Baking & Snack - December 2020 - 73

Taking things online
Greater automation reduces headcounts on production
floors, but it also increases the need for technical support. Pre-pandemic, bakers showed hesitancy to give
suppliers remote access for network security reasons.
But COVID-19 has forced a shift in this thinking, mostly because plants were not able to bring in outside help
for fear of increasing risk of exposure in a facility.
" It's certainly making a difference making sure plants
and operations keep running, " Mr. Izquierdo said.
AMF Bakey Systems offers the web-based AMFMethod
Documentation and Training Tools, which give operators
access to equipment manuals, videos, animations, documentation and other interactive assessments for proper
safety, maintenance and operation, remotely.
" Additionally, AMF's customer care team offers
VirtualCare solutions for real-time, mixed reality assessment and virtual training by AMF's team of trained service technicians, " Mr. Lemieux said.
Suppliers are coming up with the new and improved
ways to work remotely and virtually with customers.
Formost Fuji has used HoloLens technology to do factory
acceptance testing and other maintenance. Recently, the
company installed a system in Canada and instructed the
facility on how to use the machine using Facetime.
" These technologies are less expensive and efficient, "

Mr. Gunnell said. " There's obviously something to be said
for doing it in person, but it's the next best thing and sometimes the only solution. "
Whether through augmented reality (AR) glasses, smart
phone applications or virtual reality, remote maintenance
and training is becoming the new normal. BPA has taken a
simple step to provide easy access to digital assistance.
" Similar to how restaurants have been using QR codes
to replace menus, BPA has been adding QR codes to our
operator interface, allowing plant personnel to access
training videos at the machine, " Mr. Hogue said.
To get the full benefit of these remote and web-based
tools, bakeries have to be outfitted properly to support
them. Often in today's bakeries, there is still limited
WiFi access on plant floors, which diminishes the access
for many remote maintenance benefits.
" We've done some work with AR goggles, " Mr. Cardey
said. " One of the limitations today is the WiFi availability on the plant floor in some bakeries. Today not every
bakery has strong WiFi capability on the plant floor that
would allow for their technician to have goggles on and
to communicate with our engineer. The technology is
coming and will continue to gain momentum. "
In the coming year, look for the accelerated rate of
adoption of these technologies. The future, pandemic or
not, depends on them.

*
Sanitary design with
stainless steel and
sloped surfaces makes
packaging machines
easy to clean, whether
doing full washdowns
or wipe downs.
BluePrint Automation

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