Icelandic seafood company Brim has signed an agreement with Marel for the installation of high-tech equipment and software that the processing systems manufacturer said will make its Reykjavik factory the most advanced whitefish processing facility in the world.
Installation is scheduled for mid-2020 and will include several new developments in processing technology, including a quality control system and the latest robot technology that will automate and streamline production.
“We are very happy to be taking part in this exciting project,” Marel Fish Managing Director Sigurður Ólason said. “This is a historic agreement for a facility that will truly put smarter processing in action.”
Due to the complexity of the high-volume installation, Marel presented the solution to Brim executives in virtual reality. This meant they could walk through a simulation of the complete facility to see how the integrated solution will work, and to make use of resulting insights for planning purposes.
Training will also take place in virtual reality ahead of installation, so that by the time machines and software are up and running, Brim employees will have a working knowledge of the set up.
Brim’s installation will include a high-tech packing system using 10 robots, and three FleXicut pinboning and portioning lines, including trimming lines and automatic product distribution.
It will also be the first fish processor to install Marel’s newest SensorX bone detection system for fresh products.
Marel said the software within and connecting the machinery will be central to the value of the solution, and that this will give Brim full traceability throughout the production process.
“We are excited here at Brim, and look forward to participating in this hi-tech whitefish processing project. The knowledge and experience of our staff in the treatment and processing of seafood will serve us very well in this project,” Brim Managing Director Ægir Páll Friðbertsson said.
Earlier this week, Brim announced it had signed a contract to buy the Icelandic fisheries companies Fiskvinnslan Kambur and Grábrók ehf, both based in Hafnarfjörður, for a total ISK 3.15 billion (USD 25.1 million, EUR 22.5 million). The two firms have a total catch allocation of 2,850 metric tons (MT), most of which is cod.
Photo courtesy of Marel and Brim
Pictured: Ægir Páll Friðbertsson, managing director of Brim; Gísli Kristjánsson, production manager at Brim; Óskar Óskarsson, sales manager fish at Marel; and Sigurður Ólason, managing director, Marel Fish
