INSIGHTNO

V 2019 | EN

poultry processing

The power of data:

Innova and IMPAQT

Esbro Netherlands

moves to 15,000 bph

Damate’s huge turkey greenfield in Russia

ATLAS in Ireland

“If we look back a few decades, we have to conclude that the poultry industry is an industry, which innovates quickly. This is borne out by increasing demand for processing capacity and the automation related to it. We are now capable of supplying processing lines of 15,000 broilers per hour [250 bpm]. At this capacity our customers can control processing costs per bird and offer consumers consistently top quality product at an affordable price. By offering systems able to optimize carcass balance, we help processors add maximum value to all parts of the chicken, while keeping give-away to a minimum. We focus on working hard to offer highly reliable and effective systems based on future proof (sustainable) technologies. With automation and increased digitalization we have improved working conditions and reduced manual workloads. Our Marel Poultry team has been able to give direction to the way poultry is processed today. Looking back, I’m proud and grateful to have been part of this for almost 38 years. It has been great and I‘ve been lucky to be part of it during the most dynamic periods.Marel Poultry is in my DNA and I will continue to support the team. It is my strong conviction that Roger Claessens will succeed in following through on our mission. I wish Roger lots of success and all the best in his new role of taking over the helm at Marel Poultry.”

ANTON DE WEERDDIRECTOR SPECIAL PROJECTSMAREL

As Director of Innovation at Marel Poultry for the past five years, I’ve been closely involved in Marel’s efforts to provide innovative solutions for the poultry industry. This has resulted in the launch of many new high-tech solutions involving advanced equipment. I have every confidence that we will continue to advance even further and revolutionize food processing in the years to come.The world of poultry processing is an exciting one. It will present us with new challenges time and time again, for which we will have to supply the right solutions. Themes such as sustainability, traceability, animal welfare and transparency in the poultry value chain will be important across the globe. A growing world population is looking for food rich in protein. For this reason, I feel Marel Poultry has a bright future ahead of it, helping our partners to produce the large volumes of such food, which will be needed. I’m truly committed to making this happen.

I’d like to thank Anton de Weerd for handing over the company in such good shape. Its health and market position provide the perfect opportunity for a change in leadership. The way Anton led the Boxmeer team over the past 12 years has been an inspiration to me. I hope that together with our team and, of course, our customers, we will be able to continue our successes and further strengthen Marel Poultry’s position in the years to come.”

ROGER CLAESSENSMANAGING DIRECTOR (EVP)MAREL POULTRY

Esbro Netherlands moves to 15.000 bph [250 bpm]

processing

Damate’s huge greenfield project in Russia

Avícola El Carmen in Bolivia opts for automated processing

IMPAQT creates the basis for process optimization

Vietnamese poultry industry on the move

New WPL9000+ Weigh Price Labeler

ATLAS in Ireland at 5,000 bph [83 bpm] - Shannon Vale

New Compact Grader with enhanced options

G+G uses RevoBreader to introduce home-style chicken across Germany

FLEXCraft - Wageningen University’s robot research project

First Thigh Fillet Systems in China for CP Hengshui

Moy Park invests in Innova

AMF-i HD - breast cap filleting of a heavier weight range

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CONTENTS

poultry processingINSIGHT

On September 1st Anton de Weerd handed over the role of Executive Vice President Marel Poultry to Roger Claessens. Marel Poultry’s mission remains the same.

A change in leadership;

THE MISSION REMAINS THE SAME

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Esbro had been thinking about moving to 15,000 bph [250 bpm] since 2017. Jan Legters says, “Having 11% more birds on the line is highly advantageous for our cost effectiveness. We already had an up-to-date factory. We had the equipment and the people available to go faster, a unique opportunity to get maximum efficiency out of our plant. Cleaning costs are the same for both 12,000 and 15,000 bph [200 and 250 bpm]. Fixed costs remain the same too. With an increase in veterinarian inspection and with a few changes here and there, we were able to increase profitability.”

Esbro developed a careful 19-week plan for increasing line speed gradually in increments of 100 birds per week and agreed evaluation moments. LINELINK TRANSFER UNITS

For 15,000 bph [250 bpm], Esbro added LineLink DE and EC transfer units. “The LineLink transfer units are really

top-notch, says Jan Legters. “They save our operators a lot of stress. Their technological concept is simpler and maintaining them is not much work. I think they’re very efficient systems!”

IRIS HELPS VETS

When speeding up processing from 13,500 [225 bpm] to 15,000 bph [250 bpm], a main concern was food safety. Jan Legters explains, “We decided to stay ahead of regulations and add a third veterinary station, as well as an IRIS vision system to support vets in the evisceration line. We’re now able to unload damaged, too small or badly bled products in the transfer unit. I’m very enthusiastic about this. We know the quality of individual birds before vets start their inspection. I think cameras will even become more important for veterinary tasks in the future.” Now that vets are supported by cameras, they only have 5000 products per hour to inspect, instead of 6750. They don’t have to release viscera packs manually any more. If a carcass is rejected, its pack is discharged automatically. These features have made the vets’ job easier than before.

SMARTWEIGHERS

Esbro also installed a SmartWeigher in the evisceration line. This allows plant management to get very accurate product weight data from the system in an early stage, just before the chilling process. Production can be matched more easily to incoming orders. “We now have SmartWeighers on either side of the chilling tunnel. We are able to check yields in the tunnel based on accurate facts not on gut feeling,” continues Jan Legters.

IMPAQT

“With Marel IMPAQT software, we no longer depend on gut feelings in primary processing. When even our most experienced people think they have found the cause of an issue, IMPAQT sometimes

proves them wrong. The control, the insight we have into our primary process is simply amazing. We know what’s happening where. We can pinpoint which line has stopped when and for how many seconds. We know what the source of the problem was.” Jan Legters is obviously very happy with the addition of IMPAQT to the 15,000 process.

“The LineLink transfer units are very efficient systems.”

CHILLING

“Our chilling system needed serious expansion, because we went from a two to three hours chill. We used to mature off-line and wanted to get rid of handling crates and save people. We wanted to keep the whole process including maturation in-line. Back in 2013 when building the tunnel, we allowed for an extra portal, as Esbro was already thinking of future expansion. Extension of the chilling tunnel line has been installed in that room.”

DEBONING

In Esbro’s distribution line, three new TR-1G HS transfer units have been added for a fast and accurate distribution to the cut-up lines; this ACM-NT configuration needed hardly any upgrade for the 15,000 process. All of Esbro’s filleting lines are operating with updated AMF-i systems, which can handle the new speed. “We only used to debone breasts but now we see the demand for product from leg and thigh meat skyrocketing. We are looking at all areas. We want to keep up with, even stay ahead of, today’s developments. Maybe we will change the way we process wings in the near future.”

GO TO: esbro.nl

PREMIUM DUTCH PROCESSOR RAISES COST-EFFICIENCY

Esbro moves to 15,000 bph processingMajor Dutch poultry processor Esbro, part of the Groenland Group, recently increased its line speed from 13,500 to 15,000 bph [225 to 250 bpm]. Jan Legters, Esbro Plant Manager, talks about the capacity increase.

Sander de Bruijn (Regional Sales Director Marel Poultry) and Jan Legters (Plantmanager Esbro Wehl)

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WHAT WERE THE MAIN REASONS FOR BUILDING A NEW TURKEY PROCESSING PLANT?

