Ishida Precision powers Mondelēz Crackers plant

At its production site in Capriata d’Orba, in the Piedmont region of Italy, Mondelēz Italia Biscuits Production S.p.A. operates one of its most important European facilities for snack production. Iconic brands such as Ritz and Cipster are manufactured here for a range of international markets.

 

Original Cipster and Ritz packaging of the final product © ITECH AG)

 

 

The Ritz brand alone accounts for approximately 20% of the plant’s total output, making it one of the site’s key products. In order to support these volumes and further improve packing line efficiency, the company decided to invest in the upgrade of its weighing technology which resulted in the installation of two Ishida CCW-RVE 14-head multihead weighers.

Fact and figures

• The standard deviation was reduced from 2g to well under 1g
• The Ishida multihead weighers achieve up to 98% efficiency
• Product breakage during the weighing operation has been reduced by approximately 3%

 

 

 Head (weigh hopper) of the 14-head Ishida RVE series multihead weigher with product. (© ITECH AG)

 

Challenge

The previous weighers had been in operation for many years and were beginning to show signs of weight inconsistencies and reliability issues.

 

Before the upgrade, the standard deviation of the weighing process was close to two grams, a value that generated unwanted product giveaway. For high volume productions, such as Ritz, even small weight variations can have a significant impact on raw material costs.

 

In addition, during the warmer periods of the year, some electronic components of the old equipment proved to be less reliable, causing occasional stoppages or operational anomalies.

 

Within a multinational company such as Mondelēz, suppliers are being asked to meet very high standards. Every new system must comply with strict guaranteed performance parameters, defined before installation and subsequently verified using real production data.

 

Solution

To improve line accuracy and reliability, Mondelēz decided to install two Ishida CCW-RVE multihead weighers, each equipped with 14 weighing heads and a hopper volume of 1.5 liters.

 

The multiheads were configured in collaboration with Ishida’s local distributor Itech to perfectly align with the product characteristics and the requirements of the packaging line.

 

One of the main interventions was the downsizing of the weigh hopper volume compared with the previous machines. This decision made it possible to enhance the accuracy and consistency of the weighing process.

 

The weighers operate in combination with a vertical bagmaker and achieve a standard speed of approximately 65 packs per minute, with the possibility of running at higher speeds depending on pack format and production conditions.

 

Another significant advantage is the high level of automation: During operation no operator needs to be deployed to look after the weighers. Line personnel supervise the entire process and intervene only for periodic checks, such as metal detector verification or scheduled cleaning.

 

 14-head Ishida RVE series multihead weighers with product. (© ITECH AG)

 

The added value of ITECH and Ishida

One of the key factors behind the choice of the new Ishida multihead weighers was their outstanding reliability.

 

“The decision was influenced by the positive experience we have had with other Ishida machines installed in the plant,” explains Samuele Mazzei, maintenance manager for the Ritz and Cipster lines at the Capriata d’Orba site. “Over time, we found that both the new weighers’ designs and their components were much more reliable than our previous weighing solutions.”

 

The collaboration with ITECH also played an important role in the success of the project: From the technical definition stage through to installation and operator training, the support proved to be consistent and professional.

 

“The collaboration with ITECH has always been very smooth,” adds Mazzei. “We received support both from a technical and commercial point of view, with a constant presence and great availability whenever needed.”

Results

The introduction of the new Ishida multihead weighers brought concrete benefits to the production lines:

• The standard deviation of weighing operation was reduced from approximately 2g to 0.6-0.8g;
• Product giveaway was significantly reduced, resulting in raw material savings;
• The Ishida multihead weighers now achieve efficiency levels of up to 98%;
• Process stability has improved significantly;
• The number of products damaged during the weighing process has reduced by approximately 3%.

 

Thanks to these improvements, the plant is able to handle very high production volumes while maintaining high quality standards.

 

“With these new Ishida weighers, we have been able to significantly improve production stability,” concludes Mazzei. “Weighing accuracy is much higher and the machines have proven to be extremely reliable.”