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For almost 20 years, ICS Automation AG has been servicing various production plants worldwide for the manufacture of chocolate. ICS controls the process from the intake of the cocoa bean to the loading of the moulding equipment, which finally gives the chocolate the desired form.

• loading and unloading stations
• roasting plants
• tank storage systems
• mass lines
• dosing and mixing systems
• manual additions with barcode scanners
• pumping and weighing stations
• rinsing and pigging systems
• iIntegration of various third-party machines
• quality controls, Q-systems
• batch reporting
• advanced data evaluation

Year after year, various plants of that customer may be equipped and automated with an ICS process control system. A special highlight started in 2016 and included a complete control system replacement for the Lindt plant in Kilchberg, Zurich. The project was at periods worked on by 15 project engineers in parallel and implemented within one year. In addition to the replacement of the PLC controls, various new operator stations were installed and a process control system was introduced. A special feature was the depth of the integration into the ERP, which was a big challenge here. The one-year engineering phase was followed by the on-site modification, which was carried out within a few days and finished on schedule.

The requirements for production companies are continuously increasing. One of the main requirements is the traceability of production processes to ensure food safety. The systematic division of the production process into individual process lines and the subdivision into defined production quantities (batches) form the basis for such traceability. Today's systems offer further possibilities and an almost complete reporting of the production process.

• traceability through the production process
• material and batch handling
• labelling of semi-finished and finished products
• tank farm management
• container handling
• warehouse management
• production recipes and order handling
• reporting and trend curves
• monitoring of operator interactions (audit trail)
• tracing of each sensor and actuator (historian)

Lindt und Sprüngli France, with the plant in Oloron, faces a special challenge. The steadily growing plant is constantly being expanded and extended with new production lines. The individual production lines are all controlled by autonomous control systems and therefore represent a great challenge, especially for maintenance and operators. Different control types, various bus systems as well as the diverse user interfaces are just a few examples of the high variance. Thanks to the positive reputation in the food industry, ICS Automation AG was finally given the opportunity to help the customer and equip his plant with an ICS process control system. This allows the customer to integrate the existing control technology and processes despite complete modernization and standardization of the operating systems. Thanks to the new user interface, the customer-specific dialogs and reports as well as the uniform PLC programming, he is now perfectly prepared for further expansions.

Retrofit projects often challenge both the operators and the engineers. Since the maintenance and modification windows are usually minimal, proper preparation for commissioning is essential. ICS has gained a lot of experience in various retrofit projects and, thanks to its team size, has the necessary resources to handle even larger retrofit projects. Whether Siemens S5, S7 or Rockwell, we have the necessary know-how to support you accordingly and guarantee a quick and careful retrofit phase with a successful return to production. Thanks to our 24/7 support, you will also receive all-round assistance after the conversion phase in order to operate the systems with maximum efficiency. Our activities include:

• on-site function analysis
• selection of successor components
• dimensioning for the replacement of drive and gearbox
• development of a safety concept together with the customer
• organization of modification and commissioning of control cabinets, sensors and control system
• connection to higher-level systems
• software and hardware engineering
• control cabinet construction
• time optimized mechanical and electrical conversion
• commissioning and handover to production after a few days
• 24/7 support thanks to remote access

The controls and electromechanical equipment of a bakery line, consisting of a pre-proofer, proofer and oven, at Jowa are obsolete and are to be replaced. The obsolete components not only represent a risk to production, they are also becoming more expensive and more difficult to procure every year. This problem also forms the basis for the decision in this retrofit project and, thanks to many years of cooperation, once again ends up as an extremely successful project. Together with the operators on site, functions are recorded, wishes and new requirements are specified and finally implemented in the new software. The existing hardware is evaluated and replaced where necessary. Finally, a lean commissioning, a start of production on schedule and a targeted operator training follow. Thanks to remote access, the customer now knows he is in good hands and is supported around the clock by experts from ICS.

Together with MFL Faserzement GmbH, we work on fiber cement projects worldwide. Typical for FC plants are the high number of actuators and sensors, the large drives in the raw material preparation, the low cycle times despite large loads as well as maximum plant efficiency. The scope of the plant, the commissioning time as well as the conditions on site are a great challenge for our engineers. Thanks to well-known Swiss values such as quality, efficiency and reliability, we are still able to successfully compete with international competitors and convince with industry leading cycle times.

• control and operating concept for plants with several thousand actuators and sensors
• design of servo and frequency converters up to 560kW
• hardware engineering (in some cases over 80 cabinet panels)
• cabinet manufacturing with worldwide delivery (UL certification)
• software engineering for raw material / cement preparation (refiner control for cellulose, ball mills for silica, cement mixer, etc.)
• software engineering for board machine (thickness control, cutting tables with servo drive)
• software engineering for stacking and transport systems (with servo drive up to 75kW)
• software engineering for high pressure press (synchronous control, press control with up to 16'000 tons press force)
• operating and visualization concept (with touch panel, PC stations or in combination)
• installation supervision on site
• commissioning, production start-up and operator training (usually several months)

Fiber cement products are widely used especially in humid regions like the Eastern countries, South America or in Eastern Europe. Fiber cement panels are robust, easy to work with and have a long service life. One of the largest projects we have realized was for a customer from Thailand, where four complete process lines were implemented. For each process line, the engineering effort took one man-year and included hardware as well as software engineering for process and visualization. The commissioning period extends over several months and is carried out directly on site. After six weeks of IO testing, the plant starts operation and is optimized step by step to its performance limits. One of the four plants was also equipped with a high-pressure press, which presses water out of the board after production with a pressing force of 16,000 tons. This increases the density and strength of the plate and should meet higher demands after autoclaving. Along the whole line, various PC stations and touch panels are installed to monitor the line, start production recipes and operate the process.