“We’re confident that OT standardisation, along with Tetra Pak’s standardised automation framework, is the best way to reduce project costs, lead times and start-up times.”
Ron Veldhuizen, Global Director Operational Technology at FrieslandCampina
Customer challenge
Back in 2018, FrieslandCampina had over 40 production sites – primarily in Europe and Asia – with a mixture of automation hardware and software.
Ron Veldhuizen, Global Director Operational Technology at FrieslandCampina explains: “We created a vision for global OT standardisation across the company. In doing this, we hoped to bring project costs down and reduce project lead times for both our greenfield and brownfield projects.”
Step one on the road to achieving this vision was to choose a standard stack based on Siemens and Aveva technology. However, the company soon saw that this would not deliver all the answers. To leverage the positive effects of standardisation, they would also need a standardised automation framework, including a standard for unlocking OT data. This would enable plant optimisation, traceability and efficiency, as well as the ability to spread best practices quickly and ensure multiple factories quickly benefitted from improvements made by one.
Choice of solution
FrieslandCampina began looking for a standardised automation platform that was available as a commercial off-the-shelf product. After reviewing multiple options, they chose Tetra Pak® PlantMaster. The key criteria for FrieslandCampina’s decision were:
- Using Tetra Pak PlantMaster would enable integration of the company’s existing automation systems into a standard platform, even if the equipment came from different suppliers. They would then be able to reuse existing code which would, in turn, reduce engineering costs and start-up times
- Each of FrieslandCampina’s chosen global system integrators would be granted access to the Tetra Pak PlantMaster automation software library, and Tetra Pak would provide the technical support, training, consultancy and quality assurance required to implement it.
In 2020, Tetra Pak and FrieslandCampina signed a dedicated License Framework Agreement, clarifying all the legal and technical details of their cooperation. This covered not only the software itself, but also services like training and a helpdesk. Joris Scholten Linde, Key Account Manager at Tetra Pak in the Netherlands says, “This agreement broke new ground for Tetra Pak. It was the first time we sold our library of automation software independently of our equipment, and the first time we granted access to third party system integrators to work with it.”
From FrieslandCampina’s point of view, having the framework agreement gave, and continues to give, each new project a head start. “From the get-go, our teams know who to engage with, which Systems Integrators to invite to quote etc. We’ve reduced the work pressure on projects significantly by preparing things up front,” says Ron Veldhuizen.
Implementation
Since signing the agreement, stepwise implementation began and now five of FrieslandCampina’s plants are working with Tetra Pak PlantMaster.
In the summer of 2021, the first full installation was completed at a cheese plant in the Netherlands. Tetra Pak software was used to automate the system; training and kits were provided to local system integrators contracted by the company. In January 2022, Tetra Pak software was also installed in a new filtration unit.
“Soon we’ll be commissioning two strategic greenfield plants in Asia based on Tetra Pak PlantMaster,” says Ron Veldhuizen. “Both are running completely by the book from a standardisation point of view, with Tetra Pak’s involvement, and taking advantage of the system’s latest traceability and recipe handling features. We anticipate significant spin off to other projects going forward.”
The human factor
Besides providing the automation solution and support for System Integrators, Tetra Pak is also supporting FrieslandCampina’s change management process. “Through technology demonstrations, tailor-made training and reference visits, we enable more people to embrace the new way of working,” explains Joris Scholten Linde.
“A certain degree of resistance is normal whenever you impose new global standards” says Ron Veldhuizen. “In this case, our local teams had to accept that only a few Systems Integrators were chosen to carry out the implementation and they, in turn, had to get comfortable with Tetra Pak PlantMaster. Change is never easy, but Tetra Pak went the extra mile to provide those leading our local OT projects with the information and reassurance they needed.”
Results
Where the Tetra Pak solution has been implemented, FrieslandCampina’s plant managers are already enjoying the immediate benefits of having reliable real-time data upon which to base their daily decisions.
“It’s still too early to know how our new way of working is impacting the company’s bottom line,” says Ron Veldhuizen, “but we are confident that the more widely Tetra Pak PlantMaster is implemented, the more valuable component reusage and knowledge-sharing will become. Ultimately, FrieslandCampina’s goal is further global standardisation, which will lay the foundation for our competitive success in the years to come.”
