Exclusive: TNA set to make waves for ProSweets equipment and systems show

With ProSweets major equipment event just around the corner in Cologne, editor Neill Barston speaks exclusively to Thiago Roriz, chief operations officer for TNA Solutions on its cutting-edge use of virtual reality in its ever-evolving systems.

Pushing the boundaries of technical excellence within the confectionery sector is a mission Thiago Roriz has fully embraced with TNA Solutions, as the business evolves around the world (watch our exclusive video version of the interview below). The Australian-based chief operations officer reveals it has been richly rewarding leading company projects in varying locations across its international markets, which he enthuses have continued to play a key role in equipment innovation for the sector.

This was ably demonstrated at the last edition of Interpack in Dusseldorf, Germany, back in 2023 (below), which saw the business showcase its aspirations for virtual reality digital twin learning systems assisting plant-managers refine their equipment requirements. Such technology is certainly headline grabbing and is indicative of the direction of travel for major players within the packaging and processing sector, with TNA being among the first to market in placing its focus upon digital solutions enhancing its core machinery lines.

 

The company has made its mark with its flagship Robag vertical form fill and seal packaging system, plus moguls for gummy production, and flavouring machinery that has been installed with mid-size and major manufacturers throughout the world. But as the business has underlined, there’s no room for complacency amid an ever-shifting marketplace that has seen major challenges in recent years. From heightened production costs surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic and ingredients price rises, through to an ongoing issue of labour shortages in many territories, the demand for delivering machinery solutions that are ever-more efficient remains front and centre.

For his part leading TNA’s production operations, Thiago (centre, below), explains the past year has been notably successful, and he is keenly awaiting 2025’s ProSweets and parallel ISM events in Cologne, which will offer the business another significant opportunity to underline its capabilities. “The past year has been a great one for us. We’re seeing a huge growth in confectionery business.

“We acquired the NID business a while back now, and we’ve been expanding that since then with our sales teams, and we now have 30 offices around the world in order to be closer to our customers. “We have seen constant growth pretty much globally, but it has been particularly so in North America, Europe, Middle East, and some countries in Asia, where we have seen the confectionery business is very active and have had a lot of enquiries, orders and successful projects,” enthuses the COO, who originally hails from Brazil, but is presently enjoying life based in Sydney, Australia, where TNA’s confectionery machinery headquarters are located.

“ProSweets is very important us, and as a business we do between 25-30 shows a year, so being there in Cologne for confectionery is very in line with our strategy. We’ll be showing complete line expertise including our high capacity mogul system that we will be presenting, which is a system that has seen several upgrades from the maxi version, producing 6,000kg of products per hour capacity, which is around double of standard sized line,” explains Thiago, who says there will be a mini mogul line on its stand (Hall 10.1 Stand C018), catering for start-up enterprises, and those engaging with the burgeoning nutraceutical market. One of the great strengths of the major German show, he says, is its provision of a platform for networking with some of its biggest customers.

Passion for delivering innovation
As he notes on his own career, carrying out a broad role leading its activities across engineering, global sales, aftermarket and marketing responsibilities continues to pose its tests on a regular basis, yet it’s this sense of variety that is undoubtedly keeping him fully engaged. Reflecting on his own experiences, he says that after an early spell working in Australia joining the company in 2008, the chance to return to his native homeland in South America was a particular privilege in establishing the business within the region.

This in turn led to a project managing operations in Mexico for the fast developing Latin-American market, which he describes as a ‘great experience’ lasting six years. From there, the company’s founders, Nadia and Alf Taylor, who set up the business in Australia over 40 years ago for the snacks sector, invited Thiago for a fresh adventure back to ‘Oz’ to join its management board, which he is continuing to enjoy after nearly three years in post. He notes that the move back to Sydney has proved particularly enjoyable for he and his family, with the company offering a supportive environment for its employees.

Virtual reality move
Significantly, the business is on especially upbeat form in recently claiming a national export award in recognition of its international business activities.

Among the most striking developments the company is presently focusing upon its freshly released intelli-assist leverages virtual reality and simulation technologies. With the wider sector increasingly looking to VR and linked artificial intelligence technologies, TNA is embarking on a path of delivering cutting-edge solutions for its customer base.

According to its operations officer, its latest assistance system will aid teams in creating digital twins of their manufacturing site, including equipment, utilities and buildings, and demonstrate how the new additions can best fit into their set-up with minimal disruption and optimal designs. Manufacturers across confectionery, snacks and wider food markets can use the tool to visualise their plant floor, virtually replace systems and validate manufacturing plans and installations in a low-risk environment. Visualising potential spatial conflicts and utility interferences aims to ensure production scheduling clashes. To enhance collaboration, tna intelliassistTM also integrates remote meetings into the virtual environment with virtual reality (VR) headsets or through a desktop application.

Multiple people can seamlessly join the plant simulation via their preferred medium to preview the project and directly interact with the digital twin, making the process of stakeholder buy-in and troubleshooting more efficient. Furthermore, to assist those who are unfamiliar with such technology, users are introduced to the programme through TIATM, the virtual guide and mascot of tna intelli-assistTM, which helps with streamlining onboarding by handling various tasks related to the system. “As a forward-thinking company committed to innovation, we are proud to integrate Industry 5.0 technologies, particularly in VR, into our project management process.

By harnessing the power of VR, we are not only enhancing operational efficiency but also empowering our teams to collaborate more effectively, train in immersive environments, and optimise production in real time. These advancements directly translate into a more responsive and agile approach to customer needs, allowing us to deliver tailored solutions faster and more effectively. “This step marks a significant evolution in how we integrate cutting-edge technology with human-centred design, ensuring that it serves not only operational goals but also drives customer satisfaction.

With Industry 5.0, we are ushering in a new era, one that balances advanced automation with the ingenuity of the human touch.” As he explains, while its initial roll-out will be training attention on delivering time savings surrounding customers’ project management for factory layouts, it is anticipated that this will be extended further into how virtual demonstrations can help make savings on time required on physical machinery.

Complete solutions
As Thiago notes, the strong growth trajectory of the company over the past four decades has witnessed encouraging development of its overall areas of competency. This has seen an increasing drive towards the business moving from its core packaging and processing specialities, and on to providing complete turnkey production lines.

This approach is continuing to make a significant difference to the company’s development in what continues to be a notably competitive environment. Moreover, as he puts it ‘you need to create a symphony and everything playing correctly to gain higher levels of efficiency’ through having equipment that is entirely compatible. “Our success in the past years has mostly been in supplying complete lines in confectionery, as well as French fries and different types of snacks, which is the strategy that we are now navigating in terms of supplying these core applications,” adding that from a customers perspective having one point of contact for machinery supplying is proving gamechanging.

 

As Confectionery Production has previously reported, the broader industry remains somewhat under strain from ongoing conflicts around the world including Ukraine and Gaza, which continues to have a direct impact on business operations. The packaging and processing equipment sector has not been immune from the fallout of geopolitical issues, which has increasing forced businesses to become even more agile, and deploying advanced technology is clearly playing its part.

What does he believe the largest challenge for the market is right now?  “Supply chain disruption is something that is happening more often. Since Covid, and the current geopolitical challenges we have around the world is creating additional pressure for our customers. “We have been looking at how we can help minimise those disruptions, and one of those things is that if we can’t supply from a specific region, we will have an alternative elsewhere.

“We also keep designing our equipment so that it delivers resource efficiency, and that is always something that is in our mind,” explains Thiago, who concludes that at the heart of the business, research and development into new products, trends and machinery design are spurring it on to the next level, as it moves forward with optimism into 2025.

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