Spearheading innovations in industrial automation – Albert Miranda
We give world class automation solution for food and confectionary industry – Albert Miranda
In today’s competitive world we just cannot survive without automation says, Mr. Albert Miranda, Managing Director of the Navi Mumbai based Miranda Automation Pvt. Ltd. The company is engaged in design, development and manufacture of automated food handling and processing systems, harnessing PLC, and SCADA based industrial automation. Mr. Miranda an M. Tech (Chemical Engineering) from IIT Mumbai, has had several years experience in reputed MNCs before starting Miranda Engineering way back in 1991.
Mr. Miranda has pioneered and specialized in offering one stop customized solution to the customer in the field of industrial automation, bulk materials handling, process equipment, plant utility, and energy conservation. He has received a number of awards from the confectionary industry in particular for spearheading technological innovations. Mr. P. K. Balasubramanian spoke to Mr. Albert Miranda the man at the helm at MAPL to understand the strength of the company and its future thrust.
We can very well call Mr. Albert Miranda the Biscuit Technologist of India. He richly deserves this sobriquet for his pioneering efforts in automating the manufacture of biscuits in this country so that they are available for an economical price.
Miranda Mania
The history of Miranda mania dates back to 1971 when Mr. Albert Miranda came out of IIT Bombay with his Masters in Chemical Engineering. Of course he worked in the industry for some time, but the fire in him to do something on his own in the field of automation made him restless. It was in 1991 that his dream came true when he started Miranda Engineering Pvt. Ltd. He had a penchant for biscuits, and he went deep into studying its ingredients and its process of manufacture. The engineer in Mr. Miranda experimented, designed and came up with an unique biscuit making plant that automated the entire process of biscuit making starting from sourcing the inputs, mixing the ingredients, handling of sugar granules, flour handling, pulverizing sugar, liquid dozing, preparing the syrup, adding minor ingredients, continuous mixing and so on. It did not take long for the biscuit industry to take advantage of this new system and the benefits of automation. To simplify to the end user the very nature of his expertise he started Miranda Automation Pvt. Ltd. in 2002 and since then has continued to push the barriers of innovation and technology.
Today Miranda Systems are churning out tonnes of biscuits in more than 100 locations and customer places like Britannia, Parle, Anmol, Priyagold and so on. The have also gone beyond the shores of India to Bangladesh, Africa and the Gulf countries. The industry has appreciated and accepted the innovations spearheaded by Mr. Albert Miranda and acknowledged the benefits of automation like improving the mixing quality, ensuring consistency in quality, minimizing wastage, consuming minimum energy and using bare minimum manpower. No wonder MAPL has won awards and appreciation from big names in confectioneries like Britannia, Parle, Pepsico, Anmol and Priyagold for its contribution towards automation spanning over two decades.
Mr. Albert Miranda doesn’t take full credit for his inventions. He says, “My sons Joel and Daniel, the former an IT expert and the latter a Mechanical Engineer, who joined the business alongwith a team of professionals have contributed immensely to these developments.”
Tasting success in biscuit making, MAPL soon widened its horizon and started applying automation to the entire gamut of confectioneries.
The World’s Best
The spices & minor ingredients dosing system is a recent addition to the range of MAPL’s futuristic products. Today all chefs are using volumetric basis for adding ingredients. It can vary from time to time. There are so many readymade spices available in the market. But you do not know their quality and freshness. The aroma of spices will be natural if they are freshly ground. There are millions of recipes available for processing food. At the press of a button you can select the recipe and get it ground automatically.
MAPL has now developed a completely automated system to dispense correctly weighed quantities of different ingredients such as chilli flakes, black pepper, turmeric, cumin seed, coriander, etc. The dispenser will weigh each ingredient in correct quantity in grams and dispense and discharge the quantity required into the mixer grinder. Along with correct quantity water/vinegar and oil. When the ground paste is ready, an alarm will go off. This paste can then be added to meat or vegetables. Thus you need not have a qualified chef to manage the show.
The same machine can be used for ayurvedic medicines or cosmetics. One can feed in the ailment and the machine will choose the recipe and prepare the concoction including boiling or powder or paste. This machine can be remotely operated using mobile connectivity!
