Automated system for packaging fresh meat with reduced waste/giveaway, processing time, human involvement and contamination

Project Information

AUTOMEATIC

Grant agreement ID: 775913

DOI

10.3030/775913

Project closed

EC signature date 1 May 2017

Start date 1 May 2017

End date 31 August 2017

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine, maritime and inland water research, and the bioeconomy

Total cost

€ 71 429,00

EU contribution

€ 50 000,00

Coordinated by

GRASSELLI SPA
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - AUTOMEATIC (Automated system for packaging fresh meat with reduced waste/giveaway, processing time, human involvement and contamination)

Reporting period: 2017-05-01 to 2017-08-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Grasselli is an Italian company, strongly focused on innovation that designs and produces equipment for the meat processing industry.
Automeatic is our new product that comes to fulfill a new market requirement of the poultry processing industry: the formation trays of sliced poultry of fixed-weight. Additionally it has significant benefits it terms of process hygiene, process throughput and manual labor reduction which has a dramatic impact on customer ROI.
In order to confirm the feasibility of Automeatic we have developed the present document that checks the technical, commercial and financial feasibility of our project. We have analyzed the technical developments ahead and prepared an execution plan for the new Automeatic system. We have performed an in-depth analysis of the target markets, out of which we have developed our market strategy and plan for commercialization. Financially, we have drafted a 3-year financial forecast which has confirmed the potential return on investment of Automeatic.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

Activities performed and results obtained:
Task 1: Technical viability plan: We have evaluated the technical developments necessary to implement, test and validate the new Automeatic to reach our technical goals. We have estimated resources, costs and timing and prepared a technical risk assessment defining mitigation and contingency plans.
Task 2 Commercialisation plan: A detailed market analysis has been conducted which includes the international market of cold meat/poultry processing equipment, its barriers, and the risks to be overcome. We have developed a commercialization plan which is the result of our market research. IP protection alternatives and Freedom to Operate have been investigated and a new patent application has been filed. Activities to reach go-to-market stage have been planned.
Task 3 Financial plan: We have created an updated business plan which includes the evaluation of total investment, financial risks and mitigation strategies. We have performed a 3-year analysis on cash-flow and revenues. Budget for phase II has been estimated and required funding beyond the project has been analyzed.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Automeatic improves the efficiency of meat/poultry processing industry with regards to both yield maximization (through reduction of waste and giveaway) and costs savings (by a significant reduction in labour costs). It meets the specific industry challenges of resource efficiency and cost effectiveness.
Moreover, reduced manual handling translates into healthier and higher quality of food, reducing risks related to product contamination. It also increases product shelf life because the reduced exposure time of meat to the atmosphere.

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