Case study
Implementation of QRmaint CMMS system: Cedrob Foods SA

I think the UR department's biggest challenge is to organize its work in a way that allows it to get ahead of corrective actions through prevention and prediction. In this way, the UR department prevents unplanned machine downtime from occurring. This comes from the fact that when we have very little time to produce goods and deliver them to the customer, every minute of downtime is very costly.
Maintenance requirements in production plants differ to a large extent in the specifics of production and the machines used. This aspect is even more pronounced in food companies, where several departments of the same company may be dependent on completely different maintenance operations of machines and devices. Therefore, everything comes down to the specifics of production, and consequently, the diversity and greater complexity of operational tasks for maintenance departments. This also leads to the immediate conclusion that maintaining standards in different locations is even more difficult when companies do not have standardized processes and uniform procedures and management systems.
Such tasks are among the challenges at Cedrob Foods , which consists of 5 production plants. With five food processing production plants across Poland, the maintenance activities they conduct differ in each facility due to the individual adjustment of food processing processes and production lines.
More than a year has passed since the implementation of the CMMS system in Cedrob Foods, and Mr. Jakub Skowroński is responsible for the entire operation and coordination of the actual implementation “and for coordination of the implementation in the largest plant”. As an experienced implementer, coordinator for optimization in the maintenance department, who has worked not only with CMMS , but also with ERP systems, such as IFS, and therefore – vast experience in working with the implementation of IT systems.
QRmaint had the great pleasure of talking to Mr. Jakub about the implementation of the QRmaint CMMS system at Cedrob Foods. Moreover, thanks to the professional implementation of the CMMS system by Cedrob, we had a good opportunity to learn many important indicators regarding the optimization and improvement of the efficiency of UR departments based on hard numbers. Check out more in the article below.
Maintenance Challenges at Cedrob Foods
Cedrob Foods is a Polish company specializing in the production of high-quality poultry and meat products. It supplies its products to retail chains, catering and individual customers in the country and abroad. Strictly, the plant located in Sosnowiec processes poultry and, to some extent, pork and beef. For example, the plant in Sosnowiec receives raw material after slaughter and produces a finished product from it. Their flagship product is, among others, Pasztetowa Duda, the taste of which is probably known to customers all over Poland.
Already these few words at the beginning, talking about what end products Cedrob Foods receives, give a good idea of what kind of machines may be inside the company for producing this type of food.
Examples of machines used to produce this type of food:
Preparation and Mixing
It includes machines for grinding and chopping meat, as well as for mixing and emulsifying it with other ingredients to obtain a uniform mass of the product.
Processing and Cooking
Here you will find equipment for pre-treatment and shaping of meat products, followed by cooking and pasteurization in various thermal units, followed by rapid cooling .
Finishing and Quality Control
This includes packaging lines for portioning and packaging finished products.
Also, knowing the scope of machines and equipment needed to work in this type of plant, we can better imagine how complex the processes take place in the company when it comes to UR activities in order to deliver the highest quality products.
In a conversation with Mr. Jakub Skowroński, we learned about a number of dependencies and challenges that the company had to deal with before implementing the QRmaint CMMS system. Here are some of them:
- Inefficient telephone ticket handling: Communication regarding outages and service needs relied on telephone calls, making it difficult to track tickets, prioritize tasks, and ensure a timely response.
- Lack of a centralized data system, where the records of processes and tasks were kept using the MS Excel application: Key information about machines, inspections, repairs and maintenance tasks was scattered in spreadsheets, which led to difficulties in accessing current data, analyzing performance and making informed decisions.
The two most important challenges in the FMCG industry – because we are in the industry of producing fast-moving goods – are, firstly, that the customer wants to buy a product of the highest quality at an affordable price. as cheaply as possible. And consequently, the plant that wants to produce such a product must have the most standardized processes possible.
The second issue is the speed of response to orders. This is directly related to the very short shelf life of products. In other words, the customer would like to place an order today and receive it the next day – on average within 24 to 48 hours – which leaves very little time for managing this product.
Jakub Skowronski
Optimization Coordinator
- Lack of ability to manage tickets: There was no dedicated system for recording, monitoring and managing service tickets, which prevented effective work planning and measurement of response times.