Narrating the development of a continuous mixer for Sone Papdi, Mr. Miranda says the system makes best use of the ‘just-in -time’ principle. The mixer has all the tools & tackles and it does everything on time. Hence there is less power consumption, optimum use of space and there is no material degradation. Plus the quality is at its best.
Describing the company’s approach to new developments, involving customization, Mr. Miranda says his team first studies the product and its operation and views it from different angles, work out different solutions and try them out in in-house R&D before proposing the final set-up. In the continuous mixing system we have implemented ‘just-in-time’ with proper time frame, requirement of power, space, controlled usage of fresh materials, etc.
MAPL has designed and supplied an automated confectionery manufacturing unit to Sweet s of Oman, Muscat. “This plant is totally Maintained by us using web connectivity”, reveals Mr. Miranda. “It is so user-friendly that even a technician can operate the machine. No one has such a system in the whole world.”
MAPL has customized equipment for automation in the paint industry, ayurvedic manufacture and in pharma industry too. The company has three manufacturing units in MIDC/TTC Industrial Area, Rabale, Navi Mumbai. It has applied for six patents so far.
The Challenges Ahead
The challenges in automation in the domain of confectionery manufacture are manifold. The foremost thing is the accuracy of dosing of ingredients, the other is high temperature to be controlled for cooking products. Sophisticated SCADA systems ensure these parameters. Furthermore the equipment is designed as per GMT, so that there is minimum holdup in the system and then there is CIP (Cleaning & Processing). It is a totally enclosed system untouched by human hand so hygiene is 100%. The equipment is made of stainless steel so that there is no corrosion. Comparing the functioning of the equipment to human body, Mr. Miranda says by virtue of Just-In-Time and continuous processing the energy requirement is minimum. Every stage is utilized and there is no idle time anywhere. Maximum utility of the product is achieved in terms of taste, efficacy and dispersion.
MAPL is dealing with giants in the industry like Parle, Britannia and others. On asked how the company could maintain the wavelength, Mr. Miranda says, ‘Our continuous effort to innovate new techniques to solve individual problems has kept us together and they trust us on all our activities because we have not failed in any venture. Talking of automation, Mr. Miranda says, ‘Anything and everything is possible, if there is a limitation it is in our imagination. We have even added materials handling to the system wherever required this is for powder handling of granules and then there is a conveyor to move the finished product. The level of automation is such that you require just one person to press the button and activate the system. The rest is taken over by the machine.’
The latest
To know the latest coming out of this crucibles? Moving from Masala Dosing, MAPL has come out with a Body Massager which will be a boon to Spas and health centers. It is designed to massage the body from top to bottom in lying position. A set of rolls will do the massaging. Then there is hammering action, pressure control by the pneumatics. This ensures proper blood circulation in all parts of the body. The entire process takes only 10 mins. It is so soothing that the person gets complete relaxation and goes into deep sleep! Miranda Automation is also working on a new project sponsored by an NGO attached to the Sion Hospital (MNT Group) to address malnutrition in children. ‘Both IIT Mumbai and IIT Kharaghpur have joined hands with MAPL in designing and developing a suitable automated system’.
Mr. Miranda feels that automation is not for eliminating people but for using the manpower for better utilization elsewhere. His machines are fully automated. In order to ensure optimum productivity and fast realization of ROI, we have to ensure continuous uptime of these robust machines. Even five percent of idle time would mean a sizable loss of productivity and revenue he cautions.
Mr. Albert Miranda has ambitious growth plans. ‘We have been stagnant for 3-4 years because of the upheavals in the industry we have survived because of our innovations. We are now looking up. Armed with a number of innovative products and services for automation we shall be able to achieve 50 crores turnover in the next 5 years. Export is certainly a thrust area for us. A major part of our present turnover comes from exports. This will be stepped up by another 10 % in the coming year’, envisions Mr. Miranda. We always look at problems out of the box and give our heart and soul to solve them adds Miranda. R&D and people are our major strength. With our kind of education, experience, industry exposure, and engineering acumen we can achieve anything, of course with God’s grace, declares Miranda.
