Greenfield Food Manufacturing Facility

Salas O’Brien led a +$100 million critical process automation greenfield project for a client establishing a new facility near Tokyo, Japan. The client chose our team for our expertise in grain processing and manufacturing, with the University of Illinois recommending us to the client due to the original contractor’s lack of requisite knowledge.

The project aimed to utilize advanced technology to optimize plant operations for maximum efficiency while increasing market share and establishing a world-leading automated manufacturing facility. The control system integrated 16 vendor-controlled pieces of equipment with a central control system (DCS). Our team provided comprehensive services, from controls design and programming to process engineering and optimization, resulting in a sophisticated 2000-point distributed system with dual-language programming in Kanji and English. The commissioning of the project culminated in a recognition ceremony where senior management awarded our team a commemorative trophy for our outstanding contribution to their factory of the future.