Baking & Snack - February 2008 - 50

RESEARCH & STATISTICS

for their commercialization potential.
Some are viable, and new products
stimulate capital expenditures."
BakeryCorp's Mr. Lacal, like many
business executives, was concerned
the current economy will lead to recession. "In general, people may have
the intention of using healthier products, but you need a certain amount
of money to purchase these products.
If we go into recession, these premium-priced products will suffer, and
that will affect capital spending on
new products or new equipment."

Track-and-Trace Systems
Company has comprehensive track-and-trace system
In place
66%
In development
25%
No plans
9%
What type of track-and-trace systems does your company have?
RFID
In place
In development
No plans

20%
35%
45%

Software tracking program
In place
64%
In development
36%
No plans
0%

Bar codes
In place
In development
No plans

64%
24%
12%

Paper-based tracking program
In place
88%
In development
0%
No plans
12%

AUTOMATION. Not surprisingly,
respondents and executives relate
spending on automation directly to labor savings and
product accuracy. Executives noted automation spending plans in a number of places in the plant including
ergonomic-related areas, high-speed cameras on production lines and robotics.
All agreed that automation offers good return on investment and other advantages, but it still carries a hefty price
tag and can be limiting to flexibility. Companies looking
at robotics vs. traditional mechanical or automation solutions noted that, in the past, this technology might have
been too expensive and required too much employee
expertise. However, these attitudes were becoming less
prevalent with improvements in robotics technologies.
But BakeryCorp took a different perspective. As primarily a specialty baker producing artisan breads and
premium pastries, Mr. Lacal said he believed the baking
industry needs to go back to basics to replicate what artisan bakeries have done in the past, although he stated
that robotics and fully automated ingredient and product
tracking will take place because there will be fewer employees in the plants. "We're essentially spending more
money to replace people," he said. "Those that remain
will have to be more and more knowledgeable about
technology to operate the systems. I think we're going to
become an industry that has learned to combine the artisan baker with the industrial engineer."
"Automation is a big driver of our spending," Mr.
Watson noted. "The challenge is flexibility versus automation. We don't have dedicated lines, so the issue of
flexibility is so important in the design of automation
systems. We need a flexible solution that provides for
ease of changeovers and sanitation so that we're not experiencing downtime due to allergen cleanups or sanitation. Typically, our engineering group is integrating various vendors' systems to insure that the final solution is
designed for reliability, minimal changeover time between products and reduced sanitation. A lot of it is part-

BAKING & SNACK / February 2008

nering with key suppliers that can deliver based upon
our needs. We need highly reliable equipment that can be
changed over quickly. Some companies are good at it yet
for others it's beyond their capabilities."
Early on, implementing automation was a real challenge
as Pepperidge Farm had to bring in the talent or train
employees to run and maintain the highly automated
equipment. "The challenge now is retaining top technical
talent, given the hours and type of work that takes place
in bakeries," Mr. Watson said. "You start up on a Sunday
night, and tough schedules cause more turnover than
we've ever seen in the past. The younger workforce has
multiple options for better hours, so it's a challenge across
the board."
"Sara Lee is applying robotics to packaging and processing applications as well as pan handling - anywhere
there is repetitive work and ergonomic-related issues,"
Mr. Berger said. "The application of robotics will most
likely render a higher price tag than traditional methods
and could require a more specialized technical staff to
maintain. But the benefits robotics offers are many times
greater than we've seen traditionally. So viewed in a true
cost/benefit perspective, Sara Lee doesn't hesitate to explore the application of robotics in its operations."
Oak State has been a major investor in automation.
"We will continue to invest in automation especially
ergonomic-related areas," Mr. Van Laar noted. "In the
last year, we've installed close to $10 million of equipment and still added employees. Investments have significantly changed the scope of employee activity." The
company has training programs for machine operators
and requires a different aptitude for these positions. Oak
State works with and solicits junior colleges and college
students as well as economic development councils to get
better talent.
SAFE, SECURE. In light of established retail and public

Baking & Snack - February 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Baking & Snack - February 2008