Britvic achieves multi-million canning capacity increase through line balancing optimization

19 Mar 2024 --- Manufacturing software provider Line View Solutions has “unlocked” £5.4 million (US$6.8 million) to develop increased capacity at Britvic’s factory in Rugby, UK, through line balancing optimization (LBO).

Line balancing is a production strategy that balances operator and machine time to match the production rate with assembly time. Line View worked with Britvic to complete a comprehensive LBO training project over two weeks.

The program achieved an immediate capacity increase of £2.9 million (US$3.6 million) and revealed a further £2.5 million (US$3.1 million) in capacity gains through enhanced control optimization.

“We’re delighted to have the opportunity to collaborate with the Britvic team to deliver both immediate and sustainable results for its production lines ahead of increasing market demands this summer,” says Miguel Ferreira, a representative from Line View.

“Many companies find themselves sitting on a goldmine of opportunity but struggle to transition from theory to practice. A quick but comprehensive training program is often needed to tap into significant capacity gains.”

“Our hope is that by demonstrating the success of our partnership with Britvic, we can encourage others in the food and beverage sector to consider how LBO can unlock efficiencies, particularly as the sector is undergoing considerable pressures due to inflation, labor shortages and supply chain challenges.”

Line View helped the Britvic controls engineering team to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to identify and implement LBO throughout the business.

Fulfilling summer demand
Line View’s industry experts collaborated with Britvic to implement practical improvements and enable the lines to fulfill market demand for summer can volume.

The tailored LBO training equipped eight Britvic team members with necessary skills. This focus included improving control, accumulation, speed, start-up and run-out times across can lines, enabling the team to identify and implement LBO opportunities across the entire organization.

As a result, they are now positioned to unlock additional capacity increases across multiple lines while also fostering sustained production efficiency through a commitment to continuous improvement.

“We’ve unlocked significant capacity for our plant and reduced the impact of minor stoppages on our production lines,” says Paramjeet Pahdi, Rugby site director at Britvic.

“Most importantly, we’ve equipped our people to be able to go hunt down these opportunities throughout our business. Line View delivered an engaging course and ensured we have full understanding and confidence to take ownership of this process moving forward.”

Edited by Louis Gore-Langton

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