Background

New Zealand-based PPCS Ltd is one of the world's premier producers and exporters of meat and meat products. The company processes lamb, beef, venison, and allied products to the highest of international standards for food quality, safety, and integrity, and then markets these products to local and international retailers and supermarkets worldwide.

New Zealand's natural environment provides an ideal platform for stock to be naturally raised on open pastures in some of the most exquisite farmland in the world.

Started in 1947 as a marketing company established by a group of farmers intending to directly market product, PPCS now owns and operates 13 strategically placed processing facilities, maintaining control over the stock and processing to ensure that quality is preserved throughout production.

In addition to the requirements enforced by the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), PPCS operates a quality management system based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) principles and a Farm Accreditation Scheme. These systems provide a clearly defined set of rules for the management and control of all animal welfare, production, quality, food safety, environmental factors, and training associated with processing activities.

In addition, all PPCS processing facilities receive regular inspection and certification of compliance from the EEC and USDA certifying bodies.

Challenge

Key to PPCS' success is the ability to produce, process, and export a spoilable commodity -- meat -- to supermarkets in more than 100 countries while meeting strict quality and safety guidelines and maintaining competitive strategies that make it one of the most successful food processors in the world.

As with all meat-processing operations in New Zealand, plants are subject to MAF regulatory requirements and production schedule changes. These changes can occur frequently during the processing season.

Standards between the PPCS meat processing plants were not consistent. To program the changes required by the MAF and customer requirements, Malcolm Buchanan, electrical engineer for PPCS, had to visit each of the 13 sites.

With plants dispersed over a wide geographic area and difficult or time-consuming access, servicing the sites required approximately two weeks per change, totaling approximately two months of engineering time each year.

To increase operational efficiency and reliability, PPCS is committed to a continuous process of updating plant technology and methods. Major upgrades need to occur in a tight time frame between killing seasons. Minor changes to systems and methods are effected while in production.

The ability to access all sites and automation systems from a remote centralized location would allow engineers to implement and test new methods and systems in a timely manner. Remote connectivity that could also provide remote technical support across existing networks would be a key advantage.

Solution

Rockwell Automaton's solution was to provide software gateways. These utilize existing communications networks allowing remote/centralized access to all 13 PPCS plants.

Many of these plants have control systems based on Allen-Bradley, PLC-5, and SLC-500. More recently PPCS has standardized on Allen-Bradley, ControlLogix, and FlexLogix systems. Site networks include Data Highway Plus and remote I/O and more recently Ethernet and DeviceNet. ControlLogix Gateway hardware has been installed to connect Data Highway Plus to Ethernet in some instances.

By installing Rockwell Software's RSLinx Gateway on these sites, the benefits of Rockwell Automaton's NetLinx strategy were immediately realized.

PPCS can now access all sites remotely, down to a controller and device level, seamlessly. This allows them to configure, control, and collect data across multiple network types and multiple locations.

Real-time production data including product tracking can now be viewed at its source.

The ability to track from its source is important to PPCS customers, explained Iain Cameron, southern regional manager for Rockwell Automation.

"Customers may have special processing requirements and ask PPCS to provide proof of adherence to those requirements," he said. "For example, the customer may want only lamb products of a particular age from a certain region. Tracking can verify that the product has come from the expected source."

According to Buchanan, PPCS selected Rockwell Automation products for two reasons -- a long-standing and successful relationship, and Rockwell Automation's ability to offer products with an easy forward and backward migration from existing products to a new generation of Rockwell Automation products.

"We were also seen as a supplier who could provide the necessary support along with the application solution," Cameron said.

Results

With remote access to download the required changes to production programs, schedule and other changes can now be achieved within the 24 hours.

PPCS' electrical engineer can service all of the plants in eight hours -- rather than two weeks -- per change. With the new system, therefore, changes take up to four days of Buchanan's time -- rather than two months -- per year.

This ability to make the necessary engineering changes to systems at 13 sites has effectively reduced engineering implementation of plant control system changes by 90%.

"These are phenomenal savings for an organization which relies on the technical expertise of one person to ensure its plants are operating to the highest standards," said Cameron. "PPCS views our solution as insurance against production-critical problems occurring on-site without a specialist being available," he continued. "Now that specialist is available online."

"By providing the ability to access the process from a central location, our efficiency has improved dramatically, while ensuring that we adhere to government requirements and standards," Buchanan said.