IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i22p12341-d674998.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Business Process Re-Engineering to Digitalise Quality Control Checks for Reducing Physical Waste and Resource Use in a Food Company

Author

Listed:
  • Guillermo Garcia-Garcia

    (Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
    Department of Agrifood System Economics, Institute of Agricultural and Fisheries Research and Training (IFAPA), P.O. Box 2027, 18080 Granada, Spain)

  • Guy Coulthard

    (Richard Hochfeld Ltd., Orchard Place, Comp Road, Kent TN15 8LW, UK)

  • Sandeep Jagtap

    (Sustainable Manufacturing Systems Centre, School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing, Cranfield University, Building 50, Cranfield MK43 0AL, UK)

  • Mohamed Afy-Shararah

    (Sustainable Manufacturing Systems Centre, School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing, Cranfield University, Building 50, Cranfield MK43 0AL, UK)

  • John Patsavellas

    (Sustainable Manufacturing Systems Centre, School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing, Cranfield University, Building 50, Cranfield MK43 0AL, UK)

  • Konstantinos Salonitis

    (Sustainable Manufacturing Systems Centre, School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing, Cranfield University, Building 50, Cranfield MK43 0AL, UK)

Abstract

Quality control is an essential element of manufacturing operations that reduces product defects and provides excellent products of the right specifications to the end consumer. Industry 4.0 solutions, such as digitalisation, along with lean manufacturing tools, may support quality control operations. This paper presents a case study of a food company wherein quality control checks were optimised using business process re-engineering to reduce physical waste and resource usage. Following close analysis of the company’s pack-house operations, it was proposed to adopt elements of Industry 4.0 by digitalising the quality control process. Implementing such a solution led to a reduction in the time needed to complete recorded checks, an increase in the time the pack-house quality control team spends with packers on the production lines, and the facilitation of defects identification. It also ensured that the product met the customers’ specifications and reduced the likelihood of rejection at the customers’ depot. The new system also enabled monitoring of each line in real-time and gathering of additional information faster and more accurately. This article proves how employing lean principles in combination with Industry 4.0 technologies can lead to savings in resources and a reduction in waste, which leads to improvements in operational efficiency.