“The market in Russia for turkey was developing well and commercial priorities had changed a lot. So we decided we needed to do something completely new to maintain and improve our position in the market. We realized that reconstruction of the existing line would be quite challenging, as we wanted to keep producing and fulfilling orders. So we decided to build a new plant.”

WHAT CHANGES IN THE RUSSIAN MARKET DID YOU NOTICE?

“Russian retailers started asking for fixed-weight products. This really affects the entire secondary processing in terms of weighing, batching, grading and slicing. To fulfill the various orders we would be receiving, we needed more lines with more flexibility, which was only feasible in a new plant.“

WHY DID YOU OPT FOR MAREL?

“We needed more automated solutions. Choosing Marel ,was based on our desire to have one contractor for all processes, primary, cooling, secondary, etc.

Furthermore, labeling and the software connection to production was very important. In our first plant, we did it all by ourselves, but that needed to be improved. Marel could solve these issues too.”

“Choosing Marel was based on our desire to have one contractor for all the processes.” HOW DO YOU ORGANIZE YOUR PROCESSING?

“We have two different shifts: slaughtering, killing and cooling takes place overnight from 9:00 PM to 9:00 AM. The cut-up area starts work at 8:00 AM and ends at 8:00 PM. Because retailers have a very specific timing for ordering and delivery, this schedule was our top priority when designing the plant. We needed to narrow down delivery times as much as possible.We process toms with an average live weight of 22 kg and hens with 11 kg weight. Toms and hens are processed separately, both at the same line speed of 3,000 tph.”

Primary processingA GP container system supplies live birds. Turkeys are shackled live and stunned in a Marel high frequency electrical stunner, allowing products to be sold halal – an important issue for many of Damate’s customers. Right behind the SAT counterflow scalder units, Damate uses a customized plucking configuration, including two Counter-Rotating-T attack pluckers. This technology is particularly suitable for turkeys. It provides an optimum pluck with fewer machines and lower energy costs.Damate has chosen to eviscerate semi-automatically. Marel’s unique three-point suspension presents products to operators at a convenient height and at the correct angle. The result is better ergonomics and improved hygiene. Post EV operations such as neck cracking, neck deskinning, tendon pulling, head cutting and inside/outside washing are done automatically using Marel’s poultry equipment.

Absolute control of chilling The new Damate plant features a shock pre-chill stage followed by a longer maturation chilling stage. Before chilling, a SmartWeigher records the weight of each individual product for use and traceability later in the process. The aim of the shock pre-chill phase is to slow down the growth of harmful bacteria on product surfaces. Cold air circulates at a specified volume and velocity and spray cabinets apply a thin film of moisture to products. This Aqua Film Control technique minimizes yield loss. ChillingControl has been installed as well, the only solution on the market which dynamically adjusts the chilling tunnel settings to the load being handled.

CORE TEMPERATURE

“Heavy” products, leaving the shock pre-chiller, are released onto one conveyor belt, “light” products onto the other. To ensure equal distribution, intelligent software assigns products to whichever conveyor needs them.Products are rehung manually by both legs to multi-shackles, each holding twelve products, before entering the maturation chill stage. Products keep their shape, do not touch each other and cold air can circulate freely around them. In this way, a lot more products can be chilled simultaneously. Marel Innova software allocates each product to a defined position in one of the five maturation cells. This allows lighter and heavier product to be chilled at the same time. It knows the whereabouts of heavy and light flocks in the maturation tunnel, whether they are males or females and whether they are already sufficiently chilled and can leave the tunnel. Products stay in the second phase for six to eight hours, after which the agreed core temperature is guaranteed.

The Damate Group, largest producer of turkey meat in Russia, now operates from a completely new processing plant. This greenfield project, designed and equipped by Marel, is one of the largest of its kind in Europe. Processing toms and hens at 3,000 tph, it boasts the very latest technologies in plucking, chilling and process logistics, setting a new benchmark for the industry. An interview follows with Marat Khayrov, vice-president of Ruskontraktor, the subsidiary that builds and creates all projects for the Damate Group.

RUSSIAN TURKEY PROCESSOR DOUBLES OUTPUT TO RESPOND TO MARKET CHANGE

Damate’s huge greenfield –

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WHY DO YOU HAVE DEDICATED NECK PROCESSING?

“Turkey necks are popular with Russian consumers. Neck products might not be eaten elsewhere, but if you know how to cook them, they form quite an interesting meal. They can be oven baked or roasted, with garlic. They taste like oxtail, quite simply a delicious meal! Bone-in turkey neck is an ingredient in a popular Russian soup. Neck meat is also ideally suited for further processing into burgers, nuggets and other fast food products. To chill necks, we have invested in a dedicated immersion chilling concept and are looking at further neck deboning systems.”

HOW POPULAR ARE TURKEY GIBLETS?

“Giblets, hearts, gizzards and livers are common products for Russian customers, mostly cooked at home. We sell pretty much all of them. They are weighed and batched in a Marel MultiHead Weigher and then tray sealed. The packages look exactly the same as our other products using the same trays and labels.”

HOW IMPORTANT IS SOFTWARE FOR YOUR PROCESS?

“We have two control rooms on the second floor of our plant, driven by Marel Innova production control software. One supervises primary processing from GP live bird handling up to the maturation tunnel. The other manages secondary processing and lets us choose the birds we need to get from the chilling tunnel to satisfy current orders. With Innova, fine-tuning our line, controlling our process and our overall database will be much more straightforward than before when we were using different suppliers.Now we can manage the entire process, from start to finish and can monitor everything on one single software platform.”

GO TO: acdamate.com

a benchmark for turkey processing

From left to right: Vladimir Podkolzin, Mikhail Esin, Danil Zubov, Marat Khayrov (Ruskontraktor), Kirill Tchizhikov (Marel), Arjan Schrauwen (Marel), Andrey Zemskov, Ásgeir Elvarsson (Marel)

About Damate The Damate Group is an agricultural holding company currently employing over 3,500 people across Russia. “Like every poultry company in Russia, we are completely vertically integrated and have our own feed mills, hatcheries, farms and processing plants,” says Marat Khayrov.Damate aims to meet growing demand by doubling its production of turkey meat over the next two years. This will eventually reach 155,000 tons per annum, adding 2,000 jobs. The new plant is located in Nizhne Lomov, 600 km South-East of Moscow.

MARKET

Damate Group offers a wide range of about 300 turkey products, sold in supermarkets under the ‘Indilight’ brand. “Most of our sales are retail, the rest is bulk products and for restaurants. Our location allows us to cover the entire European part of Russia within a range of 800 kilometers. We are targeting major cities such as Moscow, St. Petersburg. That’s our main market. At the moment, export to the Middle East, Africa and Asia is about 5% of our throughput. We are getting ready to increase that. Nearly all our products are cut up, of which up to 50% is sold on fixed-weight trays. We don’t do any whole bird sales, as these would be too expensive for the Russian market.”

More meat availableDamate cuts up its products using two ACM-T turkey cut-up systems; one for “heavy” and one for “light” products. Two SmartWeighers direct products, based on weight, to the correct cut-up system and also provide input weights for real-time yield control. Products are cut into front halves, back piece, thighs and drumsticks. Front halves proceed to two FHF-XT deboning lines that cut off wings and debone breasts. As 22 kg turkeys are huge, valuable meat is available on various parts of the carcass. That’s why the FHF-XT systems perform the J-cut near the shoulder to harvest scapula meat. They also segment wings into three parts.

