published & featured news icon - talking bubble

Kulkarni and Moses talk automation with big results for the food industry

Feb 19, 2024

Niranjan Kulkarni, PhD, Sr. Director of Consulting Services and Tony Moses, PhD, Fellow of Product Innovation, discuss how to take advantage of value-add activities on the plant floor of your food and beverage manufacturing operations in ProFood World’s article, “Get Big Results from Small Automation.”

Several industry experts join Kulkarni and Moses in discussing the trends and benefits of automation in food and beverage facilities to address labor shortages and improve operational efficiency. And some of these projects are surprisingly small. Automation doesn’t always require massive investments to yield significant benefits.

The article highlights multiple ways of identifying automation opportunities, suggesting methods like shadowing product flow.

"You become the product, and then you move through the facility." "Ask those annoying questions like 'Why.' Why am I sitting there? Why am I waiting for an operator to come pick me up? As the product is moving through the value stream, you start identifying the value-add vs. the non-value." - Kulkarni

Alternatively, simulations offer a compelling platform for digging into your factory floor’s constraints and workflow intricacies, allowing for more informed project planning.

"Computer models can really help you understand better how automating one process might affect another process." - Moses

The article poses several ideas and considerations for possible automated improvement opportunities. Read the full article, “Get Big Results from Small Automation” here.

Follow CRB on LinkedIn