PET Food Processing - December 2022 - 51

OPERATIONS
Increasing
By Allison Gibeson | petfoodprocessing@sosland.com
The need for product traceability, as well as increased
efficiency and automation in production, are just a few
reasons pet food processors are turning to various plant
management systems as important tools for managing
and growing operations.
These systems can help regulate all parts of the manufacturing
process, from acting as a database of tasks
and ideas to determining proper cook times. Across the
board, these programs are making facilities more userfriendly
than ever and giving employees more ownership
in their work.
Growing operations with digital tools
Plex Systems, Troy, Mich., offers a suite of plant management
solutions including enterprise resource planning,
manufacturing execution systems, quality management
systems, and asset performance management solutions.
James Bresler, director of product management for food
and beverage, said these solutions were designed to be
scalable and support growth, including new facility construction
and acquisition.
" This approach enables an end-to-end view of operations
and how new facility acquisitions will impact existing
production and procurement processes, " Bresler said.
Barrett Petfood Innovations, Brainerd, Minn., previously
used a series of binders to track the arrival of raw
materials as well as the shipping of final products, and
in the event of a recall, it would have taken the team 20
minutes to locate documents referencing where conefficiencies
T
Plant
management tools allow processors to expand
operations and increase employee engagement.
taminated products shipped. After implementing Plex's
enterprise resource planning system, Bresler said the
company no longer relies on paper and binders to track
materials and goods, and it can quickly access full traceability
using the solution.
Bresler said Barrett Petfood Innovations also improved
inventory management with Plex's solutions,
which allowed the company to move from manual recording
of inventory to managing inventory procurement
and planning in real time, improving efficiency
and allowing for the planning of facility expansion
and growth.
" Robust enterprise resource planning, with accurate inventory
forecasting and management technology, enables
Plex customers to integrate new facilities quickly because
they can visualize the impact those facilities will have on
existing procurement and production across the company's
network of plants, " Bresler said. " Our templated implementation
methodology allows rollout to subsequent
facilities in rapid succession based on the template built
during the implementation of the first plant. "
For added ease of use, Plex has focused on functioning
in a cloud environment to allow customers to share the
same enhancements and software code at the same time,
eliminating the need for software upgrades, Bresler said.
Maximizing idea generation
Before expanding a plant, managers need to make sure
they are functioning at optimal efficiency with their curwww.petfoodprocessing.net
| December 2022 | PET FOOD PROCESSING 51
Having cloud-based
software systems for
enterprise resource
management and
plant operations offers
insights in real time and
allows companies to
make more informed,
agile decisions.
©Hengk - stock.adobe.com
http://www.petfoodprocessing.net
PET Food Processing - December 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of PET Food Processing - December 2022