AZU

Marel SystemFlex conveyors transport the breast fillets to a Marel dual lane grader, which batches them into bulk packs or transfers them to trimming stations, where Damate manually cuts strips, schnitzels, stroganoff and azu. Marel MultiHead Weighers distribute azu cubes to fixed-weight trays. Marel Weigh Price Labelers and CheckWeighers complete the end-of-line process.

RUSSIAN TURKEY PROCESSOR DOUBLES OUTPUT TO RESPOND TO MARKET CHANGE

Damate’s huge greenfield –

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Avícola El Carmen opts for automated processing

To meet increasing local market demand, Avícola El Carmen, one of the largest poultry processors in Bolivia, decided to automate its production processes. Improved efficiency and flexibility allowed the company to expand its production of fresh and high-quality products.

Modern Bolivian plant expands market

share with trusted partner Marel

About Avícola El CarmenMore than 20 years in the market, Avícola El Carmen is a private family company located in the city of Cochabamba, Bolivia. It specializes in poultry slaughtering and processing.The company has about 150 employees and is one of the largest poultry processors in Bolivia. It supplies distributors and its products can be found in almost all parts of the country.

Chicken meat is increasingly accessible in Bolivia and consumption is growing gradually. “Forty years ago, its price was higher than beef; chicken was only served at festivities and events. Today, it’s the most consumed product in the country,” says Oscar Céspedes, owner of Avícola El Carmen.

RELY ON MAREL

Due to the increase in consumption over recent years, Avícola El Carmen decided to invest in the automation of those processes that directly influence yield, throughput and final product quality. “Customers want fresh product and, in order to meet this demand, we need a fast and hygienic process,” says Oscar Céspedes, who relied on Marel’s experience to update the evisceration process, install a vision grading and overhead whole product weighing system and install a new 7,200 bph [120 bpm] cut-up line.

CROSSCUT

The first step, which started up in the second half of 2014, was the updating of the evisceration line giving a new configuration which would meet the company’s future demands. The new Marel evisceration line consists of an automatic transfer system TR-DE, a vent cutter VC-16, a VO-20 Crosscut opening machine, a Nuova 24 eviscerator, a neck and skin inspection machine and an RW-16 RS washer. The VO-20 Crosscut deserves particular comment.

Marel developed this carousel exclusively for the Latin American market. With the cavity opened transversely, legs can be tucked in, a common presentation for whole grillers in South America.

QUALITY AND HYGIENE

Using the Nuova eviscerator, El Carmen was able to double sales of fresh products in Bolivia, according to Oscar Céspedes. He explains that to achieve optimum shelf life, it is essential that the interior of the whole grillers is completely free of residual debris. The Marel line exceeded all expectations, not least thanks to the VO-20 Crosscut. “Improved product quality, hygiene and being able to present product trussed and ready for the rotisserie have lifted sales. These benefits have been well received by our customers,” says Oscar Céspedes.

SECOND STAGE

The second stage of the project, concluded in 2017, comprised the installation of an IRIS vision grading

system and a SmartWeigher overhead weighing system. Together, they distribute products in the best possible way for unloading as whole birds or for processing in the cut-up line. Logically, El Carmen also decided to install a complete ACM-NT in-line cut-up system.With the cutting process now automated, the company can meet increased market demand for cut parts. If cutting was still being done manually, this would have been impossible. Oscar Céspedes continues, “Initially, our cut products accounted for approximately 10% of total production. Now that we have automated the process, we have reached around 30%.”

“Being able to present product trussed and ready for the rotisserie have lifted sales.”

THIRD STAGE

In the second half of 2019, the company will begin the third stage of the project, automating giblet processing, expanding the IRIS vision systems, adding modules to the ACM cut-up line and installing a giblet vacuum transportation system.

TRUSTED PARTNER

The partnership between Avícola El Carmen and Marel began a decade ago. Owner Oscar Céspedes traveled to Europe and discovered the excellent solutions offered by the company. “After we started using our first equipment, Stork in those days, we realized how reliable and robust it was. You really delivered what you promised.”

When El Carmen decided to update its existing lines, the company relied on the knowledge and the good relationship with Marel to develop a project that would meet the company’s growth objectives.

Oscar Céspedes concludes, “Marel offered all possible help with development of the project. Together we came up with a plan which would meet the present and future demands of our company.”

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Innova IMPAQT (Intelligent Monitoring of Performance, Availability and Quality Trends) covers three areas where losses in the primary process can occur: availability, performance and quality. It rates output as a percentage and gives the reasons for any losses found. This data provides the processor with a powerful tool for optimizing his process in real time and keeping production equipment at the highest level.

REGISTERING DOWNTIME

IMPAQT processes notifications from switches, circuits and product detectors (PDTs) in the line. IMPAQT’s intelligent system won’t register a loss if an alarm occurs outside production hours; the line is not running, so there is no loss. If the alarm does cause a line stop, IMPAQT will register downtime with a clear error message, such as ‘nozzles don’t come down in the container pre-washer’. Intelligently, it doesn’t measure how long an alarm sounds but total time elapsed until production starts again. This is an important IMPAQT advantage. At the end of each line, IMPAQT will have gathered all data from upstream product sensors and is therefore able to pinpoint exactly which machine in which part of

the process was responsible for a loss and its reason.

“A powerful tool for optimizing the process and keeping production at the highest level.” AVAILABILITY

If a line is ‘available’, this means that all systems are set to run and products are available. Losses in availability can be caused by technical or organizational downtime. Only a technical ‘failure’ such as a broken-down motor can really stop a line. No other ”loss” will do this. Organizational reasons such as a half-loaded container, a truck stuck in a traffic jam or personnel coming back too late from a break will trigger line restraint. Line restraint means that a line is physically able to produce but cannot do so. People or products aren’t available. The line cannot forward products to the next line.

PERFORMANCE

Performance loss includes mainly products that were available but

didn’t make it to the end of the process. If products are falling from the line and not being hung back, this is performance loss. When IMPAQT records empty shackles, it is much smarter than regular OEE systems because it knows if this has been caused by availability (no chicken available) or performance (e.g. an underperforming shackling team). An incorrectly functioning evisceration machine is a performance loss too. IMPAQT’s analysis can even tell each unit’s performance.

QUALITY

IMPAQT ’quality’ measures how many products are right first-time without having to be reworked. For IMPAQT, quality is a combination of process and

product quality. If products are falling from the line onto a belt, they can be rehung. This is process quality loss. The empty shackle which results is undesirable in itself; chicken quality won’t, however, be affected. When the vacuum system of the vent opener doesn’t suck away polluting material, IMPAQT knows that this is product quality loss.

By pinpointing even the smallest losses in these three areas, IMPAQT is able to assign reasons, not just for a single machine but for the whole line.

GO TO: marel.com/IMPAQT

IMPAQT – the basis for process optimizationPINPOINTING AVAILABILITY, PERFORMANCE AND QUALITY

Industrial poultry processors around the world want to organize their processes at the very highest technical and organizational level, leaving nothing to chance. Mistakes should be corrected as soon as possible. Processors will want to know the exact location and reason of any error causing a production loss. The only software operating at such a high level and fully connected to the primary process, is Innova’s IMPAQT module. This is much more powerful than regular Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) systems!

