Customer experience
Customer Story: Nöll & Co
Customer Story: Nöll & Co
Targeted modification at Nöll & Co increases output by up to 20%
Nöll & Co specializes in processing dry dairy products for the European food market. In Büren, they blend a wide range of high quality dairy products, from standard milk powders to customized recipes tailored to specific customer requirements. Dinnissen previously delivered a complete line to Nöll & Co, increasing production from 3 to 5 tons per day to approximately 30 tons per day. In practice, it then became clear that short interruptions between mixing and filling had an unnecessary impact on total output. When the packaging machine briefly stopped for a changeover or minor disruption, the entire line almost immediately came to a halt. In collaboration with Dinnissen and OEM partner Votech, Nöll & Co therefore chose a targeted expansion of the existing installation: a buffer hopper installed below the existing receiving hopper. This allows the mixing line to continue running, even when the filling line temporarily stops.
In this customer story, Technical Manager Matthias Kremer and Managing Director Georg Wienker explain:
- How Nöll & Co improved the process flow between mixing and packaging
- How the buffer hopper absorbs downtime without adding an extra production line
- How line output increased by 15 to 20%
- How Nöll & Co worked with Dinnissen and OEM partner Votech to develop this solution
"We now have around fifteen to twenty percent more output. That equals roughly one extra production day per week."
Matthias Kremer, Technical Manager Nöll & Co
Room for optimization between mixing and filling
The installation at Nöll & Co starts with a bag dump station and Big Bag stations for product intake. From there, the product is transported via vacuum conveying to storage hoppers. From the storage hoppers, the product is fed into a Pegasus® Mixer. After mixing, the product is directed either to the Big Bag filling system or to the Votech filling line, which was built in collaboration with Dinnissen. In practice, it became clear that short interruptions on the packaging side had a direct impact on the rest of the line. Without an intermediate buffer, the product had nowhere to go when the filling line stopped. The mixer switched to standby and the entire line had to be restarted later. Nöll & Co analyzed these downtime moments and identified clear opportunities for optimization. The packaging machine has sufficient capacity to recover from short interruptions. That is why the improvement was found in adding a buffer between mixing and filling.
Targeted modification instead of a second line
Adding a second line had been considered before. Space in the factory had already been reserved for this. In practice, however, this was not the most logical step. There was sufficient room for additional product intake and mixing capacity, but the physical limitation was at the bagging and Big Bag filling stage. A second line would therefore not provide the desired solution. Together with Dinnissen and Votech, Nöll & Co mapped out the available options. The most efficient solution proved to be the addition of a buffer hopper. The existing receiving hopper was positioned one level higher, with the new buffer hopper installed underneath. This created an intermediate step between mixing and filling. When the packaging machine stops, the mixing line can continue running and store product in the buffer.
"What makes Dinnissen such a strong partner is the combination of professionalism, pragmatism, and a solution driven approach."
Georg Wienker, Managing Director Nöll & Co
Buffer provides room to keep running
The new buffer hopper can hold three batches. This provides approximately thirty minutes of additional production time when the filling line is down. Matthias Kremer explains: “During those thirty minutes, production can continue while we work on resolving the issue. If the mixer then stops later in the day, for example for a screen change or preparation for the next order, the filling line can process the product from the buffer. This way, production runs more steadily and the line no longer comes to a complete stop with every short interruption on the filling side.”
15 to 20% more output from the same line
The addition of the buffer hopper now results in approximately 15 to 20% more output. Matthias Kremer notes: “The increase in output equals roughly one extra production day per week. And the gain is not only in output. The line has also become more flexible. While the filling line empties the buffer, we can already prepare the next product. This improves the alignment between process steps.” Georg Wienker adds: “What makes Dinnissen such a strong partner is the combination of professionalism, pragmatism, and a solution driven approach. If performance continues like this, we will reach our return on investment sooner than planned.”
"You can tell the people at Dinnissen are skilled professionals."
Matthias Kremer, Technical Manager Nöll & Co
Limited modification, significant impact
The technical adjustment focused on a specific part of the line, but required substantial construction work. The receiving hopper was moved up one level, piping was modified, and the buffer hopper was integrated into the existing line. For installation, the roof of the facility was temporarily opened to position the buffer hopper in place. Nöll & Co and Dinnissen used the production shutdown for the modification to also carry out preventive maintenance on the existing line. By combining both activities, the impact on production remained limited and downtime was used efficiently.
Matthias Kremer is very satisfied with the speed of the modification: “I did not expect the conversion to go this smoothly. The actual modification took three days. After that, we ran a flushing batch and made several software adjustments, and production was ready to restart. You can tell the people at Dinnissen are skilled professionals.”
"Never change a winning team."
Georg Wienker, Managing Director Nöll & Co
Collaboration with Dinnissen and Votech
For Nöll & Co, it was a logical step to carry out this expansion again with Dinnissen. By reviewing the entire process together with Dinnissen and OEM partner Votech, the issue in the process flow between mixing and filling was resolved with a targeted adjustment earlier in the line. As Georg Wienker states: “Never change a winning team.” For Nöll & Co, it was essential that the solution fit within the existing installation, with minimal impact on ongoing operations. That objective was achieved. This expansion confirms for Nöll & Co that targeted optimization of an existing installation can deliver substantial results. For future expansions, the company will again engage with Dinnissen.
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