwatches, smart gloves or smart glasses that would allow for real-time monitoring of workers’ health. If wearable technology seems too advanced or pricey, companies can also install body temperature sensors within production facilities that would flag workers with body temperatures exceeding a predetermined threshold. With real-time monitoring, body temperature can be easily monitored to pick up signs of illness. Catching a worker’s illness early could help reduce the spread of the illness, therefore reducing the chances of having a material disruption in labour efficiency. Another cost-effective way to implement wearable technology is utilizing the smartphones that the majority of workers already use. By installing a simple  health monitoring app that can be customized to the wearer and the business specifications.

For instance, Riverside Natural Foods, parent company of Made Good, Good To Go and Cookie Pal introduced wearable technology during the pandemic to ensure social distancing and to trace which employees have come into contact with one another. The app is downloaded to the workers’ phones and vibrates if the worker is less than six feet away from someone else.

Overall Efficiency

Food Manufacturing 4.0 can create overall efficiency for a food manufacturer. For example, sensors can help detect bacteria and viruses that are present on food which may automatically trigger ultraviolet lights to kill bacteria and sanitize surfaces to reduce cross-contamination. The food that has been detected as bad can then be removed from the line, thus reducing the risks and costs associated with product recalls.

This technology can also help food manufacturing companies become more environmentally friendly, by automatically tracking waste and energy usage. Sensors can pinpoint the hotspot(s) of where waste is occurring, the reason why the waste is occurring and act upon it to stop it from continuing. Fewer resources need to be used to meet regulations and less food is wasted, thus reducing overall expenses.

Food manufacturing 4.0 can also help notify workers when maintenance needs to be done on machines and conveyors to reduce the chances of things breaking down and disrupting production. One way the technology can help predict the need for maintenance is from sensors detecting changes in the way things are operating, for example, if a part is vibrating more than normal. The sensors can then send this information to a computer/ cloud to notify a repair crew that maintenance is needed.

Conclusion

The possibilities for Food Manufacturing 4.0 are endless, and the potential savings are potentially significant. Some business owners may be concerned about the cost of implementing Food Manufacturing 4.0, but we are confident a basic cost-benefit analysis considering long term impacts will show the benefit far outways the risks. Another way to reduce the upfront costs of implementation is to start small, begin with some basic IoT that would most benefit the operation and gradually introduce enhancements and improvements as the workers and management become familiar and accepting of the changes. Food Manufacturing 4.0 may sound daunting for some, but the future will show it is a necessary step to stay competitive and stay profitable in the food manufacturing sector.