More than expectedIMPAQT is more than a terminal that indicates that a line stopped from 10.05h till 10.25h. This is typically all that regular OEE software does. Most data must still be entered manually per machine. IMPAQT, however, has already many more analytical skills and these shouldn’t be underestimated! It takes a lot of complex analysis to pinpoint exactly which ‘event’ has contributed to a loss, as one alarm can trigger nine others! The software has real knowledge of the poultry process, so that algorithms can connect the dots properly and report correctly. IMPAQT is, however, about much more than reporting. Real-time dashboards with alarm cause identification allow immediate action to be taken. Other OEE systems simply can’t do this.

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Investors who have recently entered the market are developing large-scale projects using modern professional technology. Some Vietnamese projects are joint ventures with foreign companies such as De Heus. Other mostly large companies such as CP Vietnam already have poultry integrations in Vietnam but don’t yet have a processing plant. Keeping close contact with the Ministry of Agriculture, Marel is the ideal partner for aiding Vietnam’s crucial steps towards industrial poultry processing.

CP VIETNAM

CP Vietnam is to establish a green-field poultry processing plant in the Binh Phuoc Province. It will feature two identical parallel processing lines both fully equipped with Marel poultry systems and solutions. With a capacity of 2x 6.000 bph [2x 100 bpm], the plant has been designed with a future increase to 2 x 9.000 bph [2x 150 bpm] in mind. Following a local live bird supply line, Marel’s scope of supply includes complete primary, chilling and cut-up processes. When combined with Innova PDS, this will allow CP Vietnam to offer full product traceability, one of the key aspects of the project.

“Vietnam is saying goodbye to small-scale domestic husbandry and the wet market in favor of professional farming and industrial processing.”

The killing line will include a Marel Water Bath Stunner, a scalder and three pluckers per line. The evisceration department will be fully automated, consisting of a VC-16 Vent Cutter, VO-20 Opening Machine, Nuova eviscerator and sophisticated post evisceration carousels. Giblet harvesting (gizzards, livers, hearts) will be completely automated. The same goes for feet processing (scalding, skinning and chilling).

CP Vietnam has opted for an advanced chilling configuration featuring combined immersion and air chilling. The in-line

immersion water chilling system provides a fast pre-chill and can also be used to give birds a whiter presentation. Products, which are still in line, then enter the DownFlow Plus air chilling tunnel, complete with moisteners at bends in the overhead conveyor. This is a first for Vietnam as the market is traditionally focused on water screw chilled products. Air chilling will allow CP Vietnam to offer full traceability and superior product quality and shelf life. The entire in-line chilling configuration will also save labor.

In the distribution area two IRIS systems (front and back) and a SmartWeigher ensure that products are assessed correctly. Products suitable for sale whole are released, after which some of them will be manually deboned. Product selected for cut-up goes to an ACM-NT system, which cuts tails, necks, wing tips, anatomic legs, midwings (with or without tip), drummettes and whole wings.

CP VIETNAM AND GREEN CHICKEN – PIONEERS IN INDUSTRIAL PROCESSING

Vietnamese poultry on the moveThe market for industrial processing in Vietnam is clearly on the move, with much support from the ministry of agriculture. Vietnam is saying goodbye to small-scale domestic husbandry and the wet market in favor of professional farming and industrial processing. There’s a clear trend for companies to enter into joint ventures to establish a vertically integrated production chain.

The Vietnamese marketFor decades the domestic husbandry industry has produced poultry products mainly for the local market. The market is, however, changing, as consumers now want better food safety. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has released a national plan for monitoring food safety for processed chicken. Minister of Agriculture Nguyen Xuan Cuong will help enterprises build processing facilities, which ensure veterinary hygiene and food safety. “Only companies with good logistics can be competitive. If firms want to export their products, they must invest in closed-loop production or apply modern processing technology. To compete in export markets, Vietnamese enterprises should

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Poultry processors must weigh and label their retail products accurately, while ensuring top levels of productivity. That’s why Marel has introduced its new WPL 9000+, a dynamic, high-speed Weigh Price Labeler. It is capable of handling fixed and catch weight products and will print the required product information on a label. The developers of this piece of equipment have put a clear emphasis on high accuracy when weighing and labeling.

With the worldwide consumption of protein growing at a consistent rate, poultry meat producers are looking for equipment, which can weigh, price and label products quickly, accurately and reliably, whilst maintaining production uptime.

WEIGHING

The greater weighing range of the Marel WPL9000+ weigh price labeler extends from 40 g up to 5.5 kg [0.2lbs to 12lbs]. Increased weighing and labeling speed gives a throughput of up to 160 boxes per minute with accurate label placement and precise weighing increments, which can be set at 1 or 2 grams.Three weighing table lengths are available, suitable for pack sizes up to 66 x 35 cm. Catch weight, or fixed weight configurations can be weighed. The WPL9000+ can also be used as a checkweigher with an optional reject mechanism.

“A dynamic, high-speed Weigh Price Labeler that accurately handles packs, boxes or trays.” LABELING

The WPL9000+ generates a wide range of product information and can apply many different label types. It is able to apply labels to multiple surfaces on a variety of products and on every side of a tray or box. Marel is in fact the only supplier to provide a solution for every label format.Label sizes can be up to 15 x 11 cm. Using Innova Label Designer, the WPL9000+ can print Unicode characters for multi-lingual printing (i.e. Asian fonts). It also has advanced barcode printing options, which respect multiple standards such as 1D/2D barcode formats, QR codes and Data Matrix. In addition to the weighing and conveyor speed, the printing speed has also increased. High-resolution printing is standard. The WPL 9000+ can handle multiple label applicators, such as Top&Base applicator, M360 linerless D-labeling (only fixed-weight) and MPL80 C-labeler.

COMPACT AND ROBUST

The WPL 9000+ is easy to configure, use and operate. Reliability and serviceability have been improved, thanks amongst other things to the use of the latest technology electronics using upgraded processors. Its compactness is a big plus, as it only requires a small footprint in the factory. Its construction is robust. High quality, longer lasting materials have been used, which can contribute to a lower cost of ownership. Quick changeover is possible if the configuration needs to be different. A simplified label path, fast label threading, the quick-release printhead and quick-release conveyor systems are features, which aid this ability by offering easier access and set-up. The WPL9000+ can function as a stand-alone machine but can also be part of a bigger solution, integrated in a packing line and managed by Innova software.

SOFTWARE

The WPL9000+ integrates even better into Marel’s Innova software platform and offers better control of production. This software connection allows scalable solutions and built-in label design, while providing real-time monitoring and reporting. The Innova modules ‘WPL’ and ‘OCM’ offer real-time data control, collection and analysis of all operations in a single system, while the label-creating editor ‘Labeling’ simplifies label management.Each Individual item is recorded and can be automatically boxed, palletized and labelled based on product count or total weight. When configured as a plant-wide solution, the software can connect with Innova OEE and Innova Order Manager. Users can also track product and weight information for traceability and for minimizing risk and maintaining control.

GO TO: marel.com/wpl

High-speed, flexible set-up accurately handles packs, boxes or trays

New WPL9000+ Weigh Price Labeler

CP VIETNAM AND GREEN CHICKEN – PIONEERS IN INDUSTRIAL PROCESSING

know which products consumers in export markets want to buy. For instance, firms should boost exports of chicken breast while selling thighs and wings on the domestic Vietnamese market.” Target markets for Vietnamese firms exporting chicken meat include Japan, China and the Philippines. Potential markets include Saudi Arabia, South Africa and UAE. Poultry export figures reached more than $18 million in 2018.Today, both productivity and profits are increasing, turning poultry farming from a secondary occupation into a main job in agricultural production. Poultry numbers have increased by an average of more than 6% annually. In 2018, output exceeded 1.1 million tons of poultry meat.

