Packaging specialist MULTIVAC packs complexity into the cloud
How much tension is a packaging film allowed to have so that the croissant remains airy and appetizing? And how high can the sealing pressure be to ensure that a marinated neck steak is wrapped gently yet securely? Properly packaging food is a science in itself. MULTIVAC, the manufacturer of processing and packaging solutions, wanted to design its latest generation of machines to be as intelligent and user-friendly as possible. Smart Services, developed jointly with IT partner diva-e, now help customers to shorten changeover times and avoid malfunctions. The services process data in the Microsoft Azure Cloud for this purpose. At the same time, they make it easier for MULTIVAC to set up and maintain the machines - and improve customer focus and customer contact.
The challenge: Complex setup and operation of the machines
In the highly competitive food market, manufacturers are constantly introducing new products and product variants. Meat producers, for example, supply an ever-growing range of grill-ready goods in the summer - and to tap into new customer groups, some are expanding into the vegetarian or vegan segment, a completely new field for them. This growing abundance of products then has to be packaged professionally in the way required by the respective goods - and this concerning costs and the environment, using as little material as possible.
All sorts of things have to be taken into account here. Against this background, the packaging specialist MULTIVAC surveyed its customers to understand the requirements of the operating personnel as precisely as possible.
The solution: cloud-based innovative services
The machine manufacturer's idea is to use digitization to facilitate the operation and changeover of its latest generation of X-line machines and make production processes more efficient and stable. To this end, the supplier had already begun in 2017 to set up a department for strategic digitization topics, headed by Dr Marius Grathwohl, Vice President Digital Products & Transformation at MULTIVAC. For the project, he called in the digitization experts from diva-e because, says Grathwohl, "diva-e has the deep technical knowledge and was able to support us with cloud technology from consulting to implementation. At the same time, diva-e brought user interface design skills and experience from projects in mechanical engineering."
Read the full success story here.
About MULTIVAC
MULTIVAC is one of the world's leading suppliers of processing and packaging solutions for food, life science, healthcare products, and industrial goods. The portfolio includes various packaging technologies and automation solutions, labelling and quality control systems, upstream solutions for portioning and slicing, and bakery technology. Headquartered in Wolfertschwenden, Germany, the MULTIVAC Group employs around 6,500 people worldwide, including more than 1,000 consultants and service technicians around the world. More than 85 subsidiaries represent the company on all continents.
About the partnership with Microsoft
We have been using Microsoft technologies since 2004, helping leading companies on their way to the cloud.
As a Microsoft Gold Partner in the disciplines of application development, cloud platform and DevOps with innovative strength, time-to-market and absolute customer centricity, we are regarded as a trusted advisor in transformation and digitization of content and commerce, making us one of a small group of digital agencies in Germany to hold this status with Microsoft.
Microsoft Azure Expertise from the Leading Transactional Experience Partner (TXP)
As a Cloud Native Partner, we focus on building and expanding our modern Cloud-Native Application Development and Operations competencies. In this way, we offer leading companies security, competence, and expertise in modernising their application landscapes and delivering the highest level of innovation in the cloud on Microsoft Azure.