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Emydex at the MeatUP Expo, UK, Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire

MeatUP UK

Emydex have chosen MEATUP to show the UK meat Industry the latest developments to our proven factory production control system.

MEATUP is the brand new bi-annual show for the UK meat industry which takes place at the Stoneleigh Park complex in Warwickshire over the two days of 21st and 22nd June 2011.

Emydex will show our software platform operating on Industrial touch screen terminals and hand held wireless scanners.

As well as our proven Kill Line management, Carcass Management, Yield Control, Recipe Control, Packing Management, Quality Control, Warehouse Control and Dispatch management, Emydex will be showing our latest developments;

Kill Line Payments An extension to our existing Kill line systems enabling a self contained payment system capable of producing remittance advice notes and managing associated costs involved with the slaughterhouse.

eTransfers

An Emydex development enabling electronic communication between plants using standard email as the delivery mechanism.

Catering Butchery Packing Management

An extension to our existing Packing Management Module designed for users who regularly ship mixed boxes of products. This functionality also extends our existing box level traceability system to pack level traceability.

Control of external Cold Store Stock

Used in conjunction with our Warehouse Management Module and eTransfers this module extension delivers full box level accountability and traceability for stock stored in, and dispatched from external cold stores.

Cold Store Management

Developed for use by the cold store themselves this configuration of the Emydex system fully supports the activities of an independent cold store. Intake from multiple clients, stock put away and location control, stock movement and stock transfer, stock picking to orders and pallet rebuilding, cross docking, container loading, weighbridge control, vehicle control. Traceability to box level capability. Individual clients can access their own stock availability and transactions via web client.

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New eTransfers simplifies data exchange between 3rd party sites

eTransfers, a new feature within Emydex’s Warehouse Management module is a new development that gives food processing plants total control over stock transfers between sites, whether inter-company or 3rd party sites such as Cold Storage facilities.

The business benefits of eTransfers include near real-time communications, guaranteed delivery, and box level traceability of stocks once put-away in 3rd party locations, a feature most legacy WMS systems are incapable of delivering.

eTransfers uses email as its transport mechanism. Once received, emails are logged into the recipient Emydex system automatically for processing. “We chose to use email for three reasons” said James Grennan, Technical Director with Emydex “first, email is freely available to everyone – everyone has email. Second, email guarantees delivery in that if the recipient is offline, the email exchange will buffer the message and keep trying to resend until the message is finally delivered. Third, email offers single to multiple-point communications capabilities. One email message can be sent once to multiple locations or parties simultaneously” he added. This all means there is a lesser chance of failure to deliver electronic messages than when using other transport mechanisms.

All messages to be exported and imported between Emydex systems are in the form of structured XML using standard messaging protocols. The types of electronic messages transferred between sites includes Advanced Shipping Notices (ASNs), Shipment Receipt Notices, Shipment Dispatch Requests/Notices, Inventory Level Requests/Notices, Shipment Status Requests/Notices and Inventory Update Notices. A shipment Dispatch Notice for example contains details such as shipment date, time, no pallets, no boxes etc.

This is Emydex’s version of EDI, only better, using which customers can exchange data with 3rd party systems in a standard secure and reliable way. Messages can be encrypted and compressed if required.

The new eTransfers system was successfully in the lead up to Christmas with Moy Park Poultry in Ballymena, and the Interfrigo Cold Storage facility in Antrim, both Emydex customers. In the few weeks before Christmas an enormous volume of Turkeys were shipped out by Moy Park many of which were bound for Interfrigo. Using the eTransfers feature Moy Park are able to dispatch and trace shipments into and out of Interfrigo seamlessly. On the Interfrigo side, once received, goods were verified, put-away picked and dispatched all via Emydex, with the ability to break-down and rebuild pallets to fulfil sales orders as required. The Interfrigo Emydex system also includes a web-portal to allow customers real-time access to their stocks within Interfrigo.
For more information on the Emydex Technology systems click here or contact Emydex on +353 1 8855990

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Kepak gets the Emydex Treatment

kepak-frozen-division-banner
Emydex technology was formed over six years ago with the aim of designing and developing data capture and production management software for the food industry based on open technologies. Emydex’s founders spotted a gap in the market place, as at that time the majority of available systems were unreliable, out-dated and tied to specific hardware suppliers.

Roll on six years and today Emydex software is in daily operational usage in over 30 plants owned by some of the largest single and multi-site food processors in Ireland and the UK, such as Dawn Meats, Dunbia the Kepak Group and O’Kane poultry.

