As part of its efforts to improve profitability, Caseafood recently focused on increasing control over its shrimp peeling and de-heading operation by implementing new weighing technology and associated software. An additional requirement was that cost and system complexity had to be kept low.

After a process of elimination, Marel was selected to provide the solutions.

The company is located in Cam Ranh, Khanh Hoa province, one of Vietnam’s best fishing regions. The plant, which produces a range of seafood products including black tiger shrimp, cuttlefish and squid, is part of the Seaprodex Danang Group.

M2200 reliability & traceability

Pealing and de-heading shrimp is a labour-intensive process. At Caseafoods, 128 operators work on four lines. The main objective of Marel’s new system is to monitor the capacity and yield of each individual operator, each line, and the operation as a whole. Any problems are immediately identified and pinpointed in real-time.

Each operator is given a unique ID tag. This is used to log onto an M2200 terminal by pressing the ID towards a reader located on the lower left corner of the terminal. The M2200 is networked via Ethernet, and is IP67 wash down resistant. A second M2200 terminal is used to log out of the production area.

An operator weighs whole shrimp in a tray on the M2200 in-weighing scale. Each tray is ID-registered on the M2200 and then placed on a conveyor and transported to an operator for processing.

After the shrimp has been peeled, or de-headed, the station number is placed in the tray along with the tray ID, and the tray conveyed to an M2200 out-weighing scale. The tray ID is registered on the M2200 weighing indicator and the station number entered. Note: the same scale may be used as both an in- and out-weighing scale.

MPS registrations and archiving
All relevant information has now been entered and stored in the powerful MPS database: weight of whole shrimp, weight of peeled or de-headed shrimp for each operator on the line, and the working time for individual workers.

Now, the total amount of shrimp per operator can be displayed along with yield and throughput. The MPS software also shares information with a variety of other software systems, for example accounting packages for calculating wages or generating invoices. Remote service via a modem or internet is provided for maintenance.

Special software needs
A customized reporting package was specially designed and integrated into MS Excel for Caseafoods. The solution eliminated the paperwork previously needed for calculating bonus and wages for line operators, and reports can now be shared within the organization or emailed, for example to the head office.

Marel’s unique MPS software and advanced weighing technology provided Caseafoods with a tailor-implemented system to monitor its shrimp peeling and de-heading operation. The system saves raw material by increasing yield, while simultaneously enabling Caseafood management to optimise throughput––the best of both worlds––and implement the precise solution for their needs.