Supply Chain Quality Management In Food

Processing
Ashwini Sharma

Prof. Dixit Garg

Department of Mechanical
Engineering
ITM University
Gurgaon, India
ashwinisharma@itmindia.edu

Department of Mechanical
Engineering
National Institute of Technology,
Kurukshetra, India
dixitgarg@yahoo.co.in

Dr. Ashish Agarwal

Department of Mechanical
Engineering
SOET, IGNOU, Maidan garhi, New current
Delhi, India, ashisha@ignou.ac.in

Prof. Dixit Garg

practices. The study included plant layout study, cycle
Abstract Any industry whether service or manufacturing
strives for the best customer feedback and appreciation which is
vital for a companys growth and reputation. To achieve this
appraisal, there is a need for controlling the quality of products
to ensure that the customer gets the best possible quality and
services within the minimum possible time and cost. This paper is
based on the process quality improvement in a food processing
company. Effective techniques like 5S, Kaizen, SPC, facility
planning are some of the very basic policies used in the Quality
control and management of the production process which are
widely known but not implemented effectively and efficiently. In
this paper author took the help of the quality tools to bring about
an improvement in the existing production methods and a
positive change which will be beneficial to the company.
KeywordsSupply
Processing

chain,

I.

Quality

management,

Food

INTRODUCTION

For different business sector quality management (QM) has a

specific meaning. QM has four main components: quality
planning, quality control, quality assurance and quality
improvement. QM not only focus on product or service
quality, but also the means of achieving it. QM therefore uses
quality assurance and control of processes to achieve more
consistent quality [1]. Companies that want to improve the
quality of their products and processes need to focus their
efforts on the proper exploration of data available in their
records. Employees can contribute to increase quality and
output by studying the data and taking the necessary steps to
minimize the factors that deteriorate the quality of the product.
By getting to know their customers better, they are flexible in
responding to their needs and reacting to competitors attempts
to undermine their market position [3].
Supply chain quality management takes care of managing the
quality effectively in a typical supply chain. In recent past
there are number of high profile recalls in food sector due to
compromise on quality.
In the present paper a case study of a small scale food
processing company has been carried out to understand the

Time calculation, and distance calculation in order to reduce

the time and other resources. Based on observations,
recommendations are provided for implementation so that it
results into benefit of the company.
II. LITERATURE REVIEW
A. Intorduction
Quality management in supply chain refers to maintaining
the quality across the supply chain to a mutually agreed
standard by manufacturer and supplier [3]. It implies that the
quality has to be managed at every interface of the supply
chain and not limited to intra firm but inter organisation.
Supply chain quality management (SCQM) depends on
number of factors such as customer focus [12], coordination
and integration [8]. Food processing industry is one of the
most vulnerable industry as far as quality is concerned. This
industry faces most of the recalls due to perishable nature and
small shelf life of products.
B. Supply chain quality management in food processing
Food processing industry happens to be the one which
needs the efficient and agile supply chain. It means that in
order to have good supply chain for food industry integration,
responsiveness, efficiency and timely delivery are important
parameters as the product has less shelf life and perishable in
nature [6]. Considering the above it becomes very important
for the manufacturer and supplier to have understanding of
quality across the supply chain. This is a problem for the small
scale food processing companies as they do not have the
resources and understanding of the basic as well as latest
quality management tools to compete in the market [2]. The
conventional owner managed system does not let the scientific
ways of managing inventory, facility layout planning, waste
reduction, energy management etc to happen, which results in
to higher operating cost and more wastage [4, 5, 7]. The food

industry is driven by the voice of the customer and in order to

satisfy the customer, the food needs to be of a very good
quality in terms of nutrition, taste and edibility.
The food industry has changed in last 10 years, drastically
in terms of standards, quality, and delivery and especially on
the packaging front. Any deviation in any of the above may
result the potential cause of the recall. This results in to severe
loss and brand damage which is difficult to fix. A series of
high profile product recalls in recent years has shaken public
confidence in the ability of manufacturers and governments to
assure the safety of food and other products used by
consumers [9, 10, 11]. The recent case of nestle India shows
that now there will be stringent compliance towards quality of
food in times to come. Although the related standards have
been set earlier the compliance to it have been compromised at
different interfaces of supply chain.
In the present case study the authors selected a food
processing company named ABC Pvt. LTD where good scope
of quality improvement was sighted and the scientific ways of
managing quality have been implemented.
III.

