Every production process, no matter how simple or complex, requires a series of essential elements: ingredients, equipment, tools, machinery, robots, and, of course, people. Even in a fully automated process, these elements are crucial and are always present in any production line.
One important element in the production process is the “recipe” for operating equipment or the entire process. A recipe defines the different ingredients to be used, what is to be produced, how it should be produced, and what treatments and operations are required. Recipes are supported by instructions that guide the operator step-by-step to achieve a finished product.
Industries such as food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and others require digital and automated recipe management to optimize plant productivity and efficiency, comply with safety and regulations, and ensure the quality and traceability of operations, all while meeting delivery deadlines and customer satisfaction.
Recipe Management through the MES Module
Having a recipe is one thing, but managing multiple and different recipes within your production process is a completely different process. The MES system Objective can play a key role in this regard. Objective has “recipe management” functionalities that handle the complex relationships and processes associated with production recipes: It stores recipes, allows modifications, generates necessary data for production records, and even enables task and process initiation.
Within recipe management, clients can completely set up recipes themselves using the Objective configurator and create the entire recipe structure. It’s also possible to work from an ERP system via an interface. Objective integrates quickly and easily with most ERPs.
It’s also possible to work with templates for recipes, as the production method is similar for some products. Instead of creating a new recipe repeatedly, you can start with a template that can be adjusted. One of our clients, La Lorraine, produces several types of bread, but their recipes are similar. For example, all types of bread require dough, which needs to be kneaded. These similar steps can be set in a template. For new production, the template can be used and further developed into a new recipe. This avoids the need to configure treatments for each new bread, saving time. An additional advantage of templates is that adjustments can be made directly within them, so future items receive these adjustments simultaneously.
Don’t Let Your Raw Materials and Ingredients Go to Waste
The choice of ingredients can also be set in a recipe. This ensures that your ingredients are used optimally and guarantees the desired quality. Here are some examples:
Managing Expiry Dates: First Expired, First Out (FEFO)
This means that products that expire first are used first. Unlike the “first in, first out” method, this ensures that waste is avoided and products are used optimally within their expiry time, ensuring they can be consumed.
This functionality is especially beneficial in the food and beverage industry. In other industries, the first products that arrive are processed first, and the first finished products are shipped first (first in, first out). However, in the food industry, it’s not so simple since the expiry date of products must be considered.
This applies both to ingredients that still need to be processed and to finished products that are shipped. At the first level, ingredients that expire first will be processed first to avoid waste. At the second level, finished products with the shortest expiry dates will be shipped first. After all, it’s not always the case that a product expires first because it was produced first. Sometimes, a product simply has a longer shelf life than another. The goal is to choose stock based on expiry date, ensuring that products are used optimally and preventing expired items from being found.
Through MES Objective, you can implement comprehensive digital management applying the FEFO method, customized based on criteria, needs, and redesigns for each production and storage process.
Managing Quality: Ingredients with Quality A, B, or C
If you work with ingredients of quality A, B, or C to label a specific quality, it may happen that you run out of quality C ingredients in your warehouse. If you need to ship orders but no longer have the desired ingredients, you could find yourself in a critical situation. In Objective, you can set it to allow the use of quality B products when quality C runs out, or use quality A products when quality B runs out.
You can also set it so that no product of a different quality can be used if quality A is exhausted, and production will stop until new quality A products are delivered. This ensures that finished products always meet the required quality standards.
Managing Quantity
By registering and managing recipes in Objective, you can ensure that there is minimal surplus and waste. Suppose you only need three-quarters of a pallet of a certain ingredient for your production order. With Objective, you can ensure that the remaining quarter of the pallet is returned to the warehouse, avoiding the need to discard surplus ingredients that might be taken to the line, such as a whole pallet instead of three-quarters. For the next order, the remaining quarter of a pallet can be retrieved for use. Without the software and digitalization, the pallet with the remaining ingredients would likely be placed somewhere, risking being forgotten, losing traceability, and stock.
Fewer Errors, More Consistency, and Guaranteed Quality
First and foremost, by using recipe management, there is much less chance of making errors, as fewer configurations are required per order. After all, the recipes are already defined at the order level. Additionally, the version management option also saves a lot of time (for example, templates, various recipe versions, recipe adjustments). Finally, quality is guaranteed. The instructions accompanying the recipes specify the exact quantities, specific treatments, etc., for each product separately. The instructions can also come in the form of a photo or a question that the operator must confirm. The operator must always follow these instructions carefully, which guarantees fewer errors and also ensures the quality of each finished product.
Production Optimization with MES (Manufacturing Execution System)
Recipe management is just one component of the MES system. To address the challenges of modern production and increase efficiency, many forward-thinking manufacturers have already adopted an MES (Manufacturing Execution System).
The MES is an information system designed to connect, monitor, and control complex production processes and data flows to improve production performance and ensure the success of all manufacturing activities. It can gather output data directly from the SCADA or PLC system and fully integrate it into the ERP system and computing equipment, providing a real-time view of the production plant.
Objective MES is a modern MES system developed to help manufacturers optimally manage operators and machines and analyze performance and quality in real time. Implementing Objective MES enables:
- Efficient management of high complexity in production and logistics, and easy management of production with high variability and low-volume production.
- Elimination of separate data flows generated by ad hoc systems without joint support or various unintegrated systems.
- Ensuring transparency and traceability through easily retrievable documentation, making compliance issues a thing of the past.
- Integration of data with machines and systems to anticipate real-time information and updates on possible delays.
- Standardization of crucial processes to avoid problems with outdated systems that are no longer maintained and with absent system managers.
- Tracking and identifying the underlying causes of quality problems to resolve them quickly, reducing costs of items not applied correctly the first time.
- Preventing confusion through unique line specifications for production lines.
By implementing Objective MES software, manufacturers can overcome numerous production interruptions that hinder them and ensure they always deliver the correct product at the right time and in the right place.
