Unlock hidden yield in dairy operations

Growing consumer demand for protein poses a crucial question for dairy producers: How can they meet that demand without adding costly new production capacity? For a growing number, the answer is to pursue “hidden” yield – untapped opportunities within existing operations where even small gains in yield, recovery or throughput can deliver outsized financial returns.

These opportunities are hidden because they often can’t be identified or addressed with the data and control strategies that dairy producers use today. To unlock them, producers need better visibility into what’s happening in their operations and better decision making – either by human operators or control systems – to optimize performance.

With real-time insights and advanced process control, dairy producers can uncover and capture yield opportunities that otherwise remain hidden. Perhaps as importantly, they can protect productivity into the future as they contend with ongoing labor challenges, growing operational complexity and pressures to operate more sustainably.

Finding hidden yield

Hidden yield is difficult to uncover for a reason – it’s often masked by complex process variability that exists throughout dairy operations. Even small variations in fat, protein and moisture levels can have a significant impact on yield. However, while dairy plants are collecting more data today, many still struggle to identify where variability and the resulting yield losses are occurring because their data is disconnected.

The first step is making hidden losses visible. That’s where a manufacturing execution system (MES) can help. It combines data from multiple production sources into a single, real-time source of truth to pinpoint the processes where losses are happening.

Still, finding losses is one thing. Understanding what’s causing them is another. A data-aggregation platform can contextualize disparate data and reveal important relationships between them. AI can further accelerate analysis by identifying patterns and root causes that may otherwise go unnoticed.

In some cases, the fix for a yield-loss issue may be a simple, one-time solution. For example, repairing a motor that had been running slower than normal could resolve a line-speed problem that was causing quality issues. However, some yield issues require constant adjustments to real-time variations in a process. This is where a closed-loop control solution is needed.

Model predictive control (MPC) technology is one such solution. It enables dairy producers to move beyond manually reacting to process changes and instead anticipate and correct them before they impact yield. MPC technology monitors a process and continually compensates for variations by adjusting production parameters – all to maintain optimal performance.

In dairy operations, MPC can be particularly effective in helping optimize dryers and evaporators, which are both energy-intensive and prone to process variability. MPC helps stabilize their operations and reduce moisture variability to maintain product specifications and maximize yield.

One maker of whey products used MPC to stabilize dryer and evaporator operations affected by seasonal variability. This increased dryer efficiency by as much as 21% and improved product consistency through tighter moisture and density control. It also helped eliminate about 145 hours of annual lost production caused by spray dryer blockages.

Where to start?

The process of uncovering hidden yield will be different for every producer. However, these projects often share the same fundamentals, giving producers some common starting points:

Addressing infrastructure needs: Technologies like MES, MPC and data-aggregation platforms don’t unlock hidden yield all on their own. They need reliable, secure and real-time data, which means they need an information infrastructure in place.

This infrastructure – also known as a digital backbone – connects information technology (IT) and operations technology (OT) assets on a unified network architecture. Data is no longer trapped in silos. A common data model keeps data consistent, so only one version of the truth exists. And robust cybersecurity technologies, policies and procedures reduce risk.

Starting with the right projects: By identifying the opportunities that exist to unlock hidden yield – often with the help of a partner experienced in digital-transformation initiatives – dairy producers can understand the cost, complexity and potential ROI of these projects. They can then start with the projects that have the lowest cost of entry and the quickest returns to demonstrate the value of these projects and build momentum around them.

Keeping people at the center: Technology helps unlock hidden yield, but people will determine its success. Leadership that embraces continuous improvement creates a culture of buy-in for initiatives like this. And making sure the people at the plant level who will be using the new technology are involved in the earliest stages of these projects can help overcome resistance early and address their needs or concerns before new technology is deployed.

Make the most of existing resources

Unlocking hidden yield allows dairy producers to increase output without major capital investments. By connecting data, uncovering previously invisible sources of loss and addressing process variability in real time, producers can squeeze more out of their existing assets while keeping pace with high demand. This delivers immediate top-line revenue growth without the need for long, expensive capital outlays.

Editor’s Note: Todd Gilliam currently serves as North America Industry Leader, Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) at Rockwell Automation. In this role, he leads initiatives to support manufacturing customers in the CPG sector, focusing on automation, digital transformation, and operational efficiency.

Lee Coffey is a strategic marketing leader at Rockwell Automation with over 15 years of experience in automation and food processing. He is responsible for developing and implementing the global strategy, execution, and marketing programs for the Consumer Packaged Goods industry.