CASE STUDY OF ABC

PVT. LTD.

ABC Pvt. LTD. Is a food processing company involved in

manufacturing of food items and distribution of the same
through its 7 outlets across Delhi and NCR. It also deals in
catering business at different events of bug companies and
marriages.
Food industry is driven by the voice of customer and in
order to satisfy the customer, the food needs to be of good
quality in terms of nutrition, taste etc. In order to provide good
quality of food, the processing quality of food, from the first
step till the last step, needs to be consistent with set standard.
following areas were reviewed where there was scope for
improvement. They are listed as follows:

Figure 1: Methodology for survey and deviations

A. Survey of factory and suggestions for gaps noted

Following problems were identified and solutions were
recommended as follows.
a) Fire hazards: the possible dangers of fire breaking out
in the premises was suggested as there was no firefighting
arrangement, they put extinguishers and fire sand all around
the factory.
b) Open Drainage: All the areas with open drainage
were suggested to be properly covered thereby, reducing the
breeding ground of mosquitoes and keeping hygienic
conditions in check.
c) Water dropping on open wires: The naked wires and
MCBs were required to be properly taped and the dripping
water was taken care of by the new drainage system.
d) Waste management: Recommendations to segregate
the different kinds of waste into sections for easier
disposability, viz. Biodegradable and Non-biodegradable, dry,
wet wastes were implemented.
e) Vermins: Pest control authorities were set into action
and were assessed continuously during the whole period of our
time spent there.
An exhaustive list of deviations and the suggestions to
counter them have been attached in APPENDIX-A.
B. Identification of possible areas of automation
Use of automation techniques in food industry can yield
many benefits such as less contamination of food, quicker
production, standardization, increment in efficiency and
effectiveness. Post-survey, we found out some areas where
automation can be implemented.

2. Identification of possible areas of automation.

In sweet making section different sweets were being

made manually with the use of hand tools. As it was
observed that the production of sweets ranged from 20
to 22 kg per day, automation avenues were discarded.

3. Comparative study of the layout of the bakery section.

1. Survey of the whole factory to compile a list of

suggestions for gaps noted (GEMBA).

4. Revision of layout of catering kitchen.

5. Identification of areas where material handling principles
can be implemented.
Following methodology was used for survey and
deviations

One of the most promising area for automation was

found was the possible in-house production of milk
cake machine. The daily consumption of milk cake per
day on an average stands at 20 kg currently. This is
purchased from vendors on a fluctuating rate. To keep a
check on quality of the milk cake and to save money all
the costs incurred for in-house production of milk cake
were studied in order to justify the setup of new
machinery.
Requirement = 20 kg/day; 600 kg / month
Cost of milk cake purchase from vendor/kg= Rs. 200/Cost of milk cake purchase/ month = Rs. 1, 20,000/Cost of milk cake purchase/ year= Rs. 14, 40,000/Table 1:

Calculation of total expenses

EXPENSES
Monthly requirement of Milk:
80 liter Milk=20 kg milk cake/day
80 liter per day x 30 days

Rs.

96,000.00

The majority of the problems in the existing bakery layout

were:

Per Ltr. Average Cost Rs.40.00 approx.

Labor wages (1 person needed)

Monthly Electricity Bill
Machine Depreciation/ month
Machine maintenance
Steam consumption
Total expenses for in house
production/month
Profit:

6,000.00
250.00
1,167.00
200.00
4,500.00
1,08,117/-

Total Expense for in-house production/year

= Rs. 12, 97,404/Purchase Cost of milk cake/year= Rs. 14, 40, 000/Savings = Total expenses/Year - Purchase cost/year
= Rs. 1, 42,596/ year.
Payback Period calculation:
Payback Period=Investment required for a project/Net
Annual Cash Flow
=Rs.1, 40,000/1, 42,596= 0.985 years=11 months 08 days
In the above calculation only present consumption was
considered but as the company was in expansion mode
with 2 more outlets the consumption increased which
further reduced the payback period. With the above
payback period the management agreed to install the milk
cake making machine.

a) Raw Materials was kept at a distance from the workstation.

