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CASE STUDY

Facility Upgrade at Two Vegetable Production Sites

Morrisons are the UK’s 2nd largest fresh food manufacturer with 18 sites across the country. To ensure they continue to offer fresh food at great value, they sought to develop technologically advanced, efficient and labour reducing facilities at their root vegetable production sites in Gadbrook and Rushden.

The Challenge

Morrisons goal was to increase capacity across root vegetable production at Gadbrook (as an initial phase), followed by a second phase at Rushden to consolidate potato packing from three packing facilities to two, whilst improving finished pack quality.

Delivering Success

Protolan have worked with Morrisons on several project. To deliver these schemes, Protolan were recruited to supply Project Management, Project Engineering and Capacity Planning. We led both projects and worked closely with the management team involved to scope, procure, implement and commission the building and equipment through Workstream Management Project Process. Protolan managed the removal of all existing process equipment and the redevelopment of the buildings to higher specification (including strip out and installation). The end to end replacement of all process equipment delivered: • Potato conditioning by individual load • Washing equipment with optional use of a potato polisher • Optical grading to remove 98% of rejects and size grade the raw material (using 4k camera technology) • Automated delivery and storage of graded, washed raw material with automated delivery to the packing process (this was the first of its kind in the UK) • Packing lines with grading, weighing and Vertical Form Fill Seal and bulk packing capabilities • Checkweighers (linked to weigher for automated control of weights) The projects had their similarities, but specific differences included: • New Waste Water Treatment Plant at Gadbrook recycling 90% of all process water • Upgrade to exiting Waste Water Treatment Plant at Rushden • Raw material grading of off-field material at Rushden • First pass optical grading to eliminate 95% of material defects ahead of secondary optical grading process of 98% Rushden to eliminate all manual grading operations  Both projects were a success, delivered to budget and on time to hit the site peak volume period of Christmas.
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Services Employed

Project Engineering

Project Management

Capacity Planning

“Having worked alongside Protolan previously installing a liquids bottling line, we chose James and his team to assist because we knew we could rely on their knowledge and expertise to deliver the right result. The hygiene and changeover process improvement project was delivered professionally and on time. I would not hesitate to recommend Protolan and will definitely use them again in the future should the need occur.”
- Richard Greathead, Chief Executive
Nutrition Group PLC
“The Protolan team have been an important part in the success of our recent, complex projects. They are a dedicated partner who are responsive, client-conscious and own a wealth of food manufacturing knowledge. Protolan’s project team worked closely with our internal team to deliver a multifaceted project, providing innovative solutions to ensure best practice across the factory. They show great diligence and flexibility when faced with project challenges. I look forward to a continued relationship with Richard and his team and would not hesitate to recommend them.”
- Gary McEvoy (General Manager)
Bakkavor Texas
“I have worked with Protolan over numerous years and am more than happy to recommend them to deliver our projects. They understand our business and are skilled in utilising their extensive food manufacturing expertise to support our complex needs. They have the foresight to identify possible issues and give solutions that are effective, offering genuine insight for our business. The Protolan team provide an experienced, knowledgeable and straight-talking resource. It is a pleasure to work with them.”
- Simon Wood (Chief Engineer)
Hotel Chocolat
“Protolan show great understanding of the food industry. They have the leadership, food expertise and project management skills to understand our challenges and familiarise themselves with our business objectives. Their concise communication provided us with a clear view of the issues and challenges of the project, providing us with a tangible project plan and a successful scheme.”
- Sally Mitchell
Saladworks
“Having worked with Protolan on several major projects, I am always impressed by their expertise within the food industry and positive attitude. They fully integrated into our team and that of the wider business, understood our challenges and delivered a tangible plan guided by solid project management and engineering practices. They have been a pleasure to work with and we will continue to work with them on future projects.”
- Jason Kelly (Head of Operations - Core Produce)
Morrisons
"Having worked with Protolan on previous projects, Revolution Foods had no hesitation to engage them to collaborate with us on a new project in challenging times. Protolan work with us in complete partnership, ensuring they understand the scope of our requirements and the challenges involved. Thorough, responsive, and professional, Protolan ultimately brought our project to a successful conclusion. I would have no reservation in recommending Protolan."
- Jose Morales Senior
Director of Operations Revolution Foods