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SMA Member: The Turmeric Co’s journey to digitisation with Industry 4.0

Background 

The Turmeric Co. is taking the health drinks market by storm. The brain-child of international footballer, Thomas Robson-Kanu, the company is set for rapid growth over the next three years.  

The Turmeric Co.’s shots have been developed over 15 years and are endorsed by leading nutritionists. The range of shots include natural ingredients that can increase antioxidants in the blood, boost energy levels, and support immunity and wellbeing.  

There are big plans ahead with up to 10 fresh products driving further innovation into the functional beverage category, scheduled to be released over the next 24 months, with their sights set on internationalisation into both North America and Europe. 

Industry 4.0 will be key to unlocking whole new levels of productivity to produce a broader range of shots at higher quantities, while maintaining the same high quality that customers have come to expect.  

Assessment and Gap Analysis 

When our ACMI 4.0 team went to assess their performance, The Turmeric Co.’s senior team was focusing on the following KPIs:

  • Asset and equipment efficiency
  • Workforce efficiency
  • Inventory efficiency
  • Product quality
  • Planning and scheduling effectiveness 

To assess their readiness for Industry 4.0 our team benchmarked their performance against industry best practice.  

The Turmeric Co. performed particularly well for its horizontal integration, enterprise intelligence, and facility automation and intelligence. 

There’s a real appetite to embrace new technologies, but ideas and plans need to be formalised. The Turmeric Co. needs to set clear priorities for which systems, processes, and machinery to adopt and in which order. This will make integration smoother and encourage the team to get into the habit of seeking out continuous improvement in all parts of the business.  

Prioritisation 

Based on their priorities and outcomes of the assessment, our ACMI team has advised The Turmeric Co. to focus on the following areas to get the most out of Industry 4.0: 

  • Vertical Integration – this was the top priority our team highlighted. The team needs to put standard operating procedures in place, and ensure production and performance data is easily accessible across the company.
  • Shop Floor Intelligence – there is a high level of automation within the facility. To make the most of this, the team can begin to automate alerts so staff about deviations in machinery performance. Using digital dashboards that clearly display performance data will also help staff anticipate any problems in production, reducing the chances of delays and maintaining higher productivity levels. 
  • Leadership Competency – the senior management team has been encouraged to develop their knowledge and understanding of Industry 4.0 technologies and how they could be used for the most effect in their operations. There’s already an openness to new ideas, but this added expertise would support strategic planning and implementation.
  • Strategy and Governance – The Turmeric Co. has the intent to develop a Factory of the Future. To bring it to life, the senior team needs to formalise plans and ideas so they can upskill their staff, prioritise the appropriate technologies to adopt, and prepare their operations to integrate new systems, processes and machinery with minimal disruption.
  • Inter and Intra company collaboration – regular meetings are held among teams and with external partners like suppliers and customers. Recalibrating so that teams are formed across business functions for each project will improve communication. Digital tools and platforms can also support communication along the supply chain and facilitate collaboration so that targets are successfully achieved at a faster rate.
Action Plan 

Our team has proposed some next steps that The Turmeric Co. should prioritise to support their digitalisation.  

Proposed Solutions: 
  • A Manufacturing Execution System (MES) would help to track and document the transformation of raw materials to finished goods. This would move more processes online like planning and scheduling of works, digitise work orders, standardise working procedures, and provide more accurate performance monitoring. This would support vertical integration within the company and enhance the amount of shopfloor intelligence that The Turmeric Co. gathers and analyses.
  • Develop a matrix to identify skills gaps and enable a proactive approach to skills development so staff can maintain equipment and optimise new technologies.
  • Implement a single system to monitor and manage performance across the company to improve vertical integration and inter- / intra- company
  • Develop a five-year strategy to implement:
  • One piece flow – this would reduce the amount of time products are left ‘in progress’, and allow for continuous production.
  • Insourcing – developing in-house skills so The Turmeric Co. can manage more projects independently while keeping more control over efficiency and quality con
  • Consolidate the use of MES and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software to improve communication within the business and along supply chains.
Next Steps 

The Turmeric Co. is considering applying for a grant from the ACMI 4.0 programme towards the purchase of new software and machinery that can automate production and enhance communication across teams and along the supply chain. 

To find out more about the programme, visit: www.sma-uk.co.uk/acmi-4-0