STiR coffee and tea magazine

STiR coffee and tea 9 Nicola Panzani, CEO of IMA Petroncini and Sales Director of IMA Coffee Hub, explains that this new technology offers flexibility and quality consistency for medium and large-scale roasters with a wide range of connected solutions. "Starting with roasting controls, we offer the semi-automatic control Maestro Avantgarde with specialty roasters, and the fully automatic Opera 30 and Orches- tra controls for industrial roasters up to 720 kg per batch," Panzani says. Understanding the roasters' need of fre- quent recipe changes, Panzani highlights that the Orchestra system is designed to maintain consistent quality from the first batch to the last one, ensuring uniform color, moisture, and taste, over time. In collaboration with automation experts and research institutes, IMA Coffee Hub has launched AI-Learning to Roast, a project fo- cusing on machine learning intelligence to an- ticipate unexpected situations and minimize fine-tuning operations in the roasting process. Panzani notes that roasting and packag- ing plants often have separate control systems, making it challenging to trace and identify criti- cal issues. The new IMA Coffee Hub's Coffee Control Room addresses this by allowing full control of process parameters through auto- matic data exchange, tailored for medium and industrial plants to monitor and trace produc- tion lines. "The system automates production flow from raw coffee receiving to final packaging, providing complete visibility and traceability. It summarizes daily production through a dash- board interface, identifying coffee quantities and qualities in storage silos and suggesting when and where to load new products, thus avoiding production and contamination er- rors," Panzani says. Panzani emphasizes that modern produc- tion facilities often use complex equipment, making it difficult to track production and lim- iting traceability. The Coffee Control Room's unique dashboard integrates roasting and pack- aging data with plant management systems, creating a fully automatic end-to-end solution. Equipped with smart functions, the Cof- fee Control Room identifies underperform- ing components and keeps machines running optimally through real-time information and smart tips, minimizing downtime, and optimiz- ing workflow. This increases production yield and reduces discarded parts, making it cost- effective. "IMA Coffee Hub's Coffee Control Room exemplifies its innovative spirit and dedication to supporting coffee roasters," says Panzani. "The company aims to meet the evolving needs of the coffee industry, offering quality solutions that enhance performance across all processing and packaging stages, from consul- tancy and design to production planning and turnkey solutions." For more information, visit www.ima.it/coffee.

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