Greater Control

Kepak’s journey with Emydex began in 2007. “Previous to Emydex, we had a number of separate in-house systems that weren’t integrated, so it was difficult to gain a true real time view of production. The Emydex platform gives us greater control of our production, better visibility of data, and a better understanding of the data that is critical to drive our business including Yields and Traceability,” says Jim O’Neill, group IT manager with the Kepak Group.

Today Emydex is running end to end in Kepak’s beef slaughter and processing plants in Clonee, Kilbeggan, Hacketstown, Athleague, Cork and Ballymahon. Emydex’s Lamb kill lines are scheduled to go live in Kepak’s Hacketstown and Athleague plants over the next few weeks. “We’re currently working on a project to complete our last Emydex project in Ireland, Cork Retail. We’ll also be looking at our Wakefield plant in the UK, and hope to have the implementation well advanced by year end,” says Jim O’Neill.

“What’s different about Emydex is you’re working with people who understand the demands of the food industry very well. Sometimes end users don’t always know what they want, Emydex have the ability to visualise an idea, without knowing the final solution, and see it through to completion” Industry knowledge coupled with a flexible approach to development allows for the delivery of solutions that adapt to suit customer business processes rather than the other way around. Jim O’Neill continues: “Our previous production management system was developed in-house. For Emydex to deliver a system to Kepak that offers the same level of flexibility, whilst at the same time being a totally reliable and robust solution, is testimony to how well Emydex software has been developed and deployed.”

Unique Feature

One of the unique features of the Emydex system is the Carcass management module. This incorporates a Carcass Splitting engine used to break down and track quarters, and maintain stock in terms of derived weights. “Carcass management gives customers the ability to maintain accurate carcass stocks from time of kill to through boning and dispatch,” Jim O’Neill points out.

Another big win for Kepak was the introduction of a Work Order control process that sits over the whole production process.“Production Work orders are generated in Emydex and issued to the floor so that operators can no longer process without an order on system – a big gain for us,” he explains. The notion of incorporating Work Order control to manage production is an optional feature of the system.

Warehouse Management

“Emydex’s Warehouse management system is the single biggest bonus to Kepak. We are a fast moving business with a high volume of stock movements. With Emydex we now have complete warehouse control and real time stocks down to scan level, without having to compromise on functionality,” adds O’Neill. This functionality includes real time validation at point of scanning an order, where the system warns operators of any discrepancies that arise during order picking, allowing them to take corrective action.

The Kepak group IT manager concludes: “The best way to sum up Kepak’s experience with Emydex is to say that Kepak have experienced operators and supervisors who are 20 years with the company, who with 15 minutes of training are not only competently using the Emydex system every day, but more importantly openly acknowledge how essential and valuable the Emydex system is in assisting them with their day to day tasks.”

Food and drink business
Food & Drink Business Europe, August/September 2010

For more information on the Emydex system click here or contact Emydex on +353 1 8855990

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Foodex Expo 2010

Foodex

Emydex technology exhibited our software at the Foodex trade show which took place at the NEC Birmingham from 21-24 March 2010.

The Emydex stand was located in the Meatex hall where both James Grennan, Emydex CTO and Peter Kettell, Emydex UK Sales Manager offered demonstrations of the Emydex software platform operating on PCs, Industrial touch-screen terminals, scales, indicators and hand-held wireless scanners. The software suite on demonstration included Kill line and payments, carcass management, packing, warehouse & dispatch and quality management.

Emydex used Foodex 2010 as a platform to launch and showcase three new exciting additional modules to the platform’s software suite that are:

Quality Management System

A complete re-write of our existing QMS, the new QC system includes a workflow application, allowing users to build ad-hoc quality control surveys using a process builder. The workflow application then creates the specific QC surveys for QC inspectors to carry out a myriad of QC surveys throughout meat processing plants using hand-held wireless scanners

Recipe System

Applicable to meat processors with added-value operations, the recipe module will step-by-step, instruct food operators as to the ingredients, weights and cooking instructions required to create finished goods. The system will also verify actual weights measured in real-time to ensure the correct weights have been applied, and allows for full traceability of all constituent parts of the finished product.

Web-based (Thin) Client

In line with Emydex’s company mission that is to be at the fore-front of leading edge technology, Emydex will demonstrate a new web-based thin client built using Microsoft’s new Silverlight development platform for the web. This thin client version of the DMS will give our customers internal and external access to iWMAS via a web browser without the need for software installs which is ideally suited for remote reporting and data transfer.

Emydex at Foodex

Emydex Software on display at Foodex

Visitors to the Emydex stand at Foodex 2010 / Emydex software running on a range of hardware independent devices at the Foodex show.

