From chocolate bars to lollipops, candies, and Haribos, the confectionery industry is now valued at $210 billion worldwide. With the industry experiencing rapid growth, it’s no surprise that confectionery manufacturers are also starting to incorporate IoT (Internet of Things) technologies into their production processes to achieve efficient results and take further steps forward towards digital transformation.
Due to the nature of candy, especially chocolate-based confectionery, slight fluctuations in environmental factors such as temperature and humidity levels can affect the quality of the final product. This is especially true when we talk about smaller products such as Hershey’s Twizzlers or Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, which may have been easily broken due to temperature fluctuations.
By installing production lines with multiple IoT-connected sensors and linking them to temperature control systems, candy manufacturers can maintain a constant environment on their production line. In addition, these same sensors are able to check the weight and shape of all parts, thus allowing manufacturers to reduce waste and provide the consumer with better quality and consistency of the final product.
Current use case
Back in 2016, Hershey, a leading U.S. confectionery manufacturer, began implementing IoT technologies in its production line to optimize production by more effectively controlling environmental factors.
So far, Hershey has tested this technology on the Twizzlers production line by installing 22 sensors in the storage tank, which transmit 60 million data points. In this case, Microsoft Azure algorithms are used to process this data.
Further benefits
The benefits don’t end there! This technology also means that manufacturers can continue to innovate products without being limited by product size.
A more controlled environment allows for smaller parts that would previously have been considered too “green” to produce. While this may be bad news for consumers, who may soon see a decrease in candy sizes, it is great news for manufacturers as it allows them to save significantly. In the case of Hersheys, the company estimates that reducing the size of each Twizzler by 1% would result in a significant cost savings of $500,000 annually!
This technology can also allow manufacturers to experiment with different ingredients and offer vegan/healthier alternatives to the product, allowing us all to become a little healthier while satisfying our sweet tooth!