De Cecco
Increasing Accountability and Improving Data Transfer Accuracy for a Century-Old Food Producer
De Cecco is known around the world for its delicious semolina pasta. Founded over a century ago, the company combines old-world traditions with modern technologies to create pasta, flours, olive oils, sauces and organic products that please the palette. Today, the company sees revenues of 22 million Euros (US$308 million) a year, with a third of that revenue from export trade.
The Challenge:
New European Union regulations adopted in 2005 demand greater accountability from food manufacturers. Each manufacturer must be able to trace all stages of production, processing and distribution. Each link in the value chain must be able to reliably and securely identify the origin of the products they carry and handle right up to delivery to the end consumer.
- De Cecco needed to implement a logistics and tracking identification system that would comply with the new regulations.
- Each box of pallet or carton needed to be identified with a Serial Shipping Container Code (SSCC).
The Solution:
- De Cecco contracted with Taiprora, an engineering software development firm working in partnership with researchers at the Università dell'Aquila Oil (Industrial Logistics Optimization) and Psion Teklogix.
- The robust WORKABOUT PRO handheld computers were chosen by De Cecco because they integrate smoothly with the Traiprora software and provide ease of use, ergonomics, security and ruggedness suited for a food production facility.
- The WORKABOUT PRO handheld computers integrate with a new Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system and a Cisco access point secure WiFi network.
- The Traiprora system incorporates ERP management software for order picking and shipping logistics. Employees receive instructions on their handheld computers and are able to scan barcodes on products, pallets and cartons throughout every step of the process.
The Benefits:
- Each barcode carries detailed information about that product—SSCC, the batch, date of production and expiry date—allowing De Cecco to know exactly which products were shipped to which locations on a given day.
- The ability to scan items quickly and share information between the handheld computers and the central server have helped De Cecco to streamline its processes, increasing productivity and optimizing logistics so the company can handle a larger turnover of product.
- Errors are reduced, so the company is able to provide a higher level of customer service even as it grows.
