While most brand-new or greenfield food and beverage plants are tightly integrated from the sensor level to shop floor controls and on up to the ERP system, many older plants still contain “islands of automation.” But that doesn’t mean a greenfield plant hasn’t experienced problems that could have been avoided in the planning stages—and yes—plants with islands of automation can pose especially thorny issues when it’s time to upgrade. The choice of a system integrator that has experience in the food and beverage industry can go a long way in alleviating the pain associated with designing a new facility or upgrading an existing facility.
For example, when Gancia winery (founded in 1850 in Italy and maker of sweet sparkling wines to the tune of 25 million bottles per year) wanted to get better control of its sparkling process, it turned to Rockwell Automation, which was able to recommend Progecta as the system integrator (SI) of record. Progecta is one of only a few Italian companies to be named as a Rockwell Automation Recognized System Integrator, an SI with 25 years of expertise in the installation of control and automation solutions.