GREEN CHICKEN - DE HEUS

De Heus Vietnam is one of the pioneering companies developing safe food value chains in Vietnam. De Heus and Vinh Anh have joined up to form the Green Chicken LLC company and are building a completely new broiler and duck processing plant. This facility is located in Ha Binh Phuong Industrial Park, Hanoi, and will employ more than 500 workers. Together with Marel, Green Chicken has configured the project as a combined duck/broiler processing plant with a capacity of 1.000 dph / 2.000 bph [16 dpm / 33 bpm]. All products pass through Marel scalding and plucking equipment.Only the ducks go additionally through the waxing process, typically needed for ducks. Evisceration is done manually for both species. With the help of a washer and peeler, feet are carefully processed too, as poultry feet are valuable products in Vietnam. After water chilling in a spin chiller, products are calibrated by weight range, as Green Chicken sells its ducks and broilers mainly as whole products.

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RUNS LIKE CLOCKWORK

The Irish processor Shannon Vale Foods currently processes 5,000 broilers per hour [83 bpm] of an average live weight of 2kg [4.4 lbs]. The company commissioned its ATLAS system at the beginning of May. “It runs just like clockwork”, is the proud comment of Kieran O’Regan, owner and CEO of Shannon Vale. Mr. O’Regan continues, “Although we had bought Marel equipment in the past, this was the first time we had approached Marel for equipment for our primary process. “So far we are very impressed. We definitely made the right decision.”

EASIER CATCHING

The heart of the system is the Marel SmartStack transport module. SmartStack consists of a pallet, which doubles as a tray and a number of self-nesting trays placed on top of one another. “Our catchers love the new modules. These can now be placed anywhere in the growing house, even in corners or close to walls. The large opening of the SmartStack tray makes catching and loading much easier. We are already seeing a drop in the number of DOAs and downgrades arriving at our processing plant.”

Irish processor Shannon Vale Foods pairs ATLAS with electrical stunning

Top class live bird handling at 5,000 bph

NEW COMPACT GRADER WITH ENHANCED OPTIONS

The new Compact Grader is an optimal solution for processors who need a simple way of automating their grading and batching process or who want to increase production volumes. Thanks to its easy set-up and

operation, the Compact Grader meets industry requirements, an easy step towards automating production. The Compact Grader has a small-sized footprint and will often be used as a stand-alone solution in factories where available space is limited. It also fits perfectly in larger factories as an addition to automatic production lines when whole grillers or side products have to be packed or when peaks in production or seasonal overflows need to be managed.

A MULTITUDE OF PRODUCTS

Thanks to its telescopic legs, the Compact Grader is adjustable in height, so that good working ergonomics are always guaranteed. Reliable and food-safe production starts with hygienic equipment. Compact Grader’s design meets all requirements requested by today’s hygiene standards. It is also easy to clean. At each side it features either three or four gates, depending on execution. The arms have been improved too. They are higher, better shaped for thin products and more durable.

The latest generation of Marel’s Compact Grader is an entry level machine, a crucial step towards automation in secondary processing (after chilling). Marel has upgraded this easy-to-use solution to feature its most advanced grading technology to suit every need. It now offers batching. The Compact Grader has been designed to process both fresh and frozen products, cut-up poultry parts and whole grillers.

AN EASY STEP TOWARDS automated grading and batching

Marel’s trail-blazing ATLAS live bird handling system isn’t just fit for high capacity plants, paired with Marel’s SmoothFlow controlled atmosphere stunning system. Irish processor Shannon Vale Foods proves that ATLAS can operate perfectly in a plant operating at 5,000 bph [83 bpm], paired with an electrical stunning operation.

“The ATLAS system runs just like clockwork.”

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Irish processor Shannon Vale Foods pairs ATLAS with electrical stunning

Top class live bird handling at 5,000 bph

The Compact Grader will handle many poultry products, fresh or frozen: whole grillers, front halves, saddles, butterflies, split breasts, whole legs, thighs, drums, whole wings, breast fillets, leg meat, thigh fillets and inner fillets. Featuring a wide belt and high throughput, it can grade product of up to 3 kilos [6.6 lbs] weight.

WEIGHING AND SOFTWARE

The new improved Compact Grader includes dynamic weighing with consistent accuracy allowing automatic grading and batching. The comfortably long weighing platform filters out disturbances and automatically adjusts its weighing processes. “Plug and play Innova Food Processing Software is included. Processors can make the most of their Compact Grader right away without the hassle of installing unnecessary software,” says Marel Product Manager Sara Valný Sigurjónsdóttir. “This piece of Innova can be used to set up multiple programs and monitor the process.” The user-friendly graphical interface of the new M2400 display included with the grader gives the operator access to more than 50 grading programs. Innova ensures continuous data collection. Customizable process overviews are accessible with real-time monitoring and easy-to-understand reporting.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Firstly, product is weighed on the dynamic weighing platform. Depending on the weight calibration program set, product is allocated to one of the gates. With a very swift

move, the relevant arm takes the product off the conveyor belt and directs it to the gate, where a container catches it. This is the straightforward grading process. When optional automatic batching bins and tables are added to the system, the Compact Grader becomes a batching solution that ensures best fit batching with minimal giveaway.

NO TIME TO WASTE

The batching process starts by sending the product to a predefined gate where a batching bin drops the product into a crate which has been placed on the table below. When the desired batch has been reached, either a set number of products or a set target weight, the batching bin closes, keeping the batch together.

The crate below now needs to be replaced with an empty one. This is shown by a batching light button on the bin, which lights up. As soon as an empty crate has been placed under the bin, the operator presses the batching light button to open up the bin. The batch of product assembled is then released into the empty crate. This process provides maximum throughput and doesn’t waste any time.

FOOTSTEPS

The new Compact Grader will doubtless follow in the footsteps of its successful predecessor with over 1200 machines sold across the world.

GO TO: marel.com/compact-grader

“Processors can make the most of their Compact Grader right away.”

FEWER TRUCK TRIPS

The SmartStack pallet doubles as an additional tier, allowing SmartStack to accommodate up to 38% more birds. Mr. O’Regan says, “We are delighted with this highly innovative feature. Our trucks make fewer trips, saving fuel as well reducing our carbon footprint! Birds benefit too. Even the biggest have more than adequate headroom. Thanks to the excellent tray floor design, birds get a good flow of air, sit dry and can hold tight on our winding roads.”

“We are already seeing a drop in the number of DOAs and downgrades.”

LAIRAGE BENEFITS

On arrival at the processing plant, birds rest up in a new lairage. Mr O’Regan comments again: “Our vets can now inspect birds more easily. The detachable side panels make helping any distressed birds simple.”Whenever SmartStack modules have to be moved, they are picked up two at a time. Mr. O’Regan comments, “We have

been able to cut fork lift movements in the lairage by two thirds compared with previously, saving time and improving safety too.”

EASIER SHACKLING

The ATLAS in-plant system consists of just three automatic operations; destacking full trays, washing and then re-stacking empty trays. DOAs are removed immediately after destacking.

