Effective Weighing for Improved Product Quality

Flavor, color and caramel producer METAROM sells more than 5000 products to drink, dairy and ice cream makers in 60 countries. With one-hundred-plus balances, calibration is essential to the formulas of new custom flavors and decades-old caramel recipes.

METTLER TOLEDO shares METAROM’s “taste for precision.” Its metrology experts ensure everything from METAROM’s compact balances to its voluminous sensor-enabled storage tanks function at peak performance.

Weighing in on METAROM’s Manufacturing Process
Back in 1953, METAROM founder Maurice Metayer would have worked primarily with levels when measuring liquid ingredients at his blending plant. But times and methods change. Today, the company has ten manufacturing sites across six countries and 25 worldwide distributors. It uses weight as a more reliable standard for ingredient measurements.

High-volume liquid materials producers like METAROM have determined that weight provides more accurate amounts when creating bases and blends. Weighing eliminates variables such as foaming that can skew volume and impact consistency. And, as every drink, dairy or food manufacturer knows, ingredient consistency provides better-tasting, repeatable final products. So across the board, precise weighting technology allows the ISO 9001:2000-certified manufacturer to supply its clients with consistent blends and mixes that enhance their own manufacturing processes. And METTLER TOLEDO metrology experts are with them every step of the way.

Take, for example, METAROM’s Boves state-of-the-art production site in northern France. There, they manufacture METAROM’s entire range of flavors, colors and caramels in powders and glazes as well as water-soluble and fat-soluble liquids. Several specialized workshops have been set up, each focusing on a different aspect of production from development to packaging.

METAROM’s in-house R&D team—ten percent of its workforce—uses a highly technical lab to formulate and test new custom flavors. Raw ingredients are created in the “bases” workshop using METTLER TOLEDO IND690 weighing terminals connected to XS scales. METTLER TOLEDO experts suggested that customized marble worktops would provide a more stable weighing surface, which would in turn help METAROM food chemists ensure maximum precision by preventing vibration-related volume errors.

In its storage area, METAROM uses fourteen large-volume tanks fitted with weighing sensors, which provide more efficient stock management than level controllers. Expert calibration services from METTLER TOLEDO have helped streamline storage tank quality control. METTLER TOLEDO experts have also weighed in on the accuracy of METAROM’s floor-mounted, three-ton scale systems used to weigh hoppers and blenders, as well as the truck scales that measure items on the move.

Finally, in production areas like METAROM’s caramel workshop, copper pots mimic traditional cooking methods while natural extracts are processed in a high-tech, low-emissions distillation unit. Various balances reviewed by METTLER TOLEDO ensure recipes meet exacting, time-tested standards.

Comprehensive Calibration for METAROM’s Capital Assets
With over one hundred balances in operation, METAROM places great importance on accurately calibrated weighing assets. Mr. Gumez, the site’s maintenance and new works manager, is pleased he has entrusted this critical service operation to METTLER TOLEDO.

“I was looking for a weighing specialist that could work on equipment from different manufacturers with the necessary expertise to carry out metrological testing on compact balances, terminals and scales, as well as our large tanks with built-in sensors,” explained Mr. Gumez.

Mr. Manguet, the METTLER TOLEDO service manager for northeast France, conducted an onsite diagnosis of METAROM’s weighing equipment. He drew up a comprehensive yet efficient testing schedule to cover all the company’s diverse weighing assets and meet their drive for consistent quality.

“One way we helped streamline quality control efforts was to optimize how under-tank sensors are calibrated,” said Mr. Manguet. Tank capacities vary from 150 kg to ten tons. Using a volume counter linked directly to French Accreditation Agency COFRAC, it took METTLER TOLEDO experts only two days to effectively calibrate METAROM’s fourteen tanks.

Expertise to Ensure METAROM’s Future Success
From the very first meeting with METAROM, METTLER TOLEDO has helped anticipate future needs and provided advice on replacement scales, sharing useful metrology experience along the way.

“We have visited METTLER TOLEDO’s accredited calibration laboratory in Béthune and have seen their experts in action,” added Mrs. Roussel, production director at the Boves site. “Mr. Leroux, the metrology director at METTLER TOLEDO, gave us valuable information on metrological processes and helped us select the right equipment—including those marble tops in our ‘bases’ workshop.”

The METAROM and METTLER TOLEDO collaboration continues with quality in the balance. Studies using a new weight-based formulation traceability software tool at the Boves site are underway. The latest IND690 weighing terminals delivered to METAROM, equipped with Ethernet interfaces, are ready to communicate with the enhanced software package. METAROM and METTLER TOLEDO experts are also considering weighing sensors for alcohol storage tanks used in distillation.

Every action undertaken is expected to have a positive impact on product quality. The “taste for precision” shared by both METAROM and METTLER TOLEDO has produced a partnership that is sure to remain sweet for many years to come.