Today’s fiercely competitive food manufacturing industry demands that bakeries do more with fewer resources. As a result, a swiftly increasing number of bakeries are now looking for more efficiency gains in their existing equipment and infrastructure. Industrial automation solutions from EZSoft allow bakeries like yours to cut time and increase productivity while reducing labor expenditures and their costs to operate overall.
Regardless of the size of your food production facility, your goals likely do not differ much from your competitors. With profit margins and productivity comparably lower than other processing industries, many bakeries are currently searching for new ways to increase their throughput without raising their energy costs and workforce overhead.
Small to medium-sized bakeries usually supply, on average, a maximum of 200 retail outlets. Independent food manufacturing plants typically require several products to run on a single line. If this sounds like your bakery, you have a high potential for boosting productivity and increasing efficiency at your food production facility. Nevertheless, the primary reason bakeries don’t convert to an automated plant, despite the ostensible benefits, is the common misconception that implementing industrial automation solutions at their factories is too expensive.
Boost Bakery Efficiency: Automate to Increase Productivity
Unless you run an enterprise-level operation, you’re likely still performing each step of the baking process –like kneading, proving, and heating– independently. When you automate your production, you increase your overall equipment effectiveness by linking your existing standalone solutions with the aid of automated software and information controls. Automating is among the most reliable strategies for eliminating bottlenecks, shortening batch processing wait times, and reducing your energy consumption requirements.
You’ll also gain access to valuable real-time production data from an integrated, networked food manufacturing plant that improves areas of your business like decision-making, revenue forecasting, and process optimization. Industrial automation solutions assist in establishing efficient oven-loading schedules and determining precisely how many units you can manufacture over a specified time. Bakery owners and operations managers use snapshots of this live-time captured data to refine their overall business processes and improve their bread manufacturing procedures.
If you own a smaller bakery and are currently running at or near capacity, here are a few ways you’ll benefit from more throughput and greater efficiency after implementing automated technology at your plant:
1. Increased equipment efficiency
Energy costs are climbing at unprecedented rates. Fortunately, emergent industrial automated baking equipment and software solutions can help you considerably reduce your energy consumption. Equipment that performs better while lowering energy costs can amount to immediate and substantial cost savings that will give you a fast return on your investment.
2. Smarter equipment and infrastructure
AI technology and machine learning have made significant inroads into the food manufacturing industry. Many automated equipment types come with smart technology that can help improve product consistency and quality. Automated industrial machinery also fosters a more sanitary plant floor while helping save time and cut labor expenses.
3. Better quality control
Adjusting your baking formulae and perfecting your recipes is no easy task. Automated solutions for the baking industry help you accelerate the adjustment process while increasing your throughput. If you start implementing no-time dough or raise the hydration levels of your dry ingredients, this will speed up your mixing times even further. This method also reduces your overall yeast consumption.
4. Process efficiency gains
Automated software and information controls from EZSoft help ensure every aspect of your operation runs smoothly. These tools let you organize and manage all your business continuity plans, sanitation protocols, and industry regulations under one umbrella. The smoother your business runs and the fewer disruptions you sustain, the more satisfied your valued customers stay over the long run.
5. Flexible leasing and financing options
There is likely a specific piece of equipment that you can’t do without, but you’re hesitant to move forward with it because the pricing is out of range. Depending on your situation, you might explore your options for leasing the equipment after determining that it’s the right fit. Alternatively, if you can demonstrate a given piece of equipment has reliable ROI, leasing or financing it is a good way to avoid the hefty upfront investment associated with automating a bakery.
Evaluating industrial automation companies near me
The decision to partner with an industrial automation service provider is a big one. The food and beverage industry is changing fast, owing to emergent automation technologies that help businesses achieve more efficient processes with less available resources. The bottom line is that a well-networked and integrated system coupled with state-of-the-art machinery will help you deliver more goods faster.
Learn how industrial automation software and information controls from EZSoft help bakeries like yours improve efficiency and enhance their product quality by completing our online request for contact form or dialing (484) 568-5040 now.
