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Tuesday
Oct062009

Batch Production

Unilever (Best Foods Mayonnaise)

We have all seen recipes for mayonnaise. The ingredients are very simple: eggs, vegetable oil, maybe some lemon juice, vinegar, salt and pepper. If you set your mind to it, it would be a simple matter to make up a batch in your kitchen. But what if you needed to make more than 1 million pounds per day? NovaSim developed a discrete event simulation model in SIMUL8 to help Best Foods do just that. 

Challenges

  • Finding a way for the ingredient preparation system to keep up with increased production
  • Creating efficient production schedules to meet demand while minimizing losses due to changeovers
  • Managing dedicated equipment while trying to meet all product demands including package sizes ranging from 8 onces to 2000 pound totes

Simulation Elements

  • Dozens of products made from many different recipes
  • Kanban production methodology
  • Managing several ingredients 
  • Daily production schedules with changeover and cleaning requirements
  • Batch mixing operations feeding surge tanks connected to packaging lines