Categories: Food

The Rise Of Tech In Frontline Food Manufacturing

Nearly 1.7 million people work in the food and beverage production business in the U.S. alone. The industry will reach $9,225.27 billion worldwide by 2027. Along with this growth come some big problems:

Tough global competition.
Frequent problems in the supply chain.
Growing worries about the environment.
Ongoing changes in what customers want.

When there are global problems and small profit margins, your team of field workers is the most important thing you have to deal with to get through market volatility.

These people will help your company improve speed, get around production problems, and make the most money possible if you give them the right tools.

Here are four great examples of food companies that have used Redzone, the #1 Connected Workforce Solution of today, to give frontline workers the teamwork tools they need to boost output, reduce accidents on the job, and lower production costs.

Getting HP Hood To Work More Productively

HP Hood in Sacramento, CA, had more waste and less work to get done. There was a story that their 96-ounce filler line was giving away thousands of dollars worth of extra product every month, and no one knew why. Daniel HP Hood Picture: QAD Redzone

The problem was owned by Danny Cavasos, the Quality Assurance Specialist, who used Redzone to fix it.

First, Cavasos looked closely at their Redzone filler data and found that a tare in one filler didn’t take into account the weight of the rinse water that was still there. Because of this problem, every bottle in the line was overfilled, which cost $20,000 a month.

Once he had this knowledge, he got his team together to fix the problem and teach them how to do it again.

Getting Rid Of Work-Related Injuries At Companion Baking

Companion Baking in St. Louis, MO, used technology to cut down on accidents on the job and solve a problem with waste that had been going on for a while.

When Safety and Sustainability Manager Shannon Bone was asked for ways to cut down on accidents at work, she quickly suggested making a safety group.

Using Redzone, Bone organized all the safety information the group needed in easy-to-find forms. She also made films about safety and routines for people who work directly with customers.

She wrote down all her finds and changes in the tool, which helped the team improve the process repeatedly.

With help from Redzone, the group has made the workplace safer, reduced the intensity of accidents, and created a culture of safety at the bakery. Over the last three years, this has helped the company cut its safety costs by 61%.

But Bone didn’t stop there. She used Redzone to start the Waste Watchers Committee (WWC), whose only goal was to reduce the amount of trash the company sent to landfills.

The group made Simple changes, like composting trash instead of taking it to the dump, baking trashed bread dough to cut down on volume, and moving to goods that make less trash.

With all their waste data stored in Redzone, WWC could make smart choices that cut their dumping waste by 92% and their costs for getting rid of garbage.

At Cloverdale Foods, They Are Doubling Production And Raising OEE

When Cloverdale Foods in Mandan, ND, brought Redzone into the building, managers set a lofty goal to boost OEE or total equipment efficiency. Not long after, Foreman Christian Terreforte-Rivera stepped up to the plate. It was Christian CloverdalePicture: QAD Zone Red

Rivera taught his team Redzone and got everyone on board. He was very careful, so he used Redzone to keep track of his daily checks of the equipment and supplies to ensure the product was at the right temperature for production.

After that, he used the information in Redzone to make changes along the way and ensure work went smoothly.

Rivera used Redzone to help the team make more bacon every week, going from less than 300,000 pounds to over 600,000 pounds. A few months after launching Redzone, the company raised OEE by 7%, and it’s been able to keep that level ever since.

This is a great example of how technology and better processes can improve business without having to spend a lot of money on new equipment.

Maintenance At Dot’s Pretzels Is Now More Efficient

Using technology doesn’t just have to be for people who are good with it. Jessica Hernandez started working at Dot’s Pretzels’ Lenexa, Kansas, location without experience with computers or making things.

Hernandez didn’t need much time to learn Redzone and deal with one of the most important problems the business was facing: preventative maintenance.

She got rid of the old method of using paper and set up an upkeep forum on Redzone that everyone could use. She also devised 175 jobs for preventative upkeep that made work easier and performance better.

In Redzone, automating these important maintenance jobs made the process go faster, which made the team feel even better.

Lastly, Hernandez made the team more productive by meeting with each worker to learn their skills and flaws so that the training could be tailored to each person.

As Training Lead, she created 60 training papers and 120 educational plays that showed people how to do everyday things. Overall productivity went up by 12% because of her work, which had a huge impact on the business’s success.

Using Technology To Make Employees More Valuable

People who work directly with customers know the factory floor inside and out. They’re often an untapped resource who knows everything there is to know about the producing process.

If they have the right tools, they can be strong forces for change and help food makers confidently deal with economic and organizational uncertainty.

Sign up for a sample of Redzone’s #1 Connected Workforce Solution to find out how to boost output, lower costs, and create a strong and competitive industrial giant.

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