Customer Satisfaction In Focus
Coca-Cola FEMSA ensures top product quality with KHS plant engineering
Georg Zuzok* Robert Fast** The FEMSA concern has made a name for itself across the whole of Latin America. Big things often start small, however – and FEMSA is no exception. The story began when four entrepreneurs – Isaac Garza, José Calderón, José A. Muguerza, and Joseph M. Schnaider – joined forces and in 1890 opened the Cervecería Cuauhtémoc brewery in Monterrey, Mexico. Their project was launched with a capital of 100,000 Mexican pesos and a staff of 72. Back then the company founders couldn't possibly have dreamed how things would turn out by 2011, over 120 years after the brewery's establishment. What was at first a modest undertaking has now become the largest beverage producer in Latin America represented in nine Latin-American states, with consumers numbering approximately 215 million, an impressive beverage portfolio comprising soft drinks, juices, and energy drinks, and about 150,000 employees. Non-alcoholic beverage and retail business Within the scope of FEMSA's business the non-alcoholic beverage is marketed by Coca-Cola FEMSA. FEMSA has a 53.7% share in Coca-Cola FEMSA, with The Coca-Cola Company owning 31.6%. The remaining 14.7% are in private ownership. FEMSA is also exclusive owner of the largest and strongest growth retail chain in Latin America, Oxxo, of which there are currently about 9,000 stores. During the past twelve months alone the number of Oxxo supermarkets has grown by over 1,100. By 2014 the company plans to have around 12,000 Oxxo outlets up and running. In addition, FEMSA also holds a 20% share in the Heineken concern. * Manager of Market Zone America, KHS GmbH, Bad Kreuznach, Germany Phone: +49 (671) 852-2202 ** Sales Manager for KHS Mexico, Zinacantepec, Mexico. Phone: +52 (722) 276-2251 Market share of the Coca-Cola beverage brand around 10% worldwide and approximately 40% for Latin America As with its brewery and retail activities, the production of alcohol-free beverages began on FEMSA's home market of Mexico with the founding of Coca-Cola franchise Coca-Cola FEMSA in 1979. Another big step for Coca-Cola FEMSA was to acquire Panamerican Beverages (Panamco) in 2003. Since this date Coca-Cola FEMSA has been the second-largest bottler of Coca-Cola worldwide – and is also the leading supplier of the Coca-Cola brand range in Latin America. Other major acquisitions over the past few years have included Jugos del Valle, Refrigerantes Minas Gerais, Agua de los Angeles, and Agua Brisa. Coca-Cola FEMSA is thus continuing to steadily grow. At present the company produces the Coca-Cola FEMSA range at over 30 sites in Latin America, achieving annual sales of approximately 2.5 billion unit cases (one unit case contains 24 8-ounze units), which is equal to about 14 billion liters of non-alcoholic beverages. All told, Coca-Cola FEMSA thus accounts for about 10% of the worldwide sales volume of Coca-Cola brand beverages and for around 40% of Coca-Cola beverage sales in Latin America. Sales of approximately 7 billion liters in Mexico alone Looking at the base market for Coca-Cola FEMSA and thus the Mexican market, the company has a share of about 45% in the sales of Coca-Cola brand beverages, supplying approximately 50 million consumers from roughly 620 points of sale with around 1.24 billion unit cases (approx. 7 billion liters). This means that Coca-Cola FEMSA is the biggest beverage filling company in Mexico and the number one supplier of carbonated soft drinks and still, alcohol-free beverages. On the market for water, for instance, Coca-Cola FEMSA is the clear leader in Mexico. Classic Coca-Cola beverage still the consumer favorite Coca-Cola FEMSA's distribution area within Mexico focuses chiefly on the center with the capital of Mexico City, and also on the southeastern part of the country – with the exception of Yucatán and Quintana Roo. The biggest Coca-Cola FEMSA sellers are brand products Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola light, and Coca-Cola zero, followed by Fanta, Ciel, Jugos del Valle, Powerade, and Nestea. These are complemented by a number of other Coca-Cola FEMSA brand beverages, such as Beat, Delaware Punch, Fresca, Lift, Quatro, Senzano, Sprite, and Prisco, among others. Ixtacomitán – one of the Mexican production sites In full accordance with the Coca-Cola FEMSA philosophy, great importance is attached to product quality, the quality of the technical equipment, sustainable processes, and employee satisfaction at each and every production site. This naturally also applies to the Coca-Cola plant in Ixtacomitán, close to Villahermosa in the state of Tabasco. It was at this plant that the decision was again recently made to invest in KHS PET line technology, which not only satisfies the company's demand for top quality but also accounts for aspects of sustainability and provides ease of operation. Two KHS lines in two years The newest KHS line for Ixtacomitán is what is known as Line 6: the mirror image of Line 5 ordered from and installed by KHS in 2010. Both KHS lines are excellently equipped for bottling both carbonated and non-carbonated beverages in the Coca-Cola FEMSA brand range in non-refillable PET bottles and have been designed to take up the minimum of space. While Line 5 processes 1-liter, 2-liter, 2.5-liter, and 3-liter PET bottles, Line 6 fills 1-liter, 2-liter, and 3-liter containers and also the disposable, increasingly popular 0.6-liter PET bottle. New InnoPET Blomax Series IV generation of stretch blow molders provides plenty of advantages Line 6 can output 44,000 0.6-liter, 40,000 1-liter, 27,000 2-liter, and 19,000 3-liter one-way PET bottles an hour. The non-returnable PET bottles are manufactured in an InnoPET BloFill monoblock by an InnoPET Blomax Series IV stretch blow molder with 20 blow stations. This stretch blow molder meets Coca-Cola FEMSA's demands for a sustainable system to the highest degree. In the development of the InnoPET Blomax Series IV from KHS value was explicitly attached to maintaining process stability and giving the highest level of availability while using the minimum amount of energy – and thus reducing the overall operating costs as far as possible. Another significant change was that as opposed to the