Nestlé Qingdao Co., Ltd. is one of the core production bases for Nestlé Group in China and the sole facility for liquid dairy and soluble coffee in the Greater China Region. As an industry pioneer, the factory integrates Industrie 4.0 technologies to meet personalized consumer demands and strict food safety standards. Powered by the deep convergence of AI algorithms and OT, it successfully transitioned to a “Smart & Sustainable Factory”.
Facing the challenges of rising energy costs, increasing sensory requirements of consumer, and complex equipment maintenance, Nestlé Qingdao implemented a comprehensive transformation plan centered on “Smart Interconnection and Green Development”. Through the deployment of an all-encompassing digital architecture, the factory achieved full digitalization from energy management to logistics. The Industrie 4.0 solution includes:
To approach high energy costs and inefficiencies in traditional control, an AI-based “Industrial Service Control Tower” was established. Utilizing smart sensors and pressure model algorithms to autonomously optimize pump and fan parameters, the system ensures cooling towers operate at optimal condensing pressure. This reduced annual electricity consumption by 62,000 kWh (10%).
To address high sensory requirements and the instability of manual control in coffee production, an Intelligent Process Control (AiPC) system was introduced in evaporator and spray tower processes. Based on real-time data models for dynamic parameter adjustment, the system improved finished product moisture stability by 50% and generated 1 million RMB in annual economic benefits.
To handle the complexity of maintaining 1,900 devices, a predictive management system was developed using wireless vibration/temperature sensors and AI spectrum analysis technology. It enables precise identification of potential failures, reducing unplanned downtime risks and cutting annual maintenance costs by over 200,000 RMB.
To tackle safety supervision challenges for nearly 400 employees and contractors, a digital management platform featuring AI computer vision was deployed. By replacing traditional manual inspections with real-time behavior recognition, the system increased safety anomaly reporting participation from 20% to 100% and reduced the recordable injury rate by 100%.
