Arand new beverage production facility built on a greenfield site in myanmar has demonstrated the importance of training in achieving a fast and effective line start-up.
23 September 2015
23/09/2015
Key to the project was an innovative GreenfieldCompetence Development Programme created by the Sidel Services™business unit. The programme enabled the provision oftraining at each phase of the equipment installation, including inthe period prior to equipment delivery, to ensure the start-upcould meet the challenging timeframe of the project in what is arapidly developing country.
The new facility, created specifically for the production ofsoft drinks, features a complete production line from Sidel, theleading global provider of PET solutions for liquid packaging. Itincludes a Sidel SBO20 blower, a Sidel Matrix™ filler SF 300 FM, aSidel Matrix Combi and a Sidel Rollquattro Evolutionlabeller. That line is now capable of producing threedifferent formats of carbonated drinks - 425ml, 500ml, and 1,250ml- at speeds of up to 45,000 bottles per hour (bph) for single-serveand 36,000 bph for multi-serve products.
Accelerated timeline
Production was scheduled to target Myanmar's peak hot seasonduring the months of March to June 2014, to begin a significantmarketing campaign of the beverage products. To do sorequired an expansion of local production via an acceleratedtimeline for the project. Construction of the new productionline was completed by Sidel within a very fast schedule of only 17weeks. The company's delivery of the equipment to Myanmar wasequally swift and faultless, taking only eight weeks. The newline was then commissioned and the first saleable bottle wasvalidated at the beginning of March, 2014. As a result, thefacility is now producing and distributing products in allformats.
Innovative approach to training to meet specificchallenges
Myanmar is opening up to the world through structural reform andis a rapidly evolving country. Growth in Myanmar's grossdomestic product (GDP) figure for the fiscal year 2014 is estimatedat 7.7%.[1] This expansion of the economy is expectedto increase, with forecasts of 8.3% for 2015 and similar for 2016.This brings challenges in terms of developing the country's humanresources to provide the skills necessary to sustain thisgrowth. To achieve the technical capabilities required fromthe local workforce and given the short timescales involved in theproject, Sidel and the facility owners determined to adopt atotally new approach which involved providing customised trainingprogrammes at different phases of the installation of equipment -starting even before the line was delivered. This radicalapproach was called a 'Greenfield Competence Development Audit'because, at the start and end of each training session, thetechnical skills and competences of each trainee is assessed byauditors. Consequently, the Sidel Services training team isthen able to adapt the following programme to the level reached bythe group as a whole.
Sidel's participation in the Myanmar trainingprocess began with the recruitment of employees for technical andoperational roles, for which the company provided practical andtheoretical questionnaires that proved invaluable in the search forsuitable candidates. The first stage of training of thosechosen, entitled 'Equipment Fundamentals' and undertaken longbefore the Sidel equipment was available on site, involved 24Myanmar employees spending a month training in India. Whenthis stage had been completed and operators had been given a basicknowledge and understanding of Sidel machinery, auditors from Sidelattended the training in order to evaluate the levels reached bythe trainees. The following programme was called 'AdvancedOperation and Advanced Training Maintenance' and was given at thesite in Myanmar following commissioning of the line. Thefinal phase of training - the 'Final Competence Audit' - took placeafter approximately five months of production. In all, 73 days oftuition were delivered by Sidel's trainers over the course of 12months to ensure the required level of competence is met. During the sessions, Sidel trainers established a strong rapportwith the trainees by building up an atmosphere of mutual trust andunderstanding.
Industry benchmark
Sidel delivered a training solution that met the customer'sdifferent needs in project coordination, manufacturing and overalloperation. The project demonstrated how the approach ofSidel's Greenfield Competence Development Audit can be customisedto meet the individual demands of different beverage producers,with the audit being described as "…a benchmark in theindustry". Assessing an operating team's skills withcompetence audits clearly reveals performance levels and anyshortfalls in requirements. If a team is found lacking in anyway, then further training and subsequent assessment sessions canbe organised to ensure that every team is operating as proficientlyas possible at all times.
Hari Purnomo, Regional Commercial Director for Thailand, Myanmarand Cambodia at Sidel, comments - "This was a challenging projectwhich required an innovative approach to training. It was the firstcomplete Greenfield Competence Development Audit delivered by theSidel training team. The customised training programmesdeveloped for the different phases, with assessment of theresulting competences and technical skills at each stage, enabled aquick vertical start-up and sustainable production to beachieved."
Training can add value throughout a beverage production operation,from achieving a fast line start-up to faster detection ofpotential issues, minimising downtime, improved product quality,greater efficiencies and more.
The objective of Sidel's training programmes is to enablecustomers to become experts on their own production lines. Practical training is therefore key, with the potential to train onsite in the customer's own production environment, at one ofSidel's seven dedicated Technical Training Centres located aroundthe world or a combination of both.
Training is part of the Sidel Services™ portfolio, which alsoincludes Maintenance, Line Improvement, Spare Parts &Logistics, Line Conversions & Moulds, and Packaging. Further information on training, including a copy of the new 2015Sidel Technical Training Catalogue, is available at sidel.com/training.