Mr. O’Regan comments, “Shackling birds is now much easier. We used to need four or five tray movements to clear a tray. Now we need only one. Birds benefit too, as they are not pushed and jolted.”

JUST AS EFFECTIVE

Mr. O’Regan emphasized that “The speed of the trays on the system are gradual making the process easier to handle – we have much better control with ATLAS.” Now the birds are ready for the first in-line process, which is electrical stunning. Shannon Vale chose to stay with electrical water bath stunning for now and shows that this solution is just as

effective as controlled atmosphere stunning. It’s a question of priorities which system is preferred.

THOROUGH CLEANING

Empty trays are conveyed to an automatic washing installation. The SmartStack module has no frame and trays have no blind spots, making for easy cleaning. The washing installation has a large number of precisely targetted nozzles, ensuring that trays leave the system entirely clean. Washed trays are re-assembled automatically into SmartStack modules.

EXCELLENT KNOWLEDGE

Kieran O’Regan has warm words about the co-operation with Marel. “Right from the start, your installation guys were courteous and helpful, showed excellent knowledge of the equipment and communicated very well with our production and maintenance people, Marel should be very proud to have such a good team.”Shannon Vale is optimistic about the future. The ATLAS in-plant installation has been designed for a possible doubling of throughput, which would also allow the installation of controlled atmosphere stunning.

Stephen Anderson (Sales Manager Ireland Marel Poultry), Jeff Donald (Area Sales Manager Marel Poultry) and Kieran O’Regan (CEO Shannon Vale Foods)

ABOUT SHANNON VALE

Shannon Vale Foods is a family poultry processing business based in Clonakilty not far from the Irish city of Cork.Shannon Vale processes 200,000 birds per week in an ultra-modern factory employing some 180 people. Most birds processed are commercial broilers. The company also processes organic and free range birds and offers Halal product.

Most birds are processed into added value products including breaded flash fried, marinated and basted and fully cooked products, which Shannon Vale develops and supplies to major Irish multiples. The company also offers a full range of fresh and frozen whole birds and portions.

GO TO: shannonvalefoods.ie

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After looking for some time for a new breading machine, Eduard Knagge, Managing Director of G+G Convenience, decided to ask Marel about their breading solutions. This request came at exactly the right time, as Marel was in the final stage of developing its new dual-mode breading machine, the RevoBreader.

“We already had five RevoPortioners in our production plant, as well as various Marel scales and batchers”, says Eduard Knagge. “So we already knew Marel and have always had a very good relationship with their sales and service teams. That is why, when they told us about their new solution, we were very excited to be involved in the final development of this new machine.”

“RevoBreader produces high quality products and has proven to be a very flexible machine.”

TEAM EFFORT

Eduard Knagge: “We worked closely with Marel’s innovation team in the final development of the RevoBreader. They showed great technological and process knowledge and we were interested to see the final machine. At the beginning of this year, the RevoBreader was installed at our facilities. Right from the start, we have been very happy with its performance. It produces high quality products and has proven to be a very flexible machine.”

FLEXIBILITY

“In our production plant, we’re producing different end products, such as tempura nuggets, cornflake-coated nuggets and home-style breaded chicken wings and fillets”, explains Claudia Rolle, who is

responsible for product development. “On all of these production lines we use the RevoBreader in a different way. We use it as a pre-duster when we’re making tempura nuggets, in flatbed mode when we make cornflake-coated nuggets and in drum mode for home-style wings and fillets. Thanks to the machine’s flexibility, we really get the most out of our production lines.”

NEW MARKETS

With growing demand from the market for home-style coated products, the RevoBreader is exactly what G+G Convenience Produkte needed. “It makes it possible for us to develop innovative high quality home-style chicken products. That means we can increase our customer base and can even expand into completely new markets”, says Claudia Rolle. Eduard Knagge adds; “It will allow us to grow our company even further in the future”.

ABOUT THE REVOBREADER

The RevoBreader is a flexible machine that offers flatbed and drum mode in one enclosure. This dual-mode solution is the ultimate solution for applying high-quality coating both to home style and flatbed coated products. Thanks to the large drum size, it is very easy to change between flatbed and drum mode, as the belt can be extended or retracted without removing of any machine parts.

GO TO: gugcp.de

G+G CONVENIENCE PRODUKTE EXPANDS INTO NEW MARKETS THANKS TO MAREL REVOBREADER

Introducing home-style chicken across Germany

About G+G Convenience ProdukteG+G Convenience Produkte is located in Garrel, Germany and employs over 50 people. The company focuses on the production of poultry convenience products distributed to national and international retailers. G+G’s claim is to meet continuously growing customer demands and supply the market with innovative products. Thanks to its modern production facility, flat hierarchies and an outstanding network of suppliers and development partners, G+G can respond flexibly to current trends and individual customer requirements.

“Thanks to RevoBreader’s flexibility, we really get the most out of our production lines.”

– Claudia Rolle, Product Development of G+G Convenience

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The Wageningen University & Research (WUR) will lead the way and the other Dutch technical universities (University of Amsterdam, TU Eindhoven, TU Delft, TU Eindhoven and TU Twente) will bring in their particular areas of expertise.

VARIATION AND COMPLEXITY

The poultry industry features an enormous amount of technology but the processing line still requires quite some staff. People particularly work in environments that require multitasking. Precision, product variation and complexity play a role here. Until now dealing with these issues has been a human monopoly. Technology needs to make a considerable step forward to take over these tasks.

“Regarding variation and complexity, robotics in the automotive industry have made giant leaps in the past decade,” says Eldert van Henten. “We want to achieve the same progress for the poultry industry. We can use what’s available and further develop it for the agri-food domain.”

SINGULATION AND TRIMMING

Eldert van Henten continues, “Marel set out to robotize three concrete challenging operations in poultry processing. The first is gripping and processing non-singulated products. Singulation is quite a problem in any factory, as the equipment used requires a large footprint. This wouldn’t be necessary if a robot could pick single products from a bulk bin.”

The second challenge is the stylized positioning of poultry meat in a supermarket tray.

The third operation to robotize is trimming blood spots or fat from a piece of meat that is held in place. “This is the most exciting one, because humans use both hands to carry out this

complex operation. While one hand holds the product, the other one cuts with a knife. But I have high hopes for this one, as our technology partners are particularly eager to find a solution for this challenging issue.”

TRL LEVEL

The research project will last 4 years. By then it must have reached TRL level 4 or 5. Technology Readiness Level is a NASA standard from 1 to 9, where level 1 represents a brilliant idea and level 9 a system that meets end product requirements. TRL level 4/5 means that the physical product is being assessed in an industrial environment, close to practice, but not yet integrated in-line.“After that, the market can take over the robot project or, if needed, additional academic research can be put in place, to narrow down, for example, current wide-ranging research to more dedicated practical solutions.”

“We want to achieve the same progress for the poultry industry.”

CO-DEVELOPING

“It is important for all parties that the knowledge gained is really applied in industrial practice and doesn’t end up in a drawer. Yet, the program also needs to generate good science. Both aims will go hand in hand.

Right from the start Marel technicians will play a very active role in joined-up thinking, transfer of knowledge and co-developing. PhD students or postdocs will really dive into the food processing practice, visiting processing plants and sitting down with the R&D department. They need to see what happens, find out what the challenges are and where the focus of attention should be,” concludes Eldert van Henten.

