Chocolat Frey
Projekte Kakao- und Grundmassenherstellung / Modernisierung der Fettdosierung bei Chocolat FreyChocolat Frey AG stellt sich vor
Chocolat Frey AG is a business enterprise of Migros’ M-Industry and the market leader among Swiss chocolate manufacturers. The company, which was founded in 1887, has played an important role for
over 125 years in the development of Switzerland’s chocolate expertise today. A cooperation with the non-profit organisation ‘UTZ Certified’ signifies Chocolat Frey AG’s commitment tosustainable, socially and environmentally-friendly cacao farming.
Project: Producing cocoa and cocoa mass
A state-of-the-art automation/control system solution based on Siemens Simatic PCS7 replaced the existing extensive installations. As a result, the entire production process of cacao mass and chocolate is managed using the new solution, allowing Chocolat Frey to maintain traceability with one single system.
Project: Modernising grease dosage at Chocolate Frey
In April 2016, Chocolat Frey AG in Buchs brought grease dosing up-to-date by implementing the latest PCS7 CPU generation S7-410-5H. Autexis utilised its internally developed configurable stroke control system and was thus able to quickly implement appropriate monitoring measures.
Modernising the grease scales and distribution systems
Autexis AG already automated the processing lines and tank storage facility for cocoa mass in recent years. Upstream production (processing cacao beans into cocoa mass as well as nut processing and distribution) was also modernised with a new Autexis automation solution. All special greases used in producing cocoa mass were weighed using three grease scales and then sent to the assigned plants using a natural gradient and pipelines. The individual scales and the associated distribution systems were integrated using separate controllers and were monitored by way of mimic diagrams. Distributing the grease took a long time and was very slow due to pipe leaks or waiting recipients. Autexis successfully updated these greases scales with the proper distribution systems and integrated them into the existing automation concept. Updating the scales enabled fully automatic operations that can retrace batches and follow dosage protocols. Suitable measures will therefore make dosing grease to points of consumption more efficient and effective. The project also included filling the grease tank storage facility using a melt spinning grid.
Integration into the existing PCS7 control system
The entire solution was implemented with the latest S7-410-5H CPU generation and is integrated into the existing redundant PCS7 control system. The visualisation system was added to the existing project as a new plant component. Using an in-house, configurable stroke control system enables different paths to be quickly implemented with appropriate control measures. A ring-shaped, redundant Profinet plant bus and corresponding ET200SP system was also used for the first time at Chocolat Frey AG. An AS-i master controls and monitors all new valves.
Client benefits
Training and start-up time could be considerably reduced due to a consistent philosophy and control modules. The required goals and deadlines were met to the fullest satisfaction during two stages of conversion work (Christmas and Easter) by engaging in-depth collaboration, using the specifications drawn up by the project team and carrying out two factory acceptance tests (FAT). The required dosing accuracy of +/- 200g was beaten by a factor of 10. The entire plant’s performance was improved due to the modernisation work.
By Hansjörg Schmidle, Chief Technology Officer at Autexis Control AG
‘No sooner supplied than sold. After updating dosage and grease distribution, it’s now much quicker to supply grease accurately for basic production. Annoying and expensive wait times are now a thing of the past.’
Beate Schweizer, Chief Technology Officer for Basic Production at Chocolat Frey