Keeping Bread Fresh With POWERLINK And Linux

De la Ballina specializes in packaging industrially produced baked goods. When developing its latest generation of machines, the French company decided to implement an integrated automation solution. POWERLINK was the only network protocol that was up to the task. The exceptional openness of this Ethernet standard was among the winning arguments in its favor.

De la Ballina has been producing packaging lines for some 20 years now. The French packaging specialist provides high-tech solutions involving vision systems and robotics for packaging industrially produced baked goods and pastries. The optical scanners and image processing components they use need to provide high-precision and fast response times. In order to meet these requirements in the past, De la Ballina used hardwiring and low-end fieldbus solutions.

Five years ago, they decided to re-evaluate the automation architecture of their systems. The goal was to pursue long-term competitive advantages and adapt to changing market demands. De la Ballina wanted nothing short of the perfect automation solution: Increased performance, productivity and energy efficiency, along with reduced costs for implementation and maintenance.