Production Process Evaluations and Yield Drivers Analysis in a Canned Tuna Factory: the Bolton Food case

This thesis project presents a project aimed at improving the production process for the production of canned tuna, with the goal of increasing raw material yield by reducing drip losses from the thawing stage to the filling of the tuna into cans. The proposed project was carried out in collaboration between the Department of Technique and Management of Industrial Systems of the University of Padua and the company Bolton Food S.p.A. This thesis was developed during an internship at Bolton Food’s production plant in Cermenate, the largest tuna canning plant in Europe, where huge volumes of raw material are processed. In a mass production context, even small inefficiencies can have a significant impact, making it crucial to reduce any losses. The scientific literature presented shows that better tuna management during production stages can reduce drip losses, improving raw material yield. Specifically, at the Cermenate plant, a 0.1% increase in yield is estimated to generate annual cost savings of about 100,000 euros. This work therefore aims to optimize the production process to maximize these parameters. In the first part of the paper, a mapping of the process is introduced, providing a detailed overview of the plant, particularly on the stages from thawing to can filling. Next, material throughput times, tuna temperature during processing, and refrigerated dwell time after thawing are studied. Through correlation analysis with yield, an understanding is provided of the impact these factors have on the current yield of tuna calculated at the plant. Through this thesis, the challenges encountered in analyzing company data are illustrated, providing insights on how to improve production processes in order to increase tuna yield and thus reduce costs, and finally making proposals for improving traceability and data collection.