How Chew’s Agriculture boosts operational resilience and efficiency

EcoStruxure Power, Schneider Electric’s IoT-enabled architecture, helps farms thrive at every level through Connected Products, Edge Control, Apps, Analytics and Services.

In 2019, Singapore introduced “30 by 30” — a vision that, by 2030, at least 30% of the country’s food will be produced locally. It is transforming from a “garden city” to “a city in a garden”. Greener, cleaner, and more self-reliant, a vision like this can’t be realized without businesses like Chew’s Agriculture.

Founded in 1987, Chew’s is one of the country’s leading egg producers, delivering some 800,000 fresh, high-quality eggs to wholesalers daily. To satisfy the nation’s increasing appetite for local goods and better position themselves for future growth, Chew’s Agriculture relocated from its old premises in Lim Chu Kang to a new site in Kranji. But this new site came with a fresh challenge — the electrical distribution network was far from the main substation.

Concerns that an inconsistent power supply would disrupt ventilation, feed, and waste management, which in turn could affect the chickens’ well-being, egg supply, and the overall business were top of mind. “We were very worried that we might even face the loss of chicken lives,” explains Chew Zi Xuan, Assistant Manager of Operations at the farm. That’s why ensuring resilient, reliable operations post-relocation was critical.

Through generations, they’ve grown by adopting the latest technologies. This time, for their facilities’ upgrade, they “were looking for a digital solution partner with longstanding expertise in the market and quality after-sales support,” for which “Schneider Electric was a natural choice,” said Chew.

From stability to sustainability

First on the agenda was adding stability to the power supply. Schneider designed, integrated, tested, and delivered an Electrical House (E-House). A complete and compact power distribution substation, the E-House is customized with connected products and reliable equipment including medium voltage switchgear, motor control centres, transformers, and building management and control systems. Mobile, scalable, and quick-to-deploy, the solution aims to simplify the farm’s future expansion plans.

For further operational resilience, EcoStruxure Asset Advisor was deployed. Schneider’s Asset Advisor collects data 24/7 from connected products and applies advanced analytics to identify potential problems. Chews’ team is alerted of any issues in real time on smartphones and tablets. As a result, proactive maintenance is possible; fixes can be made before safety or operations are impacted. And while Schneider’s Service Bureau can always assist, remote access to the on-site power system gives Chew’s the option to act independently.

PowerTag is one of the wireless sensors connected to Asset Advisor. It accurately monitors and measures energy use in real time. The data it collects is integrated into a centralized dashboard that helps compare and inform decision-making, as well as alert the team of sudden power losses or potential overload threats.

With Schneider’s solutions, Chew’s saw its maintenance time go down by 10% and achieved an operational cost saving of about 25% within a year. “We now enjoy less downtime, reduced maintenance time, and can redeploy manpower to other business functions,” noted Chew. “Our new and improved power system helps us provide a nurturing environment for our chickens and bring our high-quality eggs to the hands of our customers.”

Hatching a carbon-neutral future

Chew’s new site is set to supply more eggs to the city; up to one million per day is the near-term plan. And Schneider’s future-ready, scalable solutions allow for this expansion.

Alongside enjoying added energy efficiency from EcoStruxure, Chew’s will be working with Neo Tiew Power, a waste-to-energy plant. Soon enough, the farm’s electricity will also come from chicken manure — further supporting carbon neutrality ambitions.

Together with Schneider Electric, Chew’s Agriculture proudly and robustly supports Singapore’s sustainability efforts in both food and energy.

“We now enjoy less downtime, reduced maintenance time, and can redeploy manpower to other business functions. Our new and improved power system helps us provide a nurturing environment for our chickens and bring our high-quality eggs to the hands of our customers.” — Chew Zi Xuan, Assistant Manager of Operations at Chew’s Agriculture.

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