From smart automation to optimised supply chains: from 2 to 5 February, exhibitors at ProSweets Cologne will be showcasing AI solutions that contribute to greater efficiency and flexibility in confectionery and snack production.
With their portfolio, the exhibitors at ProSweets in Cologne are focussing on modular systems for the confectionery and snack industry that provide both connectivity for existing systems and a high degree of scalability for new systems.The focus will be on the Interplay between industrial robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) on the one hand and the increasing Automation of the supply chain using AI on the other hand.
Process intelligence provides the necessary insights
Digitalisation enables companies to collect large amounts of data directly at the process level. AI has the potential to generate complex information from this data, to produce confectionery and snacks more efficiently and at the same time improve the quality of the products. Typical application scenarios include predictive maintenance and quality checks.
In this context, experts speak of technology-centric AI that works in the background, stabilises processes under variable conditions and emulates human decisions. On the „Expert Stage“ in Hall 10.1, presentations and panel discussions on all four days of the trade fair will focus on the following topics the various aspects of AI and machine learning from different perspectives. Visitors will learn in detail where the challenges lie during implementation and how to overcome implementation hurdles - for example in the area of supply chain management.
A special highlight is the Sweet Week Production Summit held for the first time This event brings together exhibitors and visitors from both trade fairs and presents best-practice examples that demonstrate the use of AI tools for cost-efficient and future-oriented production. The topic of „Process optimisation in production with the help of AI“ will also be covered comprehensively here.
Digital tools as problem solvers in the supply chain
The new „Sweet Week - Talks & Tasting“ stage also offers the opportunity to share experiences and network in order to successfully integrate AI into everyday operations. Using the example of a use case with Zentis, Matthias Banike, VP Business Development at OMMM Operations Management Solutions GmbH, will present the Advantages of AI-supported production and supply chain planning in the confectionery industry illustrate. It shows how software can give companies a decisive competitive edge in this highly competitive industry.
However, a look at the solutions at ProSweets Cologne 2025 also shows that, How artificial intelligence is already shaping the engineering of confectionery and packaging machines today. Digital twins and AI-based Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) are trends that offer enormous advantages for the development of complex technical systems. Thanks to simulation, the interaction between mechanics, software and food packaging can be visualised, verified and optimised in various scenarios using models - without prototypes and physical systems.Errors that can otherwise only be detected through extensive tests on the machine and thus found and rectified very late in the development process can be recognised at an early stage in this way.
Optimal packaging with deep learning
The fact that the latest simulation models are an efficient tool for packaging machine manufacturers is illustrated by the example of Gerhard Schubert GmbH. There, the AI models enable a decisive step towards a new type of robot movement. Previously, these movements had to be elaborately parameterised and manually brought up to speed on the machines. With „Schubert Motion“, a Software based on the use of artificial intelligence, this can be omitted.
Source: Koelnmesse
