Hello Cheese Days-goers. I am honored and excited to represent Green County for the 2016 festival. My name is Jana Duval Crandall and I grew up on Hefty-Blum Homestead Farms, right outside of New Glarus and Monticello. Swiss heritage runs deep in my family and boy are we proud of it. I work at Quest Industrial, the nation's largest direct cheese contact robotic integrator, as its Marketing Manager. In this role, I have had the pleasure of meeting and working with some of the world's most renowned cheese makers and industry leaders as well as visiting some of the most technologically advanced dairy plants in the area. As promised, this month's article is about how technology is changing cheese production.
Quest Industrial's niche is in the dairy industry and we understand the standards and regulations that dairy plants have to meet. Our equipment is designed for washdown environments with USDA-compliant materials. Our engineers and experts go through training on a regular basis to stay current on sanitary standards, safety and robotic standards. Did you know that with robotics, infractions are reduced to almost nothing? Because robots are completing food processing tasks, there is a much lower risk of foreign contaminants from entering the food being handled.
Robotics can help with tasks that are difficult and repetitive, and unsafe for humans to complete. Automating the tasks reduces work-related lost-time claims and employee downtime and also speeds up the production process. Most people think that robotics take away jobs - it is actually the opposite. For every one robot Quest Industrial installs, at least five new jobs are created. Are you wondering why? Robots need people to operate and maintain them, and with the robots in operation, production increases along with a need for other jobs within the plant. It becomes a good problem of exponential growth.
Robotics are versatile and if done right, compact and intuitive, while maintaining a higher level of efficiency. Quest Industrial covers the needs of dairy plants from brine all the way to storage. Quest was the first robotic integrator to have raw cheese handling capabilities without covers, because of our unique "Qleen Qoat" coating system, which has proven to be reliable and able to withstand the harshest chemicals used in the industry, not to mention brine environments as well. Quest's engineers have designed robotic equipment that erects, packs and seals boxes; palletizes various-sized products; handles raw food; and orientates, cuts, loads and conveys various types of products. Please visit www.got-bot.com for more information.
I hope to see you out and about this month at the Cheese Auction in Milwaukee, Monroe's Business Expo, and the Grilled Cheese Contest in Dodgeville. Remember, if you have a child interested in the Green County Cheese Days Prince and Princess Contest, please submit the application before May 23. Also, Green County Cheese Days is seeking vendors for the Arts and Crafts Show held on Sept. 17. More than 100 booths were filled at the 2014 show, with vendors in various mediums including yard and garden art, soaps, sculpture, paintings, clothing and more.
For more "Cheesy" information visit the official Cheese Days website at www.cheesedays.com. Don't forget this year's button to show off your Cheese Days pride. Mark your calendars for Sept. 16-18 and invite your family and friends to the most entertaining weekend of the year, only six months away.
- Jana Duval Crandall is the 2016 Cheese Days Ambassador
Quest Industrial's niche is in the dairy industry and we understand the standards and regulations that dairy plants have to meet. Our equipment is designed for washdown environments with USDA-compliant materials. Our engineers and experts go through training on a regular basis to stay current on sanitary standards, safety and robotic standards. Did you know that with robotics, infractions are reduced to almost nothing? Because robots are completing food processing tasks, there is a much lower risk of foreign contaminants from entering the food being handled.
Robotics can help with tasks that are difficult and repetitive, and unsafe for humans to complete. Automating the tasks reduces work-related lost-time claims and employee downtime and also speeds up the production process. Most people think that robotics take away jobs - it is actually the opposite. For every one robot Quest Industrial installs, at least five new jobs are created. Are you wondering why? Robots need people to operate and maintain them, and with the robots in operation, production increases along with a need for other jobs within the plant. It becomes a good problem of exponential growth.
Robotics are versatile and if done right, compact and intuitive, while maintaining a higher level of efficiency. Quest Industrial covers the needs of dairy plants from brine all the way to storage. Quest was the first robotic integrator to have raw cheese handling capabilities without covers, because of our unique "Qleen Qoat" coating system, which has proven to be reliable and able to withstand the harshest chemicals used in the industry, not to mention brine environments as well. Quest's engineers have designed robotic equipment that erects, packs and seals boxes; palletizes various-sized products; handles raw food; and orientates, cuts, loads and conveys various types of products. Please visit www.got-bot.com for more information.
I hope to see you out and about this month at the Cheese Auction in Milwaukee, Monroe's Business Expo, and the Grilled Cheese Contest in Dodgeville. Remember, if you have a child interested in the Green County Cheese Days Prince and Princess Contest, please submit the application before May 23. Also, Green County Cheese Days is seeking vendors for the Arts and Crafts Show held on Sept. 17. More than 100 booths were filled at the 2014 show, with vendors in various mediums including yard and garden art, soaps, sculpture, paintings, clothing and more.
For more "Cheesy" information visit the official Cheese Days website at www.cheesedays.com. Don't forget this year's button to show off your Cheese Days pride. Mark your calendars for Sept. 16-18 and invite your family and friends to the most entertaining weekend of the year, only six months away.
- Jana Duval Crandall is the 2016 Cheese Days Ambassador