previous generation of stretch blow molders, the InnoPET Blomax Series III, the new Series IV only requires about 50% of the space for its heating module. This has been made possible by now heating preforms using near infrared instead of classic infrared radiation. Compared to the conventional stretch blow molder, this modification not only saves space but also cuts energy costs by up to 40%. Monoblock saves on air conveyor Following the stretch blow molding process, in the InnoPET BloFill monoblock concept the PET bottles are transferred to a modular transfer segment which removes the freshly blown PET bottles from the blow station and adjusts their spacing according to the configuration of the filling system. The second module in the monoblock is an airlock which ensures that the filling and packaging areas remain strictly separate. As both carbonated and non-carbonated beverages are destined for filling in the monoblock, the third module in the setup is a cooling segment. Here, the bases of the PET bottles are cooled before they are filled with carbonated beverages. This is done to ensure that pressurization process required in the filling of carbonated beverages does not affect the perfect state of the PET bottles. The filler system for all filling tasks with plenty of extras Both carbonated beverages and still soft drinks are filled by the volumetric, computer-controlled Innofill DRV-VF/N filler with 136 filling stations. If carbonated beverages are filled, just two pneumatic cylinders per filling valve control the entire filling process, including lifting the bottle and sealing the bottle mouth against the filling valve. Using only two switching functions is made possible by transmitting the counter-pressure to the neck ring holder by means of aseptic-compliant expansion bellows. This means that the force of the counter-pressure is also used to press the PET bottle against the filling valve. In doing so, the force of the pressure exerted on the PET bottles is regulated automatically according to the filling pressure. This means that the pressure forces couldn't be more precise, thus ensuring both gentle handling of the plastic bottles and subsequently minimized stress on the sealing system. A press of a button switches the Innofill DRV VF/N over from pressure filling to the pressureless filling process used to bottle still beverages. To this end another pneumatic cylinder is switched in per filling valve. With this pressureless filling method the PET bottle is pressed against the filling valve by spring force. Another plus of the Innofill DRV VF/N is that swirlers are using for filling. The filling principle is as follows: once the filling valve is opened, the liquid flows into the plastic bottle down the walls of the bottle. The swirler controls the formation of the liquid film – fully oriented to each filling phase – both at high and low liquid flow rates. The advantage is obvious: there are no spray elements protruding into the bottle, thus ensuring top hygienic conditions and high filling flexibility by using the swirler. Whatever the shape of the plastic container, the bottle can be switched over and filled without any need for changeover work. KHS blending equipment gives maximum dosing accuracy KHS process engineering is also integrated into the line concept in the shape of an Innopro Promix blender. The Innopro Promix is comprised of the water and syrup component deaerating, dosing, and mixing processing steps and subsequent carbonating. Maximum product and gas dosing accuracy as well as exact non-loss startup are the attributes of a system that simultaneously ensures consistent high product quality. Buffer table allows system to 'breathe' After filling level and closure inspection, the PET bottles are conveyed along buffer sections towards the bottle warmer, labeler, and packaging machine. Incorporated into the buffer system is a buffer table, which ensures both gentle handling of the PET bottles and optimum utilization of the production area. When they enter onto the buffer table the PET bottles are distributed by dividing the flow of containers into two partial flows, which pass by the tip of a permanently mounted diverter plow without contact. Using a patented chain control, the container flow is automatically separated. Several drives ensure an optimum scaling down of the conveying speed and a low-pressure transfer of the PET bottles onto the buffer system discharge. Optimum system further optimized by the Innopack Kisters SP Advanced making the impossible possible The labeled bottles are shrink packed by an Innopack Kisters SP Advanced shrink packer. It arranges 0.6-liter PET bottles into shrink packs of either 12 or 24, 1-liter PET bottles into shrink packs of either 6 or 12, and larger PET bottles into shrink packs of either 4, 6, or 8. The machine body of the Innopack Kisters SP Advanced is designed in the shape of a cube. Together with the new protective hood concept, this offers operators the overriding advantage of an even better view of the inner workings of the machine. The hygienic design of the new Advanced series also holds many benefits. The support systems for the function modules are made of painted tubes, for instance, which are permanently welded to the machine. Similarly, the drainage system for cleaning media, rinsing water, and any product runoff has been optimized by the use of drip trays arranged underneath the function modules to ensure maximum hygiene. Further growth while keeping to FEMSA values – with the help of KHS technology of course Thanks to the new KHS line, the growing demand for Coca-Cola brand products in the Mexican state of Tabasco can be met and FEMSA's clear growth strategy adhered to, which the company shall continue to pursue with Coca-Cola FEMSA both in Mexico and on other Latin-American markets. This growth is not to be at the expense of FEMSA's basic principles, however; it goes without saying that the FEMSA values of active social responsibility, commitment to the environment, focus on quality, and orientation towards innovation shall be upheld. With its innovative filling and packaging technology and the subsequent outstanding quality of FEMSA's Coca-Cola brand products, KHS is helping FEMSA to adhere to these values every inch of the way.