Due to this, the workers had to move extra to procure the
raw materials from the stores and bring them to the work
area.
b) Workers made unnecessary movement during the
production process wasting time and energy. Since the
layout was not well defined and the location of the
machines was haphazard, the workers had restrictions in
movement.
c) Too much movement ultimately results in bottlenecks,
hampering the production process.
d) The flow of work was very messy, instead of swift clear
movements. An organized layout with clear paths and well
defined tracks for each worker should be the norm.
e) The intermediate product lost its temperature when it had
to be transported from the pre-heat incubator to the oven
for baking, thus, reducing its vitality & taste. Also, the
kulchas and pavs need to take shape and the dough needs
to set for proper puffiness to look and taste good.
To counter these problems, it was decided to study the
whole layout with the help of time and work study methods,
i.e., recording and noting down the movement of the workers
in the bakery with the time taken for them to finish each step
and the distance covered by them between each process.

C. Comparative study of layout of bakery section

The Bakery section houses the production of bread and
Bun. It was observed that the existing layout had a lot of
inherent problems such as the non-value adding movement of
the worker and improper layout which included lot of backtracking and bottlenecks. After reporting of the problem the
management asked to come up with solution. The work was
started with following objectives.
a) To improve the quality of the process and the final product.
b) To reduce the movement of the worker.
c) To reduce the bottlenecks and prevent back-tracking

1 Raw material, 2 Dough Machine, 3 Work Table, 4 Trays, 5 Incubator

room, 6 Oven, 7 Material table, 8 Cooling table pav packing, 9 Bread
packaing table, 10 Shelf, 11 Storage table, 12 Biscuit batter machine, 13
Biscuit Oven
Figure 2: Methodology for bakery section

Figure 3: old bakery layout

From the Operation Process Chart, it can be seen that the

production of one batch of bread of approximately 400 packets
takes about 137.5 minutes with 4 workers in the process.
There is an inspection period of 20 minutes where the workers
have to wait for the yeast to set in and breads to get puffy.
Figure 5 shows the frequency of the various activities
during the production that a worker does. Operation and
Transportation of the material are the most frequent activities
that are undertaken by the workers.
Figure 6: Summary of Flow Process Chart (Material Type)

As per our study and inputs of the production departments,

a new layout was formulated keeping in mind the important
aspects which were Distance from incubator to oven, Use of
steam in incubator instead of convection room heater, Eexcess
movement of workers, Excess movement of material, Packing
space, Storage space.

Figure 4: Operation Process Chart for bread Production

Figure 6 shows the various activities that are done on the

material itself. It can be seen that the Material undergoes a
long time (2 hours and 23 minutes) to get transform from raw
material to packed goods and there is movement of 34.9 m
during the whole process.

1 raw material, 2 dough m/c, 3 ingredient table, 4 work table 1, 5

incubator, 6 work table 2, 7 oven, 8 cooling table, 9 bread storage, 10
racks, 11 trolly
Figure 7: New proposed Bakery layout

Figure 5: Summary of Flow Process Chart (Man Type)

Correspondingly, the different flow process and operation

process charts were charted as per the information gathered for
the production of breads.

The new layout is simpler and less congested as compared

to the old layout. The backtracking and bottlenecks have
reduced, bringing down the worker fatigue and improving
their productivity.

1.

To dough maker, 2. To work table, 3 To incubator, 4 To oven, 5 To

cooling are, 6 To Packing table, 7 To Storage
Figure 8: Distance v/s Process Graph for OLD and NEW layouts.

After the new layout was completely setup, we performed

the time and work study again to see that a reduction in the
backtracking movements of men and materials was achieved,
cutting down on bottlenecks and the total distance covered to
1061 inches(88.5 ft/ 26.9 m).
D. Identification of areas where material handling can be
improved

Material handling is an important aspect of every

industry. Efficient material handling leads to decrease
in lead times and wastage. Therefore, during the foot
survey, various areas were identified where material
handling principles could impact productivity. The
objective was to reduce the worker fatigue, Enable
easier and faster movement of materials, and Use the
unit load principle for transportation of materials.

Figure 9: Methodology for Material Handling

Storage and transportation of counters in the lower

floor of the company is a big headache and time
consuming. Additionally, during peak season when the
large demands need to be catered, the hasty and fidgety
movement of the workers can lead to manhandling
(damage) to the heavy counters. Along with this,
workers own safety is jeopardized by manual handling
of these cumbersome counters as they weigh 35-40
kilograms individually.
PROBLEMS FACED

Since the factory is divided into three separate

production floors, the materials need to be constantly
transported from one place to another. The logistics and
the dispatch area had the most prominent requirement
for the implementation of Unit Load Principle and
other material handling principles to facilitate better
transportation of goods.

