In Europe‘s largest dairy at Leppersdorf north of Dresden, Unternehmensgruppe Theo Müller operates a facility for natural cheese ripening. In June 2012, BMA Automation received an enquiry for a production level automation solution for this storage facility. One month later, the contract had been signed, and BMA Automation started working on the project.
Tradition meets state-of-the-art technology
With a height of 32 m, the facility has storage capacity for 2,500 tons of cheese. True to the slogan “Naturally ripened yet state of the art”, the cheese is placed on pine wood boards for ripening. The natural ripening storage facility and cheese treatment lines are controlled by a Siemens system and linked to the Group’s SAP system.
The BMA Automation team had to tackle a number of challenging tasks: development of a completely new safety concept that would include acceptance by a third party; integration of a 10,000 litre Plasticoat tank; integration with the EWM system (extended warehouse management), including a final mass test on all production lines; disassembly of an x-ray system and reassembly on a different conveyor line; integration of fire doors, including acceptance by a certified body; reprogramming of a robot system; modification of the grippers on the robot; improving the cheese counting application; revising the fault management system for the entire installation; relocation, reinstallation and recommissioning of in-line scales made by various manufacturers; redesigning the rack management system and implementing its mechanical and electrical components to production level; upgrades, conversions and additional elements at various points of the existing machinery and conveying systems; after completion of all work, a performance run that would demonstrate the success of all implemented measures.
Challenging tasks, smooth execution
The facility had to be modified during production. In a first step, the existing CPUs were replaced with fail-safe controllers. Resulting from the emergency shutdown concept that had been developed jointly with the customer, and a risk assessment, individual areas had to be separated. The first and second floors and the lift connecting them were split into independent areas. This first step was essential for improving performance. Although the schedule for the conversion was tight, it was kept, permitting restart of the facility on the agreed date.
The next step was integration with the slicing lines, where the matured cheese is sliced and packaged. This involved installation from scratch of the rack management and robot programming systems. A conveyor line had to be designed, built and installed; this subtask was awarded to a local contractor. The milestone was reached without interrupting production, and the newly designed software system started up smoothly.
BMA Automation for all-round excellence
Plant design and construction, installation, programming, commissioning and documentation – as a one-stop supplier, BMA Automation was able to provide all this in superior quality within the agreed deadline. Regular morning meetings and weekly feedback sessions made for efficient and close collaboration between BMA Automation and Sachsenmilch at the construction site.
During this time, the documentation for the project was completed in Braunschweig and handed over within deadline in early December 2012. The fire protection elements were acceptance-tested by a certified body, also within schedule. In January 2013, the contractually agreed mass test – i.e. the performance run of the facility – was successfully completed, with all components meeting the required performance criteria.
Bernd Brennecke
BMA Automation
bernd.brennecke@bma-de.com