Germany is a cheese country. In Germany, almost 25 kilograms of cheese are consumed annually per person and 1.1 million metric tons are exported. From the North Sea to the Allgäu region in the very south of Germany, large and small dairies offer around 150 regional and national cheese specialities. Cheese production is a traditional trade that has not changed for centuries. However, even though the principles have not changed, modern technology always finds its way into cheese production.
The cheese dairy Gebr. Baldauf GmbH & Co. KG operates several small village dairies in the Allgäu region, where cheese quality is to be optimized with the aid of heat treatment chambers. In addition, during the ripening process themophile cheese cultures are used which ensure a milder taste. While conventional, mesophilic cultures work optimally in temperatures as of 25 °C, their thermophilic counterparts require significantly higher temperatures. However, the process can be controlled very precisely via the pH value. At 2 locations the heat treatment chambers should therefore be controlled by a temperature profile and the process controlled very precisely via the pH value so that a consistently high product quality is guaranteed. The process data should be acquired and remote access must be possible via the Internet.
The cheese dairy Gebr. Baldauf GmbH & Co. KG
All these requirements were met with the JUMO mTRON T automation system, the JUMO AQUIS touch multichannel measuring device, as well as JUMO temperature probes and pH electrodes. The JUMO mTRON T system has a modular design. Consequently, a wide variety of measured values can be precisely acquired and digitized. The solution for the cheese dairy in the Allgäu region is completely operated via individual process screens. The screens enable program selection, program start, and entries in a batch field. The pH value in the cheese is measured by a JUMO AQUIS touch using an insertion electrode while the temperature is measured using an insertion probe. The heating chambers in both alpine dairies are linked to the company's head office. The batch data from the plants are extracted on the server at the headquarters and relevant form printouts are stored on the server as PDF documents.
JUMO mTRON T multifunction panel
Control cabinet dairy maturing chamber
The quick and easy implementation of the required application was particularly important to us. A cost-effective, uncomplicated overall solution was possible thanks to JUMO Engineering's system concept.
The customer wanted a complete solution that was simple and decentralized to operate while not wanting to worry too much about technology. JUMO not only supplied the required components, but also took care of the complete implementation.
