Expansion for Oatbase Production

As demand for oat-milk soared, SunOpta assessed if they could quadruple production at their existing facility of oatbase, a liquid concentrate made by breaking down whole, rolled oats via an enzymatic process.

SunOpta partnered with Dennis Group to help them identify a way to not just expand capacity but also to improve consistency and quality of the product. Part of the goal was to increase the percentage of solids in the end product. Dennis Group engineers had to work closely with the SunOpta R&D team to refine the process, scale it up, and automate it in order to be able to achieve the desired throughput on the new line.

There were a lot of design changes that occurred after the initial feasibility study, and it became evident that SunOpta’s goals couldn’t be achieved entirely within the existing footprint of the Alexandria facility. A 10,000 SF building expansion was necessary, and work on the slab had to commence immediately during the winter.

The team was able to quadruple production capacity with the same staffing model by automating the process. The batch processing was fully automated, and product quality is more consistent by utilizing mass meters, loss-in-weight feeders, and optimized PID controls. CIP and process systems maximize production by using mix-proof valves and segregated CIP circuits so that sanitation can start cleaning upstream while processing finishes downstream.

The project finished on-time despite a winter work program and substantial COVID-19 related equipment delays.