Suggested Citation

  • Guillermo Garcia-Garcia & Guy Coulthard & Sandeep Jagtap & Mohamed Afy-Shararah & John Patsavellas & Konstantinos Salonitis, 2021. "Business Process Re-Engineering to Digitalise Quality Control Checks for Reducing Physical Waste and Resource Use in a Food Company," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-14, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:22:p:12341-:d:674998
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/22/12341/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/22/12341/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Schniederjans, Dara G. & Curado, Carla & Khalajhedayati, Mehrnaz, 2020. "Supply chain digitisation trends: An integration of knowledge management," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 220(C).
    2. Sandeep Jagtap & Chintan Bhatt & Jaydeep Thik & Shahin Rahimifard, 2019. "Monitoring Potato Waste in Food Manufacturing Using Image Processing and Internet of Things Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-12, June.
    3. Emiliano Sironi, 2019. "Job satisfaction as a determinant of employees’ optimal well-being in an instrumental variable approach," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 53(4), pages 1721-1742, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Guillermo Garcia-Garcia & Yadvinder Singh & Sandeep Jagtap, 2022. "Optimising Changeover through Lean-Manufacturing Principles: A Case Study in a Food Factory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-20, July.
    2. Radosław Drozd & Radosław Wolniak & Jan Piwnik, 2023. "Systemic analysis of a manufacturing process based on a small scale bakery," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 57(2), pages 1421-1437, April.
    3. Geandra Alves Queiroz & Paulo Nocera Alves Junior & Isotilia Costa Melo, 2022. "Digitalization as an Enabler to SMEs Implementing Lean-Green? A Systematic Review through the Topic Modelling Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-21, October.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Govindan, Kannan & Kannan, Devika & Jørgensen, Thomas Ballegård & Nielsen, Tim Straarup, 2022. "Supply Chain 4.0 performance measurement: A systematic literature review, framework development, and empirical evidence," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    2. Nasser Saad Alkahtani & M. M. Sulphey & Kevin Delany & Anass Hamad Elneel Adow, 2021. "A Conceptual Examination about the Correlates of Psychological Capital (PsyCap) among the Saudi Arabian Workforce," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-16, March.
    3. Ghannouchi, Imen, 2023. "Examining the dynamic nexus between industry 4.0 technologies and sustainable economy: New insights from empirical evidence using GMM estimator across 20 OECD nations," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    4. Eleonora Di Maria & Valentina De Marchi & Ambra Galeazzo, 2022. "Industry 4.0 technologies and circular economy: The mediating role of supply chain integration," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(2), pages 619-632, February.
    5. Guoqing Zhao & Shaofeng Liu & Sebastian Elgueta & Juan Pablo Manzur & Carmen Lopez & Huilan Chen, 2022. "Knowledge Mobilization for Agri-Food Supply Chain Decisions: Identification of Knowledge Boundaries and Categorization of Boundary-Spanning Mechanisms," International Journal of Decision Support System Technology (IJDSST), IGI Global, vol. 15(2), pages 1-25, December.
    6. Yan Peng & Hanzi Chen & Tinghui Li, 2023. "The Impact of Digital Transformation on ESG: A Case Study of Chinese-Listed Companies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-21, October.
    7. Dion M. F. Frampton & Nawshad Haque & David I. Verrelli & Geoff J. Dumsday & Kim Jye Lee-Chang, 2021. "Process Design Guided by Life Cycle Assessment to Reduce Greenhouse Gas-Related Environmental Impacts of Food Processing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-14, June.
    8. Jae Hong Park & Phil Goo Kang & Eunseok Kim & Tae Woo Kim & Gahee Kim & Heejeong Seok & Jinwon Seo, 2021. "Introduction of IoT-Based Surrogate Parameters in the Ex-Post Countermeasure of Industrial Sectors in Integrated Permit Policy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-22, December.
    9. Guk-Jin Son & Dong-Hoon Kwak & Mi-Kyung Park & Young-Duk Kim & Hee-Chul Jung, 2021. "U-Net-Based Foreign Object Detection Method Using Effective Image Acquisition System: A Case of Almond and Green Onion Flake Food Process," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(24), pages 1-20, December.
    10. Sandeep Jagtap & George Skouteris & Vilendra Choudhari & Shahin Rahimifard & Linh Nguyen Khanh Duong, 2021. "An Internet of Things Approach for Water Efficiency: A Case Study of the Beverage Factory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-10, March.
    11. David G. Blanchflower & Alex Bryson, 2020. "Now Unions Increase Job Satisfaction and Well-being," NBER Working Papers 27720, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Yong Li & Fengyin Yang & Wei Zhang & Zhao Zhang, 2023. "The mediating role of job satisfaction in the stressor–strain relationship among Chinese government employees," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-8, December.
    13. Lan, Lan & Zhou, Zhifang, 2024. "Complementary or substitutive effects? The duality of digitalization and ESG on firm's innovation," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    14. Tan Ching Ng & Sie Yee Lau & Morteza Ghobakhloo & Masood Fathi & Meng Suan Liang, 2022. "The Application of Industry 4.0 Technological Constituents for Sustainable Manufacturing: A Content-Centric Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-21, April.
    15. Sharma, Rohit & Jain, Geetika & Paul, Justin, 2023. "Does the world need to change its vaccine distribution strategy for COVID-19?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    16. Katarzyna Kolasińska-Morawska & Łukasz Sułkowski & Piotr Buła & Marta Brzozowska & Paweł Morawski, 2022. "Smart Logistics—Sustainable Technological Innovations in Customer Service at the Last-Mile Stage: The Polish Perspective," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-33, September.
    17. Shih-Chia Chang & Hsu-Hwa Chang & Ming-Tsang Lu, 2021. "Evaluating Industry 4.0 Technology Application in SMEs: Using a Hybrid MCDM Approach," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-21, February.
    18. Giorgia Sammarco & Daniel Ruzza & Behzad Maleki Vishkaei & Pietro De Giovanni, 2022. "The Impact of Digital Technologies on Company Restoration Time Following the COVID-19 Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-17, November.
    19. Li, Lixu & Ye, Fei & Zhan, Yuanzhu & Kumar, Ajay & Schiavone, Francesco & Li, Yina, 2022. "Unraveling the performance puzzle of digitalization: Evidence from manufacturing firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 54-64.
    20. Lorena Espina-Romero & Jesús Guerrero-Alcedo, 2022. "Fields Touched by Digitalization: Analysis of Scientific Activity in Scopus," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-16, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:22:p:12341-:d:674998. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.