- Difficulty in automated task management: The lack of a systematic approach to planning, assigning and tracking maintenance tasks resulted in inconsistent activities, omission of important activities and difficulties in coordinating team work.
Strictly the most important challenge of maintaining traffic in such large plants as Cedrob Foods is the fact that we are dealing with large nest production. This provides great flexibility, because if production is stopped in a given nest, the technological process can be switched to another.
The direction of development of the Cedrob organization is the transition from nest-based to linear production, where the system of machines and devices should function without disruptions, with measurable efficiency.
Jakub Skowronski
Optimization Coordinator
- Lack of mobility: Maintenance workers lacked access to information and reporting capabilities in the field, delaying problem diagnosis and task execution.
- Lack of a centralized equipment database: There was no comprehensive and up-to-date database containing information on all machines and equipment, their specifications, service history and location, which made asset management and maintenance planning difficult.
- Difficulties in easily ordering parts for machinery and equipment: The process of ordering necessary spare parts was inefficient and time-consuming, which prolonged machine downtime and increased maintenance costs.
- Deficiencies in cost control and accounting: The lack of detailed tracking of maintenance costs made it impossible to optimize the budget and identify areas where savings could be achieved.
I think the biggest challenge for the maintenance department is to organize work in a way that allows for anticipating corrective actions through prevention and prediction. In this way, the maintenance department does not allow for unplanned machine downtime. This is because at a time when we have very little time to produce goods and deliver them to the customer, every minute of downtime is very expensive.
Jakub Skowronski
Optimization Coordinator
- Lack of clear insight into maintenance activities, inability to effectively review the condition of the machinery park: The management did not have a clear picture of the current activities of the maintenance department or the current technical condition of the machines, which made it difficult to make strategic decisions regarding investments and modernization.
- Lack of an effective reporting system: The inability to generate detailed reports on failures, downtime, costs and efficiency of the maintenance department made it impossible to measure progress and identify areas for improvement.
Solution: Implementation of CMMS system
After taking action to optimize the maintenance work at Cedrob Foods, initiated by Mr. Jakub Skowroński, optimization coordinator, the efficiency of the UR department was found to be improved in many areas. The QRmaint CMMS system improved the work in the areas listed below:
- Case Management Capability: With the built-in functionality of the app, users can efficiently log, monitor and manage all service calls.
- Task Management Capability: QRmaint CMMS app provides tools to schedule, assign, track, and close maintenance tasks.
- Equipment Database: The built-in database in the app allows you to store detailed information about all your machines and equipment, including their specifications, service history and location.
One of the main decisions taken when implementing the QRmaint system was the positive reception of the system – both in technical terms and from the perspective of the UR department employees who use it on a daily basis.
The second reason for the implementation was the lack of a comprehensive tool that would handle all UR tasks along with a centralized database, which was becoming more and more necessary with the increasing optimization of production processes.
Jakub Skowronski
Optimization Coordinator
- Possibility to order parts for machines and devices: The application functionality supports the process of ordering necessary spare parts, improving communication with suppliers and tracking orders.
- Cost accounting: The CMMS QRmaint application has modules for tracking and analyzing costs related to maintenance activities, allowing you to generate cost reports. I have not tested this functionality yet, so I cannot 0/1 sign off.
- Possibility to work on dashboards – overview of the machinery park status: Built-in dashboards in the application visualize key indicators regarding the machinery park status, facilitating quick insight into the most important information.
- Reporting: The application offers advanced reporting features, allowing you to generate a variety of reports on tickets, tasks, costs, failures and other relevant data.
- Mobility: Thanks to the mobile features in the app, maintenance personnel can access the system and update information from anywhere using mobile devices.
Summary
The implementation of the QRmaint CMMS system in the production plants belonging to the Cedrob Group is an example of the power of transformation in maintenance management. As the case of Cedrob Foods has shown, the key to success is the implementation of standardized systems that ensure data centralization. In addition, the focus on process automation and improving operational efficiency has definitely had an impact on the increase in productivity.
Is your company also facing maintenance challenges? Do you want to streamline your processes and achieve tangible benefits like Cedrob Foods?
Contact us today to learn how QRmaint CMMS can revolutionize your business.
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