GO TO: marel.com/flexcraft

ROBOTICS VERSUS human decisions and operations

SEVERAL TECHNOLOGICAL CAPABILITIES ARE REQUIRED TO MIMIC THE ACTIONS OF A HUMAN BEING WHEN FACED WITH PRODUCT VARIATION AND COMPLEXITY

1 ACTIVE PERCEPTION. An effective camera system can be used adaptively, just like humans when they turn their head or the object (the piece of meat) to discover what they’re looking for, a strip of fat for example. This is a technological aspect which involves 3D reconstruction as well as understanding of the object and the scene.

2 When people see a piece of meat, they know where they can expect to find the fat to cut off. People do this all the time. They gather knowledge through active perception and store this knowledge in a so called ‘world model’. It is possible for self-learning robots to do their own, similar WORLD MODELING to obtain a more focused perspective on meat.

3 People just take up their knives and start cutting. Almost intuitively, they know their moves and know when and how to make them. For a robot, however, these actions must be strictly regulated with PLANNING AND CONTROL. First, the robot has to recognize the situation, then it has to search in its memory for the appropriate actions that go with the situation and then finally execute them. At the moment this requires a huge number of calculations. Using state-of-the-art learning methods, the FlexCraft project aims to simplify this task.

4 GRIPPING AND MANIPULATION is about mechanically ‘picking up things’. The human hand is a wonder of engineering, very complex for robotics to imitate. TU Delft and TU Enschede have already developed simpler mechanisms which take into account the shape, size, hardness and slipperiness of the object to be picked up.

Marel is involved in the FlexCraft consortium, a research program conducted by five leading Dutch technical universities. The aim is to equip robot technology with generic capabilities in active perception, world modeling, planning & control and gripping & manipulation. Project leader prof.dr.ir. Eldert van Henten of Wageningen University & Research talks about the current state of affairs.

Prof.dr.ir. Eldert van Henten of Wageningen University & Research

FLEXCRAFT RESEARCH SEEKS TO MIMIC COMPLEX MANUAL OPERATIONS

Pictures by NWO FlexCRAFT, WUR

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CP Hengshui Food Processing is the core project of the 100 million broiler integrated industry chain program. Once the project has been completed, it will be able to produce 200,000 tons of high quality and safe chicken food every year.

THE RIGHT APPEARANCE

In the primary process CP Hengshui installed Marel’s poultry solutions for killing, scalding and defeathering. The flexibility of Marel’s scalders and pluckers is highly appreciated, as it allows the company to produce exactly

Innova is an operational system providing granular production information real-time. It oversees KPIs such as kg per man hour, uptime, yield and give-away. It also allows management to keep a close eye on whether optimum use is being made of valuable inputs such as raw material and labor.

MEAT MOVEMENTS

Plants using Innova can capture all movements of meat, a processor’s most valuable resource, between departments. In this situation, management will always have detailed up-to-the-minute information on stock levels and work in progress, enabling the right decisions to be taken at the right time. Downgrading can be kept to an

absolute minimum and management will be able to closely monitor the amount of off-line rework being done and why. Innova can also keep control of stocks of dry goods and packaging materials.

CONTROL ROOM

Operations are at the heart of any processing business. Innova is the ideal tool for managing these efficiently from a central control room, where easy-to-read Innova dashboards show key production indicators real-time. This information can then be used as a “single source of the truth” by both plant and financial management. This allows the two disciplines to work closely together from a common, agreed set of data, thereby optimizing production

First Thigh Fillet Systems in China for CP Hengshui

MAREL ONCE AGAIN JOINS HANDS WITH CP FOOD GROUP

Marel and CP Food Hengshui recently agreed to install a fully automatic poultry processing line with a capacity of 13,500 bph [225 bpm]. The project includes China’s first in-line Thigh Fillet Systems.“Deliver an end

product that really appeals to Chinese consumers.”

Arie Tulp (Marel) and Kezhong Yang (President CP Hengshui)

Long-term strategyThe CP Hengshui project is yet another example of cooperation between CP Food Group and Marel and follows on from the CP Dafa, CP Yushu, CP Fujian, CP LongYan and CP Hubei projects. It demonstrates the excellent relationship between CP Food Group and Marel and provides new opportunities for the two parties to further strengthen their long-term strategic cooperation. For several years, now mutual teamwork has resulted in a better understanding of the Chinese market requirements.

MOY PARK’S DAVID ANDERSON IS GLAD TO HAVE INVESTED IN INNOVA

INNOVA’S BOTTOM LINE IS YOUR BOTTOM LINE

“We are so glad we invested in Innova. It has added value to our operation and has given us competitive advantage. We are sure that we will recoup its cost many times over.” These are the words of David Anderson, Director of IS and Business Solutions at Moy Park, based in Northern Ireland and part of the US Pilgrim Group.

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discipline and performance, so that customer orders are met as fully and reliably as possible.

TRACEABILITY

Operations include all processes from live bird receipt to the dispatch of finished orders. In the dispatch department, Innova allows orders to be picked, stock reserved, shipping documentation prepared and customers given useful advance warning of shipment.

The ability of processors to provide full traceability and the assurance of consistent top quality are absolutely vital in ensuring customer loyalty. In a processing plant with the latest in-line Marel systems, Innova can provide full traceability through the processing plant.

NO MORE PAPER

Many plants still operate paper-based quality control systems. By taking information real-time from automatic in-line Marel vision and weight grading systems and by capturing information on rejects and the reasons for them, Innova can offer the system-based quality control system, which international fast food chains increasingly insist upon.

Clear reporting is at the heart of an efficient management process. With Innova, standardized reports can be prepared. This is a particular advantage in large concerns like Moy Park with multiple plants located in different countries.

REDUCING SYSTEMS

Processors who have installed Innova often see it as a longer-term project to change the way they run their business. In the past, it was usual for companies to run a larger number of control systems, each focused on a particular aspect of the process. These systems were integrated to a greater or lesser extent. Multi-site processors like Moy Park, however, need a single source of accurate, up-to-the-minute information. This has driven the quest to reduce the number of such systems, to simplify them and to integrate them. Moy Park’s David Anderson continues, “We have been able to reduce the number of these systems by some 80% over four years. Our ultimate ideal is to have a single operational system reporting to a single ERP system.” A full Innova set-up can be that single operational system! GRADUALLY

The move to a total Innova process can take place over a longer period of time. A start

could, for example, be made with all-important meat management and meat handling processes. This could then be extended to the dispatch department and to the management of all dry goods and packaging materials. The system could be used to evaluate all processes still using manual labor, pinpointing inefficiencies and allowing management to take appropriate remedial action. All waste and wasteful work could be measured and closely monitored. Plant-wide quality control and end-to-end traceability for each individual carcass can also be looked after by a plant-wide Innova system.A single standardized Innova operational system can drive management processes over multiple sites, improving accountability and maximizing operational efficiency. Quite simply, Innova’s bottom line is your bottom line!

GO TO: marel.com/software

MAREL ONCE AGAIN JOINS HANDS WITH CP FOOD GROUP

the presentation demanded by Chinese customers.

CP Hengshui decided to automate their evisceration department with very sophisticated Nuova machinery. Nuova equipment will perform its tasks reliably and flawlessly at the high line speed of 13,500 bph [225bpm], preparing product for chilling and for further operations giving optimum yields. While removing all internal organs precisely, the Nuova eviscerator separates viscera pack and carcass in one quick operation, ensuring maximum hygiene and food safety.

