Automated Conveyors in Food Processing Industry
Rice moves full steam ahead along newly automated conveyors
Processing more than 1.5 million tonnes of paddy rice annually is a challenge for any business, no matter how large. Fortunately for one of Australia’s most successful vertically-integrated agribusinesses, by selecting the right partners, the solution was at hand.
The official opening of a new packaging plant marked an exciting expansion phase for a company which markets high quality rice foods and by-products to consumers both Australia-wide and globally. The fully automated plant replaced the existing operation and was part of a drive to achieve the highest standards of customer service, quality and safety. Integral to the successful operation of the new plant were six new production lines. J.L Lennard engineering supplied the equipment necessary for the smooth product flow from the production lines to the palletisers and local systems integrator Machinery Automation & Robotics Pty Ltd were contracted to automate the 34 new motors powering the accumulation conveyors to the six high-speed rice-packing machines and the two palletisers.
Each of the six production lines conveys multiple products of differing bag sizes and varying production times. With the variables of bag size and priority products directly affecting conveyor speed, precise control of the newly automated conveyors is critical. With this in mind MAR completed the line control automation to ensure a range of products could be efficiently stored and conveyed to the two new palletisers at high speed. This, in turn, ensured that the bagging and production lines were operating at full capacity one hundred percent of the time. Conveyor speeds are continuously trimmed via the Profibus control and variable speed drives.
The control system is based on the Siemens S7-300 to complement existing control equipment on already on-site. The 34 SEW conveyor motor movimots are controlled by the Profibus network. Likewise, field sensors installed to detect product flow are fed back to the PLC via the Profibus nodes, minimising cabling on site. The operator interface is a Siemens OP screen, which ensures that operators holding the correct password are able to easily access recipe selection and modifications. The flexibility of the Profibus network also ensures that complete fault displays and motor running conditions are accessible.
Working closely with JL Lennard Pty Ltd who provided a turnkey installation for their packaging plant. MAR’s brief included functional specification and control, system design, CAD drawings, panel construction, PLC and HMI programming, bench testing and full site installation and commissioning.
The new packaging plant has resulted in a fully automated control solution requiring no operator input from the early stages of packaging right through to the palletizing when the final rice product is ready for delivery. As JL Lennard’s NSW Manager for Packaging Tony Dinallo explains: ‘with six high-speed production lines converging into just two palletisers, an effective interface is critical. We commissioned MAR to do the job because we knew they would achieve a professional outcome in completing the critical interface – and they did.’
Machinery Automation & Robotics
1/101 Derby Street
Silverwater NSW 2128
Phone: (61) 2 9748 7001
http://www.machineryautomation.com.au