IoT sensors increase efficiency and reduce costs

By replacing manual checks, Checkit Automated Monitoring enables food businesses of all sizes to operate safely, protect stock and comply with food safety regulations while boosting productivity and reducing costs.

Whether a single or multi-site food service, retail or manufacturing business, continuous monitoring of hazard points such as freezers, fridges and chilled food areas is vital for business operations. Manual monitoring is costly, inefficient and prone to errors, and as readings are only taken at infrequent intervals, there is no real-time view of operations or ability to see problems developing between checks. Switching to Checkit continuous Automated Monitoring releases staff resources from hours of manual checks, and provides full control over critical control points 24x7.

Delivering significant and tangible financial benefits, Checkit quickly pays for itself – it requires a labour saving of just two minutes a day to recoup the cost of a sensor. As well as reducing staff costs, Checkit Automated Monitoring saves money by cutting unnecessary food wastage, as temperature and humidity conditions in food storage and production areas are constantly optimised. Continuous monitoring also enables heating and cooling systems to be enhanced to be more efficient to cut energy bills. Checkit sensors will monitor the performance of equipment, such as fridges and freezers, to provide early warning of problems, allowing pre-emptive maintenance to be carried out and to enable a smooth running and profitable business.

Checkit Automated Monitoring offers a truly connected IoT approach and works alongside Checkit’s digital food safety and HACCP management system to provide a complete solution, with data from smart sensors and handheld devices automatically uploaded to the cloud-based Checkit Control Centre and displayed in the same, user friendly dashboard.

Through Checkit’s Control Centre dashboard, managers have real-time visibility of everything being monitored. Alerts are automatically triggered if sensor readings move outside set parameters, enabling fast corrective action to be taken. Powerful drill down capabilities give more detailed reporting, which can be accessed from any device and exported instantly, speeding up FSMA, HACCP and customer compliance audits.

“Across the food industry, businesses need to ensure they are meeting the highest possible safety and hygiene standards, while keeping a tight rein on costs,” says Dr Martin Nash, Product Manager, Checkit. “Our next gen automated monitoring solution meets both of these vital needs – it provides control over the food environment while increasing productivity as staff can be reassigned to other tasks, rather than spending countless hours manually checking and recording temperature and other readings. By applying advanced IoT technologies to monitoring, businesses become more proactive, spotting potential issues before they develop and ensuring quality at all times.”

Checkit Automated Monitoring can be installed and up and running within hours, and is available in two subscription packages designed to suit all sizes of business. The sensors have an anti-microbial casing and can be installed and relocated anywhere, while the Checkit Control Centre has been designed with ease of use in mind for food businesses of all sizes and can be accessed remotely from any internet enabled device.