When Broviand started in 1996, there was a sharp focus on producing cold cuts. Consequently, the production area was designed for that way of processing.
“We made a very specific choice when deciding how to build up our production in those early days,” says Broviand’s Director Simon van den Broek. “We wanted to do deboning by hand, which required a lot of working space. We did that to ensure the highest of standards in bone control for our cold cut products.”
Breast cap filleting
The next step for the company was an expansion which involved the production of skin-on chicken breast fillets. With product range and throughput both growing, the production facilities needed to follow suit. In 2013, Broviand invested in three AMF breast cap filleting systems. These are known for their solid performance, excellent footprint to capacity ratio, easy operation and low cost of ownership.
An excellent partner
“Since we have started working with Marel, we have found the company an excellent partner. With their experience in the poultry processing industry they have no problem understanding our world and can help us achieve our goals,” says Mr. van den Broek.
“Not long ago, Marel installed recently developed fillet separators and tendon cutters on all of our three AMFs – a great solution combining manual deboning with harvesting tenderloins without tendon.”
Manual labor
Until recently, deboning of breast caps manually provided a limited choice of products, mainly half fillets with tenderloins attached. When tenderloins without tendon are required, a lot of expensive manual labor is usually necessary. This is because the tenderloins need to be removed manually as well as the tendon.
A new fillet separator and tendon cutter
Marel has developed a solution combining manual deboning with an efficient way of harvesting tenderloins without tendon. This is achieved by installing a fillet separator and tendon cutter.
The wishbone, together with the breast tendon, can be harvested separately with the optional breast tendon harvester. This combines the benefits of manual deboning with the advantages of semi-automatic deboning. Now it is easy to process efficiently half fillets without tenderloins together with tenderloins without tendon.
Marel graders for perfect packing
Just behind the AMFs in the processing line, Broviand has installed a combination of four Compact Graders and two SmartLine Graders. They are used to create bulk batches of 10 or 15 kg (22 to 33 lb) for packing in crates. On average, the SmartLine Graders process 6.5t per day and the Compact Graders 2.5t. Both graders are solid performers which keep giveaway at a minimum.
Simon van den Broek continues, “The reliability and quality of the equipment are important to us. The Compact Grader is a great little machine that is very easy to use. The SmartLine Grader fits perfectly into our production; we have already decided that we need a third one.”
Looking at the future together
One of the next big projects for Broviand is improving internal logistics. “We want to free up space and create an opportunity for highly efficient logistics,“ says Mr. van den Broek. “But if we keep challenging the ways we process, can we continue to produce poultry products according to our high standards? To answer this question affirmatively, we are looking at our options and we discuss our ideas with Marel – we have built a great relationship and that is important to us.”
