Creating A New Manufacturing Paradigm
For over 35 years, Avril has been a pioneer in sustainable oilseed and protein production, reinvesting profits into its agro-industrial sectors and supporting French farmers. Committed to industrial excellence and a circular economy, Avril has continually optimized its operations. By 2020, however, traditional methods like Six Sigma and Lean manufacturing had reached their limits.
Avril faced a critical challenge: making sense of the 700 to 1,000 parameters generated during each production process to uncover new ways to improve efficiency and reduce waste. The answer wasn’t more data but data empowerment, and putting actionable insights into the hands of their teams.
Empowering Smarter Manufacturing Decisions
“We needed a system to enhance our capabilities, not replace our expertise,” says Pierre Usseglio-Viretta, Industry 4.0 Project Manager at Avril.
Avril chose Braincube for its ability to deliver autonomy and clarity. Unlike solutions reliant on external analysis, Braincube’s Product Clones enabled Avril to fully own their data, processes, and decisions. Customized dashboards and advanced analytics tools equipped teams at every level to pinpoint critical parameters, implement improvements, and monitor progress effectively.
“We knew we had to move beyond firefighting,” said Andrew Jones, Senior Engineer Fellow at International Paper. “Our teams wanted to shift to proactive decision-making.”
From Beating Challenges to Scalable Success
Avril’s first project focused on optimizing its oilseed crushing process. By analyzing historical data and identifying key parameters, they achieved notable wins:
- Improved yield and energy efficiency, reducing resource waste across operations.
- Enhanced maintenance strategies, shifting from reactive to predictive models.
- Cross-departmental integration, expanding the application of Braincube to logistics, supply chain, and plant-wide reporting.
Keeping Humans at the Center
Avril’s implementation reflects a core belief: technology should enhance human decision-making, not replace it. By combining Braincube’s AI-guided insights with operator expertise, employees remain central to every decision.
“We must make sure humans stay central to the process,” says Usseglio-Viretta. “Braincube doesn’t make decisions for us—it helps us make them better and faster.”
This collaborative approach has boosted efficiency while fostering a culture of innovation and accountability. Employees are empowered to take ownership of their work and embrace change.
Scaling for a Smarter Future
What began as a project to optimize crushing has grown into a vision for plant-wide excellence. From improving storage and sales capacity to enhancing pump and motor efficiencies, Braincube is now integral to Avril’s operations.
As Braincube rolls out to more sites, Avril’s teams continue to unlock new opportunities for sustainability and growth. Personalized dashboards and predictive analysis help align daily actions with long-term goals.
“We’re proud of what we’ve achieved using Braincube,” says Usseglio-Viretta. “And we’re excited to see how it shapes the future of our operations.”
