A decade after a Canadian firm developed a process to recover high-quality protein from a byproduct of vegetable-oil extraction, regulatory obstacles to commercialization have been overcome.
Perhaps our industry’s time and money would be better spent on lean manufacturing, food safety and nutritional enhancements and less on line changeovers, special in-store displays and rainbow pallets.
Today, savvy processors employ remote equipment and machine conditioning diagnostics, special supplier partnerships, heat measurement, vibration analysis, predictive maintenance tools, placement of parts in kits for routine maintenance and vendor-managed inventories to boost spare parts efficiency and management.
For some engineers, a former employer’s downsizing can be liberating,
allowing specialized skills to combine with entrepreneurial spirit for
new technology development.