CASE STUDY
AriZona Beverage
MES & Batching System for High-Volume Production
Project Overview
The Protagonist
AriZona Beverages is the company behind AriZona Iced Tea, America’s best-selling and most broadly distributed iced tea brand.
When AriZona Beverages opened a state-of-the-art 621,000 square-foot manufacturing facility, it required a world-class automation system that could maximize production and prioritize sustainability. The new facility features six production lines and will produce more than 60 million cases of the company’s wide variety of iced-tea products annually.
The Story
In the Beginning...
The Vertech team was tasked with delivering a world-class automation system for high-volume can and bottle production. AriZona Beverages needed an MES and batching system to maximize production of a wide variety of high-demand products and convert manufacturing data into actionable analytics.
The Plot Thickens
The scope of services Vertech delivered as part of this project spanned multiple areas, including the following:
- SAP integration with MES for production scheduling
- Finished goods production reporting
- Batch control
- Associated PLC programming
- OEE and downtime tracking
- Overall system commissioning
One of the biggest challenges Vertech faced was creating the custom ISA-88-based batch solution using Inductive Automation’s Ignition platform rather than dedicated batch software. But thanks to the flexibility of Ignition, Vertech provided a solution that scales with production needs by automatically controlling bulk additions of raw materials while operators perform manual additions.
The Happy Ending
This project resulted in a best-in-class batch control system that interacts with every level of automation, from device control to the ERP. With new and improved levels of control, AriZona Beverages now has complete visibility into its business and production process, allowing the new facility to produce high-quality, consistent products more quickly and easily than what was previously possible. With all this data now at their fingertips, operators can look at any line over any length of time and get site overviews, equipment overviews, and production history and can use this information to identify areas of continuous improvement.
This entire project was performed using Inductive Automation’s Ignition platform and Sepasoft’s OEE Downtime module. The customer specifically requested that Ignition be used for MES, batch control, and process control, and that these systems interface with its SAP ERP system for production tracking and business traceability. Ignition made it possible to design an easily adaptable system according to industry standards for ultimate flexibility while eliminating unnecessary software licensing costs. The Sepasoft OEE module was significant because it simplified the integration of business data within the ISA-88 batch system.
At the heart of AriZona Beverages’ brand is offering its unique 23-ounce cans to consumers for 99 cents. Maintaining the sustainability of this was just as important as production volume. Capturing production metrics and converting the information into digestible data makes it possible for the company to continue offering its customers popular products, using quality ingredients, presented in its uniquely designed packaging, at an affordable price.
This project was awarded Inductive Automation’s ICC 2020 Firebrand Award.
Technology Used
ISA-88 Batch Control
- Inductive Automation Ignition 8.0
- Ignition Perspective Mobile Screens
- Sepasoft OEE Module
Controls & Automation
- Rockwell Automation ControlLogix PLCs
- Rockwell Automation CompactLogix PLCs
- Rockwell Automation 1734 POINT™ I/O Modules
- IFM Efector AS-Interface Gateways
- Alfa Laval V50 and V70 ThinkTop Valve-Top Control Units
- Micromotion Coriolis Flow Meters
- Gateway Redundancy
- PowerFlex 525 Drives
“Since the start of the project, we’ve built this as a centerpiece for best-in-class. Vertech provided us with best-in-class software that integrated well within the whole manufacturing facility.”
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