There is never a “one-size-fits-all” solution when a food or beverage processor seeks to improve throughput. In some cases, equipment in a line is fully capable, but overall line performance isn’t up to expectations. There are numerous periods of downtime and low OEE scores, and bottlenecks occur between machines. In other cases, most of the equipment on the line is 20 or more years old, and while it could be updated with new controllers, the hardware is too far gone to replace, provided you can even find the parts. So, maybe it’s time to scrap the line altogether and start over.
The path you choose will take much due diligence and may require the help of an outside consultant or system integrator to make the determination whether to fix or replace it completely. If you’re lucky, you may simply have a communication problem between pieces of equipment—the all-too-familiar “islands of automation”—or shop floor and ERP systems. In this article, we take a look at some real-world examples from fix or integrate to start over completely.