In addition to a range of new and existing inspection systems, Mettler-Toledo had on display at PACK EXPO Las Vegas the newest release of the software that ties all those systems together. ProdX, developed for a range of bulk and packaged food applications, helps processors monitor their inspection equipment remotely and easily collect, save, search, and share data to protect food safety, comply with regulatory requirements, and improve process efficiencies. Version 2.6 introduces an optimized web dashboard, automated reporting capabilities, and more.
“We collect data from all of our product inspection devices—vision systems, metal detection, X-ray, checkweighers,” says Victor Kelly, connectivity solutions consultant for Mettler-Toledo Product Inspection. The various systems are used to check for errors in labeling, damaged packages, metal or other foreign contaminants, and more. Regardless of the technology being used or issue found, the ProdX software can collect and track the data involved—images of skewed caps, signal strength of contaminants, etc. “We have the capability of documenting the reason for that contaminant; why that contaminant was in the product. And then we can document the corrective action for the contaminant. Somebody else can come in and add to those remarks, and it gives us a time/date stamp for those remarks.”
 | Also on display at PACK EXPO Las Vegas: Watch how easy it is to access Mettler-Toledo's new X2 X-ray inspection system for cleaning and maintenance. |
At Mettler-Toledo’s booth, Kelly demonstrated how easy it is for users to document issues, add comments, verify, etc. “It now becomes a permanent record in that contaminant so that if an auditor comes, they have permanent access to it,” he explains. “They can have reports, and it’ll include these comments right in that report.”
ProdX 2.6’s updated web dashboard is designed to mimic smart devices, giving it a more intuitive user interface to easily monitor data, review contamination events, and run reports from a web client on any in-network PC, all without downloading an app.
The latest version of ProdX also enables users to automatically generate final evaluations and summary reports. For example, processors can automatically trigger a final evaluation at the end of every product run, shift, or day. Users can also program daily, weekly, or monthly reports in a variety of formats and delivery options.
ProdX is compatible with virtually all Mettler-Toledo metal detectors, checkweighers, X-ray systems, and vision inspection systems. For X-ray systems, Version 2.6 includes a new Product Validation capability to prevent product settings from being changed and to display a visual indicator to quickly confirm the system is running an established, validated recipe. If any parameters are changed, Product Validation saves a record of the login used and what setting changes were made.
