Perhaps some of the biggest advances in digital controls have come with assisting maintenance teams challenged by a lack of veteran, skilled personnel. That’s especially true when it comes to taking care of a commercial bakery’s oven.

For post-baking dryers, Radio Frequency has developed Predictive Maintenance Intervention and Management Execution Systems (MES).

“These frameworks have matured to become powerful management tools that can mitigate this experience gap,” observed Tim Clark, president and chief executive officer, Radio Frequency Co. “These management tools require information to get from the machine to the personnel that can marshal resources in a timely and cost-effective manner.”

He said post-baking dryers come with network-connected controls that provide historical and real-time data to help keep small issues from becoming major unscheduled downtime. The machine set points and process values are displayed on HMIs for oven operators and on MES dashboards for the entire management team.

With the drive to maximize capacity and uptime on production lines, maintenance schedules have been condensed, prompting departments to resolve major operational repairs while routine fixes often get put off to another day.

“We see more of an issue with bakeries not doing enough of the proper type of preventive maintenance,” said Ken Johnson, president, Gemini Bakery Equipment. “Periodic safety system checks and adequate cleaning per the manufacturer’s instructions are not excessive and need to be followed.”

Jerry Barnes, vice president, Babbco, pointed out oven controls’ alarm systems provide more detailed, descriptive text and images that can quickly direct maintenance crews to a troubleshooting issue.

In addition to providing equipment manuals and service guides, HMIs can display Pareto charts or diagrams that reflect the frequency and cause of problems in a process. This enables maintenance departments to prioritize what needs to be repaired or replaced.

Pasquali said logging performance data over time allows operators to identify such trends as declining efficiency or recurring operational issues.

“Sensors can detect parts that are wearing out or operating outside normal parameters and alert maintenance personnel to take preemptive action,” he said.

That’s especially the case with critical components such as an oven motor chain. Ellenbogen noted that Mecatherm’s predictive maintenance application offers simple, educational step-by-step maintenance controls whenever the system detects a deviation from normal running.

“This proactive monitoring ensures that your oven operates efficiently and reliably, minimizing and anticipating the risk of unexpected downtime, which results by maximizing your productivity,” he said. 

Advanced sensors can identify even minor operational anomalies and guide operators to where they can conduct an initial check to analyze the severity of a potential problem.

“Ultimately, the goal is to prevent unplanned stoppages and optimize the availability of the production line, ensuring seamless operations,” said Franck Ellenbogen, sales director North America, Mecatherm.

Other instruments such as near-infrared moisture meters can determine if the product is within specification. 

“Vision systems are becoming very capable, helpful tools to track product quality and even detect failures of equipment,” said Cameron Johnston, senior director of innovation, Reading Bakery Systems. “If out-of-range, some instances can be practical for automated controls to be programmed for making process adjustments.”

Looking forward, he foresees artificial intelligence becoming a stronger platform driving the operation and making automatic process adjustments on high-speed baking and snack production lines.

This article is an excerpt from the August 2024 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Ovens, click here.