ABB Ability helps mix the perfect Ovaltine

Things aren’t meant to go wrong on press trips but in June 2018 an international delegation of journalists witnessed an automated guided vehicle have a wobble at Wander Ag’s plant in Neuenegg, Switzerland.

It seemed an inauspicious end to an otherwise fascinating tour around the plant where powders are made for Wander’s numerous Ovaltine-related products that include drinks, snacks and chocolate sandwich spread.

Within a couple of minutes, however, a member of the control room team was on the scene to rectify the situation and have the AGV go about its business as normal.

Far from being an embarrassing end to the tour, the swift intervention highlighted how the highly automated plant could remain active despite a minor malfunction.

According to Xavier Ducousso, head of manufacturing, the control room in Neuenegg oversees thousands of sensors and actuators that afford high levels of automation at the plant, from raw material handling to packaging finished goods for despatch.