Kraft Foods International, through its Biscuit Division in Latin America, has continued with its strategy of constant expansion by adding a new Imaforni line to its factory in Brazil, thus confirming its confidence in this supplier.
Mr. Gabriel Jardim, Director of Operations Snacks – Latin America, is responsible for the team of engineers that worked on the project.

Mr. Jardim, what were the main technical challenges of the project and in what way was Imaforni helpful?

“The main challenge was the magnitude of this project, as this is the biggest biscuit line we have ever installed in our plants in South America, and for a sensitive product. We couldn’t afford to make mistakes. Imaforni participated in the project right from the beginning, helping us with layouts and establishing the best equipment specifications and designs to comply with our requirements.”

Timing, for such a complex project, is a crucial factor too: what was your experience as regards delivery time and start up?

“Although Imaforni’s equipment was not the critical section of this project, we were very pleased that we were able to get the baking line earlier than we would have done from their competitors, so we could optimise our resources for the installation of several other areas of the project. Assembly of all the Imaforni equipment took 60 days and commissioning 10, which meant we could rapidly focus our resources on other phases of the project."

Since 1991, Kraft Latin America has had a long tradition of acquiring Imaforni lines, so you’ve been able to see most of their technical developments over the years. Can we have your comments about this?

"It’s interesting to see the improvements in Imaforni’s equipment, especially when visiting our plant in Brazil, where we have 4 Imaforni lines purchased from 1992 to 2003. All the lines run very well but improvements in the controls and electronics, and in their robustness and cleanliness is clear to see in the newer lines.One advantage we’ve noticed in the gradual improvement of Imaforni equipment is that all the technical changes we’ve requested have become standard design, without major cost increases. This attitude and flexibility in adapting the equipment to suit customers’ requirements has facilitated our relationship with Imaforni."