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Dunbia (Preston) complete end-to-end Emydex roll-out in 8 weeks

The Dunbia Group, headquartered in Dungannon, Northern Ireland, recently completed installation of an entire Emydex iWAMS solution at their Retail plant in Preston, England. Dunbia (Preston) is a modern processing facility comprising a beef and lamb abattoir and de-boning facility, and a separate retail packing operation.

The facility has the capacity to process up to 1,500 cattle, 10,000 lambs and 600 tonnes of retail packed product per week. Dunbia originally installed the iWAMS Warehouse Management System module in their Preston plant two and a half years ago in September 2007.

This recent upgrade project covered the entire facility end-to-end from stock intake, to production, packing, yields & costings, warehousing and dispatch, and incorporated Sales Order and Purchase order processing.

“This latest project took just eight weeks to complete from start to finish”, said Jay Adams, IT Service Delivery Manager in Dunbia (Preston).

“The project ran relatively smoothly when you consider the facility never had a transactional system running before, meaning we had to train all our staff over the two months before the system went live. Emydex also provided two weeks on-site support post go-live, which was a great reassurance in case anything went wrong, which it didn’t.”

“In terms of benefits, the system gave Dunbia (Preston) immediate control over systems and reporting. Using the Emydex Data Management System, back office staff had instantaneous access to far more accurate reporting of efficiencies, yields and giveaways and operator performance” Said Adams.

The Emydex software system roll-out coincided with a parallel roll-out of new plant hardware including Marel Terminals, and Avery Scales. This included integration to high-value processing lines incorporating fully automated weighing and box level labelling.

“Emydex’s ‘open architecture’ means it can integrate with any third party hardware, and as all the integration protocols had been written before, integrating was a breeze. Hardware independence is one of Emydex’s key selling points”, said Adams. “We’re not tied down to a narrow choice of hardware; we can pick and choose the hardware configuration that best suits our requirements”.

Another key selling point with Emydex is the flexibility offered within the software itself.

“We rolled out the standard flavour of the iWAMS Retail Solution initially, but over time we have made changes to the system in order to suit the specific ways we work in Dunbia (Preston), and the individual demands of our customers. Its fine to talk about “group standards”, but at the end of the day every facility will have differing requirements whether it’s down to the physical layout of the plant that doesn’t facilitate a ‘standard’ transaction flow, or down to the individual reporting requirements of a MD. So too, every customer or supermarket chain will have different requirements, so your systems have to have the ability to adapt to deliver these changes easily and quickly. That’s what we have now with Emydex.”

About Dunbia

Dunbia is one of Europe’s leading suppliers of beef and lamb products for the national and international retail, commercial and foodservice markets. Formerly known as Dungannon Meats, the group is headquartered in Granville, near Dungannon, Northern Ireland. Dunbia operates from ten sites in Northern Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland.. Out of the total workforce of nearly 3000, some 800 are employed in Northern Ireland. Dunbia supply international markets and UK supermarket chains, including Sainsbury’s, Asda, Iceland and The Co-operative. The firm also includes the former Rose County Foods site in Sawley, Lancashire, and the former Oriel Jones and Son facility in Llanybydder, Wales.
For more information on the Emydex kill line system click here or contact Emydex on +353 1 8855990

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Dawn Pork & Bacon Weigh Bridge system goes live

Dawn Pork & Bacon

Dawn Pork & Bacon, Waterford, Ireland recently upgraded to the latest version of the Emydex iWAMS platform, version 3.2, giving Dawn P&B enhanced functionality around dynamic reporting and data grids, in addition to much improved system processing speeds. A new automatic scanning system introduced allows boxes to be scanned into stock automatically improving productivity at the plant.

As part of the upgrade Dawn also switched over from use of their existing Sales Order processing system to the Emydex SO system, and now have much greater visibility of their Yields through delivery of a full set of Yield reports specifically customised for Dawn Pork & Bacon’s requirements. In tandem with this upgrade, Emydex also developed a new Weighbridge system for Dawn to manage truck deliveries to the site. Using the new Weighbridge system Dawn can verify dispatch weights against weights at the bridge, eliminating potentially costly mistakes.

Commenting on the upgrade project, Alan Doocey, IT project manager with Dawn Pork & Bacon said

“we’re now a long way from where we were a few years ago when we were running on a previous system that was outdated, expensive to run and not receptive to making changes to suit our changing business. We chose to replace Multiflex with the Emydex system for its ease of use, flexibility to make system changes, and integrate with any type of hardware or third party systems. I’m extremely pleased we made that decision”.
For more information on the Emydex kill line system click here or contact Emydex on +353 1 8855990

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