IMPORTANT FOOD SOURCE

Edible poultry viscera are a valuable source of food in China. Gizzards, hearts and livers are important products in the Chinese retail market and are the major ingredients in many delicious chicken-based dishes.

CP Hengshui therefore benefits hugely from Marel’s automated transfer of the viscera pack. Hanging in their own shackles, giblets can be harvested accurately now using machines such as the PGI (intestine/gall-bladder), PLH (liver), HLS and HLH (heart/lung). These save a lot of manpower.

SIMILAR TO TRADITIONAL CUTS

After leaving the chilling process, products are graded by weight in the SmartWeigher. Here, the process determines whether product will be sold as whole grillers or will be cut up. A Marel distribution line puts each and every product into its most profitable form. Product is distributed by reliable automated transfer units.

CP Hengshui cuts up most of its incoming whole products. Two ACM-NT systems take care of this, taking into consideration specific Chinese demands regarding leg and wing cutting. Thanks to the system’s modular set-up and flexible adjustment options, accurate cuts can be made, which

are similar to traditional cuts made manually by skilled staff. That’s why the ACM-NT lines feature modules such as the JL processor for leg cutting and the Second Joint Wing Cutter for typical wing cutting.

FOUR AMF-I SYSTEMS

High labor costs and labor shortages are driving Chinese processors towards highly automated deboning processes. The CP Hensghui processing plant operates as many as four AMF-i intelligent breast filleting systems. AMF-i automatically detects the size of breast caps fed to the system. Deboning modules adjust themselves accordingly and fillet breasts without any human input needed, therefore saving considerable labor.

APPEALING DEBONED THIGHS

CP Hengshui is the first processor in China to commission two highly efficient Thigh Fillet Systems. Chicken thigh meat is even more appreciated than breast meat in the Chinese market and it therefore makes

sense to add even more value to thighs by deboning them automatically. Marel’s in-line thigh deboning method meets Chinese product requirements perfectly and delivers an end product that really appeals to Chinese consumers.

Together, the two systems integrate seamlessly with the automatic cut-up lines and can handle up to 14,400 thighs per hour. Its carousels make a first knee joint pre-cut, skin the thigh, debone it, remove the knee cap (without any meat on it) and cut off the drumstick. All of these operations are done automatically and in-line. Hardly any manual work is needed, greatly reducing any dependency on skilled manual cut-up personnel.

From left to right: Chengfei Hu (IT director CP Group), Manuel van ’ t Sant (Marel), Arie Tulp (Marel), Kezhong Yang (President CP Hengshui), Jingyu Yu (Equipment director CP Hengshui), Qingqi Zhang (Vice president CP Hengshui), Yihui Zhang (Marel)

MOY PARK’S DAVID ANDERSON IS GLAD TO HAVE INVESTED IN INNOVA

“Innova’s information

is single source of

the truth.”

– David Anderson, Moy Park,

Northern Ireland

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Marel Inc.P.O. Box 1258Gainesville GA 30503USAt +1 770 532 70 41f +1 770 532 57 06e usa.poultry@marel.com

Marel Poultry B.V.P.O. Box 118, 5830 AC BoxmeerThe Netherlandst +31 485 586 111f +31 485 586 222e info.poultry@marel.com

© Copyright Marel Poultry B.V., 2019: All rights are reserved. Any reproduction or modification of all or part of this publication, regardless of the method of reproduction or modification used and regardless of the carrier used, is strictly prohibited, unless prior written authorization by Marel has been obtained beforehand. Those acting in breach of this notice expose themselves to criminal and civil prosecution, in accordance with the international conventions and copyright laws. The data published herein answer to most recent information at the moment of publishing and are subject to future modifications. Marel reserves the right to modify the construction and the execution of their products at any time without any obligation on their part to modify any equipment delivered before accordingly. The data mentioned are meant as an indication only. Marel assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions in the data published or use of the data published. The publication of these data may not be interpreted as a warranty or guarantee of any kind (either expressed or implied).

Marel is the leading global provider of advanced equipment and systems for the fish, meat and poultry industries.

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poultry-events

27 - 29 November 2019 POULTRY INDIA Hyderabad, India

28 - 30 January 2020 IPPE Atlanta, USA

08 - 10 March 2020 VIV MEA Abu Dhabi, UAE

10 - 12 March 2020 CFIA Rennes, France

18 - 20 March 2020 ILDEX VIETNAM Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

12 - 14 May 2020 AVICOLA & PORCINOS Buenos Aires, Argentina

26 - 28 May 2020 VIV RUSSIA Moscow, Russia

09 - 11 June 2020 AVI AFRICA Johannesburg, South-Africa

08 - 10 July 2020 INDO LIVESTOCK Jakarta, Indonesia

Average processing weights have increased in recent years and this trend will continue. Current processing systems are reaching the limits of their working range. There is little margin left.

SHIFT UPWARDS

A regular AMF-i filleting system can cope with today’s usual breast cap weights and still have some margin left. With increasing bird weights, an HD version of AMF-i is needed to restore the margin. Compared to a regular AMF-i, AMF-i HD’s processing range at the top end shifts upwards.

INDEPENDENT INTELLIGENCE

Thanks to the concept’s modularity, any

existing AMF-i system can be turned into an HD version. The system’s intelligence is not weight dependent and does not need any modifications to function perfectly in the AMF-i HD. It can cope with a wide variety of uncalibrated breast cap weights. HD upgrade kits are available for all modules.

“Any existing AMF-i system can be turned into a HD version.”

UPDATEABLE

One of AMF’s strong points is that its frame and concept are timeless.

They remain the same as 25 years ago. Owners can update their system to the latest state-of-the-art technology.

To keep up with the latest developments, processors were never forced to start all over again with a completely new system. The same goes for the AMF-i HD.

ADD OR CONVERT

The AMF-i HD concept is suitable for processors in all parts of the world, from end-to-end plants to specialized deboning companies, who are having to cope with heavier birds. Processors wanting to be able to process larger breast fillets from heavier birds have two options. They can either install a new

AMF-i HD system next to their existing filleting systems or they can convert their regular AMF-i system to an HD version.

COVERING ALL WEIGHTS

Marel’s portfolio now offers breast filleting solutions for almost every weight range, as front halves from very heavy birds can be processed in the FHF-XB system. Together, AMF-i, AMF-i HD and FHF-XB ensure that virtually all possible filleting demands are covered. Even customers with very specific requirements can put together a modular AMF or FHF system to suit them.

GO TO: marel.com/amfi

AMF-i HD anticipates the trend Today’s broilers are getting bigger and heavier all over the world. It’s not just in the US where ‘big birds’ are reared. Average chicken weights have increased markedly in South-America, Europe, Australia and Asia too. This is an unstoppable trend with quite some consequences for poultry processors. They have to adapt their systems to heavier weights and larger products such as breast fillets. Marel anticipated this trend with the development of its AMF-i HD system, an intelligent breast cap filleting system suitable for today’s and future weight ranges.

Breast cap filleting of a heavier weight range

JOIN US AT IPPE 2020

We look forward to meeting you during the InternationalProduction and Processing Expo in the Georgia Congress Center inAtlanta, USA.

From 28 to 30 January 2020,we will present a wide variety of poultry innovations and value-adding solutions at our Marel booth.

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