JDE Joure is part of JDE Peet’s, producer of a.o. Douwe Egberts coffee, L’Or and PickWick tea. The Liquid packaging department at their Joure coffee factory packages liquid coffee solutions for the hospitality industry.

Breaking the Knowledge Bottleneck

The packaging department faced several critical operational issues in their daily production process. Operators often struggled to solve malfunctions independently, relying heavily on a small group of experienced staff who held most of the critical knowledge. This created a bottleneck where team leaders and production managers were frequently overwhelmed with problem-solving requests. The situation was further complicated by an existing work instruction system that proved difficult to navigate, while production line efficiency needed significant improvement.

Digital Transformation: Making Expert Knowledge Accessible 24/7

JDE Joure addressed these challenges by implementing ELICIT Online, creating a comprehensive digital knowledge base accessible to all operators. The new system features a user-friendly interface with intuitive navigation, enhanced by visual documentation through photos and videos. The solution includes detailed documentation of the twenty most important machine settings and built-in testing functionality for skill assessment. Particularly valuable is the system’s detailed mapping of cause-and-effect relationships for troubleshooting.

Jan Jonker, a 30-year veteran operator, confirms: “Colleagues can now troubleshoot more independently.” Raymond van Dijk, team leader, adds: “ELICIT Online is significantly more user-friendly than our previous system. I can test employees’ practical knowledge and guide their development more effectively.”

Measurable Success: From Bottlenecks to Breakthroughs

The implementation of ELICIT Online has delivered substantial improvements across the operation. User adoption showed immediate success, with system usage surging from 400 to 1,800 clicks within just two months. The facility has seen a significant reduction in dependency on senior staff, while unplanned stops have become shorter and long breakdowns less frequent.

The long-term benefits are equally impressive, with reduced downtime and fewer quality deviations contributing to a more efficient production environment. The system has created clear role definitions between operators and technical staff, while providing better training and development opportunities. The company is tracking these efficiency improvements with projected benefits extending into 2025.

“Where is the biggest profit in this? Fewer questions and shorter downtimes. We arrive at solutions faster and see fewer quality deviations,” says Van Dijk. Jonker adds: “The unplanned stops are a lot shorter. We can fix problems earlier, making large, long breakdowns less frequent.”