Meat+Poultry - January 2020 - 46

P L A N T O P E R AT I O N S

new hot box five years ago. I said at the time
that we need to look at what changes that
is going to require for the future. So, we put
together a 15-year plan. " Few would argue
that is an organized approach to present and
future expansion.
The biggest mistake plants make, Kaminski
says, " is predefining the size of the expansion
without considering the volume. " Sometimes
what the plant can afford to spend does
not facilitate the production intended to go
through it. " Process should dictate what the
size of the building is. When you try to shoehorn a process in a predetermined space,
something will suffer. "
Design execution is also important. A plant
might be able save money by hiring a good
metal fabricator to build a conveyor system
because they have the lowest bid. However,
if the conveyors aren't built and installed
correctly, there can be serious yield loss. A
relatively new beef plant Kaminski worked
with was recently losing tens of thousands of
dollars a week in beef trimmings loss due to
poorly built conveyors.
" Getting the right contractors is really
important, " Kaminski emphasizes. For example, " A company that has built a lot of conveyors for a lot of plants will cost more up front
but will save a lot of money in the short and
long run, " he says, through good execution.
Improper conveyor
installation can be a
source of waste and an
opportunity to control
operating cost.

with over 1,100 employees and one of the largest beef plants in the Northeast. On the other
end of the spectrum, a large Midwest plant
built nearly 40 years ago was designed from
the start to slaughter and process 6,000 head
per day. It, too, has seen many changes over
the years, but its core production is still around
6,000 head per day.

LONG VIEW

MEAT+ POULTRY | 01.20 | www.meatpoultry.com

Plants are often talked about in
anthropomorphic terms. A well-built plant is
said to have " good bones; " the outside area
where scrap equipment parts are parked is
often referred to as " the boneyard. " In this
vein, people are often referred to as " the heart "
of the plant. Eric Reynolds is a longtime safety
consultant who has helped companies improve
their safety metrics. At the foundation of
improvement, he says, is culture. " Employee
culture is the heartbeat of the plant, " he says.
Culture may seem an amorphous and
elusive quality, yet most companies today are
seeking to harness its benefits. While difficult
to measure directly, Reynolds says, " There are
lagging indicators that point to a successful
culture, including turnover rate, absenteeism
and safety metrics. "
While seeking to find ways to directly
gauge culture, one thing is certain: Companies

Jerry Karczewski

History plays a large role in how beef plants
have evolved, but there are some elements
of plant structure that are important whether
the plant is large or small, new or old. Dave
Kaminski is the owner of Plainview, Texasbased Packers Design and Consulting LLC, and
has been working in beef plants since 1973. He
advises companies to take a long-term view
when considering modifications.
" I always tell companies to look at a
15-year plan. One plant I worked at put on a

PEOPLE POWER

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Meat+Poultry - January 2020

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