Modern
flour mills are highly complex systems.
Each individual system component, whether it is involved in the arrival of raw materials or in the cleaning, grinding, storage and or bagging of the finished product, is a highly sophisticated piece of machinery that works with utmost precision and accuracy - the only scope left for improvement is in the finer details.
To optimise further, we need to look at the potential of linking the individual system components together and in the possibilities offered by autonomy .
Bühler is working flat out developing the building blocks for what it calls the ‘Smart Mill.’
Grain Milling Technologist, Urs Dübendorfer, who has been with Bühler AG for the past 28 years and is a member of the Smart Mill Development Team, explains how much progress the company has already made in its pursuit of this innovative concept.
Milling and Grain, with assistance from Bühler, had the opportunity to discuss with Urs Dübendorfer the progress being made and reports here the questions posed to him stating with asking him to describe a Smart Mill.
“ In a Smart Mill many of the process steps are monitored by sensors. Data from the different parts of the system is collected centrally and analysed using algorithms. The most important feature of a Smart Mill is that if deviations from the specifications are detected, the system automatically makes corrections and adapts individual process steps. The Smart Mill is becoming more automated and autonomous — it’s comparable with self-driving cars.”
Q: That sounds simple, but how far along are you and your team in developing the Smart Mill?
A: We’ve already achieved a great deal in the years that we’ve been working on the Smart Mill. But we’re aware that we still have a long way to go. We’re currently in the phase of being amazed by all the possibilities. At the same time, we’re preparing a solid structure to build on with our Bühler Insights platform. We’re the only supplier in our area to be ISO 27001-certified (*).
Q: But many highly-automated mills already exist. There’s already a wealth of experience in that area. The amazement can’t be that great, can it?
A: It’s true that many mills around the world already have automated solutions. However, they are all only partial solutions, the majority of which are standalone. The individual processes have not yet been linked together and work in isolation, and there’s little regulation. The more we look into the issue of centralized autonomy, the more we see how complex the task is. We have already developed various digital solutions. But what’s still missing is the consolidation of all the processes into a ‘think and command centre.’
Q: And what are the main challenges?
A: Large amounts of data and integrating or linking internal and external data, among other things.
Q: Surely modern IT systems can handle large amounts of data?
A: Sure, but if you monitor every process with sensors, it generates almost unimaginable quantities of data. The lists are endless. They far exceed the analysis capabilities of humans. That means it’s got to be done by computer.
However, that requires special algorithms, which have to be developed if we don’t know them yet. These algorithms work better the more varied the data is that they receive. And that takes us to Bühler Insights. It collects the data from different systems anonymously and analyses it in clusters.
Read more HERE.
Each individual system component, whether it is involved in the arrival of raw materials or in the cleaning, grinding, storage and or bagging of the finished product, is a highly sophisticated piece of machinery that works with utmost precision and accuracy - the only scope left for improvement is in the finer details.
To optimise further, we need to look at the potential of linking the individual system components together and in the possibilities offered by autonomy .
Bühler is working flat out developing the building blocks for what it calls the ‘Smart Mill.’
Grain Milling Technologist, Urs Dübendorfer, who has been with Bühler AG for the past 28 years and is a member of the Smart Mill Development Team, explains how much progress the company has already made in its pursuit of this innovative concept.
Milling and Grain, with assistance from Bühler, had the opportunity to discuss with Urs Dübendorfer the progress being made and reports here the questions posed to him stating with asking him to describe a Smart Mill.
“ In a Smart Mill many of the process steps are monitored by sensors. Data from the different parts of the system is collected centrally and analysed using algorithms. The most important feature of a Smart Mill is that if deviations from the specifications are detected, the system automatically makes corrections and adapts individual process steps. The Smart Mill is becoming more automated and autonomous — it’s comparable with self-driving cars.”
Q: That sounds simple, but how far along are you and your team in developing the Smart Mill?
A: We’ve already achieved a great deal in the years that we’ve been working on the Smart Mill. But we’re aware that we still have a long way to go. We’re currently in the phase of being amazed by all the possibilities. At the same time, we’re preparing a solid structure to build on with our Bühler Insights platform. We’re the only supplier in our area to be ISO 27001-certified (*).
Q: But many highly-automated mills already exist. There’s already a wealth of experience in that area. The amazement can’t be that great, can it?
A: It’s true that many mills around the world already have automated solutions. However, they are all only partial solutions, the majority of which are standalone. The individual processes have not yet been linked together and work in isolation, and there’s little regulation. The more we look into the issue of centralized autonomy, the more we see how complex the task is. We have already developed various digital solutions. But what’s still missing is the consolidation of all the processes into a ‘think and command centre.’
Q: And what are the main challenges?
A: Large amounts of data and integrating or linking internal and external data, among other things.
Q: Surely modern IT systems can handle large amounts of data?
A: Sure, but if you monitor every process with sensors, it generates almost unimaginable quantities of data. The lists are endless. They far exceed the analysis capabilities of humans. That means it’s got to be done by computer.
However, that requires special algorithms, which have to be developed if we don’t know them yet. These algorithms work better the more varied the data is that they receive. And that takes us to Bühler Insights. It collects the data from different systems anonymously and analyses it in clusters.
Read more HERE.
The Global Miller
This blog is maintained by The Global Miller staff and is supported by the magazine Milling and Grain
which is published by Perendale Publishers Limited.
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