OVERVIEW
“Milk doesn’t wait,” repeats and emphasizes Marcello Vezzani, cashier of Rubbianino Social Dairy, who explains the decision that led the cooperative in San Bartolomeo – close to Reggio Emilia – to rely on Progema Engineering, a leader company in technologies and automation solutions for the dairy sector part of our Group.
“We needed a partner who could support us in all stages of production. It was crucial for us to be certain of timing and results of our work” says Marcello Vezzani. Part of his interview talks about the history of the cooperative, which was founded in the 1960s by a group of 60 companies and members from all over the territory.
“From the beginning until the decision to automate the Parmigiano Reggiano production process-everyone delivered milk in steel bins to have it processed completely by hand. This led to the possibility of errors and diversity in daily production. Over time we have evolved, both from a management and technological point of view: today 9 members, 2 cheesemakers and 5 employees work in the dairy factory. We produce about 23,000 wheels of cheese a year, all high-quality Parmigiano Reggiano.” Marcello Vezzani explains.
The turning point came in 2014, when the Social Dairy decided to rely on Progema Engineering to install an automated turnkey plant from milk receiving to Parmigiano wheels storage.
Progema has more than 30 years of activity and considerable experience in supplying turnkey solutions for the storage, refrigeration and production of Grana Padano and Parmigiano Reggiano. Progema has immediately proved to be the ideal partner for the needs of the cooperative, for the wide range of products offered, the constant maintenance guaranteed and the updating of the machines supplied.
“Progema Engineering’s plant helps us in all kinds of activities we carry out inside the dairy factory, giving concrete support in compensating the labour shortage that this sector has been suffering from long time, and providing the planning and control activities with a series of fundamental data.” says Davide Mortara, cheesemaker at Rubbianino Social Dairy since 2017.
“All the equipment – from milk receiving to refrigeration tanks, to the flocculators that separate milk from cream – are self-cleaning and require minimal maintenance, provided continuously by Progema” Marcello Vezzani points out “The only remaining human labor-intensive stage is the cooking phase, where the milk is processed manually in the double bottom vats, and the curds are hung in bundles that are then transported to the molding area through a mechanized plant.“
Once the bundles arrive at their destination, they are unhooked from the Express trolley to the holding and draining area. They are then taken to the holding chambers manually, where they undergo the operations of turning the molds in the first few hours.
“For the future, together with Progema we are evaluating the possibility of automating this phase as well, through a cheese wheel tipper that can relieve the intensity of manual labour on the first, second and third day of production” concludes Marcello Vezzani.
THE INTERVIEW