IFD Group is a Norfolk based manufacturer of food products specialising in the production of premium freeze-dried pet food for industry leading brands. In 2021 they built an innovative food manufacturing plant incorporating state-of-the-art freeze drying equipment to preserve the integrity of their raw ingredients and increase its shelf life.

Using their decades of experience in the sector, they searched for a flexible WMS that could integrate with their Katana MRP system to provide a “best in breed” solution to meet their current and future needs. They wanted to work with a WMS partner who would invest the time to understand their business and tailor the system to meet their very specific requirements. After undertaking a comprehensive search and selection process they chose OrderFlow as their WMS provider.

A tailored solution

IFD Group use OrderFlow to manage and track the receipt of their raw material, through the production of their freeze dried ingredients, which are then held in ambient storage before being used in the production of finished goods. The finished goods are then transferred to a second site from where they are despatched to trade and consumer customers.

Stock management for multiple production processes

• Receipt of incoming stock, OrderFlow communicates with IFD’s Katana MRP platform to receive deliveries against POs.
• OrderFlow integrates with IFD’s weighing equipment to capture the content weight of each container and give each one a unique licence plate label as it is received.
• The Katana integration allows new works orders created, triggering the picking of the required raw material stock for presentation into the freeze drying process.
• On completion of the freeze drying, the intermediate ingredients are then booked back into stock with the appropriate use-by-date and lot information.
• For the production of finished products, the MRP system sends a bill of materials to OrderFlow for all the ingredients required. OrderFlow then allocates stock based on volumes required and use-by-dates on ingredients held in stock.
• Once production of the final product is complete, OrderFlow receives the finished product stock and transfers it to the finished goods warehouse.