CenFRA is taking the biscuit to new levels
Article Type: News From: Industrial Robot: An International Journal, Volume 37, Issue 3
Consumers may be cutting back on their spending during the present economic difficulties, but they are still crunching into their favourite biscuits,helping to make this an increasingly important food sector worth nearly £3 billion.
CenFRA, Europe’s first centre for food robotics and automation, is in turn helping biscuit companies remain competitive, especially during the current climate of progressively squeezed margins as a result of both the higher cost of raw materials and greater promotional activity.
The biscuit sector, like the UK food industry as a whole, has traditionally under-invested in automation when compared to its global competitors but now it is catching up, as shown by Northern Foods, one of Britain’s leading food manufacturing companies and the owners of the popular Fox’s Biscuits brand.
Northern Foods is embracing new technology and Fox’s in particular has already benefited from one of CenFRA’s renowned technology audits which identified further opportunities for automation.
Fox’s Batley site General Manager and CenFRA Director Richard Charlesworth initiated a Northern Foods seminar event at CenFRA’s central hub in Doncaster. In his role at Fox’s, he has already enjoyed at first-hand the advantages engagement with the Yorkshire Forward backed organisation can bring.
He commented: “Almost any function on a biscuit production line can be automated; the key is to pick the right functions that deliver the greatest benefits. Any food and drink company can access CenFRA, just like Northern Foods has done following the event in Doncaster, which has resulted in all the sites now actively engaging with CenFRA through automation audits. CenFRA is a vital,impartial and authoritative link between food manufacturers and automation suppliers.”
Mr Charlesworth is confident the British biscuit industry is now addressing the need for more automation and strongly believes CenFRA is playing a vital role in convincing food manufacturers of the positive impact that innovative automation solutions can provide.
Investing in automation and robotics can seriously help maintain profit margins through better-controlled costs and improved quality and product reliability, while at the same time reducing the reliance on a transient labour force which has limited availability through seasonal fluctuations. All these factors are vital ingredients for consideration in the quest to stay competitive.
CenFRA is funded principally by Yorkshire Forward but with additional support from Northern Way and the Doncaster-based centre is in partnership with a number of the country’s leading independent robotic and automation engineering centres of expertise.
