In the same way that fruit and vegetables can nourish the body with nutrients for health, data can nourish machinery with health and high performance. The Internet of Things has brought with it an understanding of the many ways data can be used to increase productivity, identify faults, and earn higher revenue.
To understand the value of data in optical sorters, it is important to understand the monetary value of a company’s time. If a company is producing €10,000 of vegetable products an hour and there is a fault that is not discovered until two hours later, then there is a potential loss of €20,000 of revenue. This is just scratching the surface of the value of data in fruit, vegetable & potato sorting. Simply, data provides us with statistics that show behaviours, human behaviours, and machine behaviours. The more we understand behaviour, the more we can optimize, patch up the leaks, react speedily, and create a leaner, healthier business.
Let’s dive into the three problems facing the fruit, veg and potato sector, and how data is the hero we need.
Problem 1: Blockages
Oftentimes, fruit, vegetable or potato processing will involve frozen products. A common problem is when a product clump or ice chunk gets stuck and causes a blockage.
The solution:
The data integrated into Bühler SORTEX machines easily and instantly recognize blockages, reporting them on the dashboard and triggering an alarm.
Problem 2: Variations in Product Quality
Two differently farmed potatoes may both be nutritious, but they’re not always equal when it comes to processing costs and quality. Fruit and vegetable processors will often receive their raw materials from multiple suppliers. The problem? One supplier’s quality may be better than another despite both farmers being paid the same. This could go unnoticed without the ability to measure and analyze the wasted material.
The solution:
Data can effortlessly show which supplier has a greater rejected percentage. Appearing in the dashboard, the data will visually show problem areas, allowing customers to identify and act to reduce costs and become leaner. This could mean negotiating with the supplier for a better deal, and if they ask for proof, they can always be shown the data.
Problem 3: Human error
Companies will often process more than one type of product, and SORTEX is highly skilled at sorting different products, the problem is when operators forget to switch the mode accordingly to the product.
The solution:
Data outperforms human reliability. Bühler Insights provides a timeline of the mode selected, making it easy to track the issue and resolve it before too much good product is wasted.
While the agricultural world is still rooted on the ground, the digitalization of agriculture is increasingly being seen as an ally in keeping fruits, vegetables, and potatoes high quality, clean and sustainably produced
