Simulation programme provides data for efficiency increase

For existing filling lines whose efficiency may need improvement after many years of operation, a Line Tuning analysis project is a worthwhile solution. Target of this project is the improvement of the efficiency or the OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness).
The first step is an assessment of the situation on site. Among other things, the weak points are detected and the machines´ fault reactions are recorded with the aid of "Mobile Production Data Acquisition" – with photocells and counting systems at the crucial points in the line.
Afterwards, the Krones simulation tool is used to create a model of the filling line and to assess the optimisation potential.  During this process, the buffer times of the conveyors and the machines´ performance data, for instance, are varied. One vital consideration for lines on which different products are filled and packed in different containers are changeover procedures and the behaviour of the line when production is restarted.

The causes of a loss of efficiency can be divided into four categories:

• Organisational availability
• Technical availability
• Technical line performance
• Quality rate

Based on these characteristic numbers for each product and on a comparison of shifts at machine and line level, the dairy plant is presented with assessed proposals for increasing the efficiency to 90 %. Optimisation measures for the individual machines are proposed and their effect on the overall performance is assessed.