Storage and movement of counters in the logistics area

for catering requires proper material handling thought
and tools. These counters (as many as 100), are heavy
and require at least 2 laborers to pick and move them.
From storage to the pick-up truck as well as vice versa,
these laborers have to cover 65 feet while carrying this
heavy load under unsafe conditions. Therefore,
handling of these counters as well as their storage
required some thought.

Our basic aim was to improve material handling for the

counters revolved around two concepts-storage and
transportation. We wanted to implement a system where we
could build modular rack storage such that the counters are
kept on trolleys which get stored in racks and can be dragged
out to the pick-up trucks. The flaw in this model was that there
was a variety of counters with different shapes, sizes and
weights. Additionally, there were second thoughts about the
cost of building such a rack system since it was cost intensive
and whether it would breakdown under the extreme workload
during peak hours due to the rough handling by labor. Thus,
we came to a very cheap and simple method of installing
every counter with a pair of castor wheels so that instead of 2
laborers carrying it, only 1 labor can drag/push it across the
distance to the truck without worrying about damaging the
counter or compromising his own safety.
E. Recommendations
The recommendations that were proposed would be helpful to
management to bring about a positive change in the company.
These will be helpful as a reference for any future endeavours
that anybody in the company is willing to pursue.
1. A growing company should keep in mind the following
check points with regards to Sanitation, Safety and
Maintenance:
a) There should be a set standard for cleanliness and hygiene
across the production floor.
b) Workers should wear gloves, face masks and head caps in
the food industry.
c) There should be proper tools for every process instead of
having make-do instruments.
d) The production floor should be free from any kind of pests
and insects-pest control and adhesive insect killer should
be put on the shop floor.
e) Workers should get proper civic amenities and liquid soaps
to wash their hands after.
f) Industrial strength chemicals for washing and cleaning the
floors and work tables should be used.
g) Water leakage should be checked to prevent slippery floor
and water wastage.
h) Electricity boards and wires should be properly insulated.
i) There should be proper drainage and waste management
systems.

j) There should be monthly maintenance of machines.

k) There should be sign boards and markings on and around
the production floor regarding the movement of trolleys
and workers.
l) The tools and instruments should be kept at their proper
position after use.
m) There should be proper disposal of waste.
n) There should be trolleys available for faster transportation.
o) Fire extinguishers, fire sand and fire exits should be made
available.
p) Sprinklers on the ceiling should be properly working.
2. For any food industry giving a thought to the expansion of
steam usage for production should first perform the energy
audit for their pre-existing boilers so that they know the exact
capacity of steam production that is available to them for use
and if they need more steam, then they can invest in a new
boiler accordingly.
3. For transportation of counters, caster wheels can be used as
a simple and cheap alternative to heavy forklifts with big
investments.
4. There should be proper thought given to the layout of the
production floor in the initial stage of factory setup as
changing the layout at a later stage turns out to be cost
intensive and cumbersome in addition to hampering the
production.
5. The layout of the production floor for any industry should
be such that there is minimum movement of man and material
and bottlenecks and backtracking are almost negligible.
Implementing these on a large scale production process,
though cumbersome, is very essential in the hopes of
improving the process quality improvement of the entire
production and achieving a superior quality of products and
ultimately, customer satisfaction.
IV. CONCLUSION
After study of the case company it was found that there is
a lack of understanding of quality from vendor to the retail
outlet. The management of company wants to excel at the
quality front in which the quality management itself is the
challenge for the company. Most important barrier came out to
be the understanding of quality among the workers and
vendors. Secondly the lack of understanding of scientific ways
of managing the quality in which quality tools can be of great
help which has been suggested and implemented by the
company. This resulted in to enhancement of productivity and
return on investment. The company wants to expand business
in other cities of India which needs to be properly researched

in terms of vendor selection and maintaining of original

quality for which the company is known.

Acknowledgment
The authors would like to acknowledge the support
provided by the ABC Pvt. LTD. Also we acknowledge the
contribution of Mr. Tarun Gupta for carrying out the study.

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