Barry Callebaut
Barry Callebaut increases its production capacity with AVEVA solutions
Barry Callebaut, the world's leading chocolate manufacturer, embarked on a digital transformation journey seven years ago to improve traceability, reduce energy consumption and increase plant productivity. However, the group had inherited a heterogeneous industrial base, with multiple PLCs from successive mergers and acquisitions that needed to be connected to a common infrastructure. The chocolate maker chose AVEVA System Platform, complemented by AVEVA Historian and AVEVA Manufacturing Execution System, to build the digital backbone of its smart factory initiative. Several complex data sources are now integrated in real time at its pilot sites. The benefits are particularly telling: production line insights have identified 10% of previously untapped additional capacity, predictive models are paving the way for real-time optimization and energy consumption is falling in support of net-zero goals.
Integrated AVEVA software
AVEVA System Platform
Barry Callebaut uses the AVEVA System Platform to centralize the supervision of its cocoa and chocolate processing plants. This unified platform integrates production systems and enables consistent process management on a global scale.
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AVEVA Historian
Barry Callebaut relies on AVEVA Historian to archive chocolate production data. This solution enables trend analysis, batch traceability and compliance with the demanding food quality standards of the chocolate industry.
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Testimonials
FAQ
How does AVEVA System Platform connect PLCs inherited from mergers and acquisitions?
Barry Callebaut, the world leader in chocolate, had inherited a heterogeneous installed base of PLCs from multiple acquisitions. AVEVA System Platform acts as an industrial operating system that federates this equipment through a library of standardized objects and a common abstraction layer. This object-oriented architecture makes it possible to connect every production line without replacing existing PLCs, accelerating the group's digital transformation at its pilot sites while preserving past investments.
Why is an MES essential to a food industry smart factory initiative?
AVEVA Manufacturing Execution System (MES) structures traceability, recipe management and industrial performance at Barry Callebaut. In the food industry, where compliance (allergens, batches, expiry dates) is crucial, the MES ensures the move from all-paper to all-digital. Combined with System Platform and Historian, it feeds the predictive models that identified 10% of additional, previously untapped capacity. It is the digital backbone of any modern smart factory.
What role does AVEVA Historian play in a chocolate maker's energy optimization?
AVEVA Historian collects and archives all of Barry Callebaut's operational data in high resolution. This industrial database makes it possible to analyze energy consumption station by station, identify energy-intensive equipment and test reduction strategies. For a group committed to net zero, Historian becomes a strategic tool: it turns raw data into a concrete lever for achieving sustainability goals while improving overall industrial performance.
How can 10% of additional capacity be identified through digital transformation?
Insights from AVEVA System Platform and MES revealed bottlenecks at Barry Callebaut that were invisible to the human eye: micro-stoppages, sub-optimal changeovers and lack of synchronization between lines. Combining real-time data and predictive models made it possible to identify 10% of untapped production capacity. It is a concrete illustration of the value hidden in industrial data: without any hardware investment, simply by making better use of existing assets, a group can free up significant additional capacity.
Why is connecting ERP to production lines a major issue in the food industry?
Barry Callebaut made the ERP-production connection a central objective of its smart factory initiative. AVEVA MES and System Platform act as the bridge between planning (ERP) and execution (shop floor). This real-time integration ensures that production orders, recipes and quality checks flow without interruption. For a global manufacturer, it is the prerequisite for perfect traceability, responsiveness to demand and a significant reduction in inventory and waste.