Enterprise Resource Planning

Food supply chain excellence: Stewart Wilmot collected the award from Columbus Global UK’s Simon Charlton (right) and awards host Matt Dawson

FMEAs 2017

Salad processor wins supply chain Oscar

By Mike Stones

West Sussex salad processor Natures Way Foods has won the coveted Supply Chain Initiative of the Year trophy in the industry’s Oscars – the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards – at The Hilton on Park Lane in London earlier this month.

ERP raises supply chain efficiency

Manufacturing product file

ERP raises supply chain efficiency

By Rick Pendrous

Fresh produce supplier to high street restaurant chains, Reynolds Catering Supplies, based at Waltham Cross, near London, is using Infor’s M3 enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to raise order handling efficiency.

Sorter picker

Meat sector embraces Industry 4.0

By Rick Pendrous

Software, image processing and automation systems for tomorrow's production environments will be displayed by the CSB group at IFFA, the international meat industry trade fair, which takes place in Frankfurt from May 7 to 12.

Robots can be reprogrammed for different applications

From automation to optimisation

By Paul Gander

Automation offers the opportunity to integrate control with background data, as Paul Gander discovers

Web-based salad monitoring: from field to factory

Web-based salad monitoring: from field to factory

Swiss-based convenience salads producer Eisberg group is using a web-based software system to help provide end-to-end quality management while monitoring products to ensure they are delivered as fresh as possible.

Internet of things

Next year’s news about process manufacturing

By Jakob Björklund

The growing importance of traceability – where transactional data meets the internet of things – is one of three key trends set to shape the process manufacturing industry of 2016: including the food and drink sector.

Kanes Foods hopes its new system will help accomodate supply chain developments

Kanes installs a new ERP system

By Pendrous

Fresh prepared foods company Kanes Foods, based in the Vale of Evesham, has replaced its legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems in a move designed to accommodate supply chain developments associated with its rapid growth.

Poundworld boss Chris Edwards: 'A strong platform for rapid growth'

Single-price discounter Poundworld's sales hit £422M

By Rick Pendrous

Discount retailer Poundworld has reported an increased turnover for the year ended March 31 of £422.3M – £77M ahead of 2014. At the same time the retailer’s operating profits rose by 130%.

Software aids traceability in today's complex retail business climate

Direct network links help to manage data proliferation

With the growing amount of data being generated for - and on - packaging lines, particularly around printers, readers, programmable logic controllers (PLCs), cameras and other peripherals, food and drink companies are realising the value of a direct link...

QR codes give customers additional data, such as the food's provenance

Pluses and minuses of new EU labelling rules

By Paul Gander

New EU labelling regulations could force users of variable information and weigh-price labelling to rethink where and how data is presented on-pack, according to equipment supplier Bizerba. It could also open up fresh marketing opportunities.

Organix says sales of its all-ambient product lines have nearly doubled

Forecasting toys thrown out of the inventory pram

By Sue Scott

A market-busting 10% rise in demand for Organix baby food products has forced the company to tear up the spreadsheets and become the first manufacturer to adopt a new stock-monitoring and forecasting system that could lead to full vendor-managed inventory...

IT's in the clouds

IT's in the clouds

By Paul Gander

Specific IT linking production to the supply chain is no longer a luxury, and no longer just for the largest multi-site businesses. For a small operation, the right system with the right features can be a huge differentiator, helping to open doors to...

UK software systems lag behind the US

UK software systems lag behind the US

By Rick Pendrous

Britain's food and drink processors are failing to embrace the improved operational efficiencies provided by 'middleware' such as manufacturing executions systems (MES), says a leading vendor in the field.

Cream of operational systems

Cream of operational systems

BV Dairy has selected a 37-user Epicor 9 enterprise resource planning (ERP) system supplied by Aspera Solutions to manage its manufacturing and distribution business. Epicor 9 will provide a unified, end-to-end system to manage all operations from milk...

Packaging machinery in focus: Pit stop pack changes

Packaging machinery in focus: Pit stop pack changes

Increased emphasis on just-in-time production has made long runs and dedicated lines a thing of the past. Sebastian Day finds out how machinery suppliers are helping to streamline the changeover process

Change for the better

Change for the better

By Sarah Britton

Choosing the right enterprise resource planning (ERP) system can be a challenge, but implementation is where the fun really begins, as firms convince staff that this is a positive change. Sarah Britton reports

Get up to speed on traceability

Get up to speed on traceability

By Michelle Knott

Systems can improve visibility throughout your factory while helping to avoid damaging product recalls, as Michelle Knott discovers

Sweet move for supply chain

Sweet move for supply chain

By Rick Pendrous

Cadbury subsidiary Monkhill Confectionery this month goes live with a mid-range preconfigured food and beverage enterprise resource planning (ERP)...

Release that hidden power

Release that hidden power

I am told by big food manufacturers that innovation in product and packaging design is the key to medium-term profit growth. The message is clear -...

Greencore empowers workers

Greencore empowers workers

By Elaine Watson

Operators on shopfloor will be allowed to act on flow of better factory information

Crystal gazing for the 21st century

Crystal gazing for the 21st century

Enterprise resource planning and advanced planning systems can both help companies with their forecasting. But which one is best suited to you? Kathy Watson reports