Information System for Optimal Control of the Baking Process for Bakery Products

Introduction: Universal MES (Manufacturing Execution System) solutions are not adapted to bakery production: they do not provide flexible configuration of baking parameters and do not account for the influence of process conditions on product quality characteristics. Integrating such a system is time-consuming and requires careful configuration or further customization, which highlights the need for applied solutions that reflect industry-specific requirements.

Purpose: To develop and pilot-test an information system for optimal control (ISOC) of the baking process for bakery products while complying with specified standards.

Method: Within the study, an ISOC for the baking process of bakery products was developed. The system is based on a mathematical optimization model built using correlation–regression analysis and the gradient descent method. The empirical basis comprises data obtained through an expert survey of process engineers and parameters from process specification sheets. Pilot testing was conducted in a model-based emulation environment.

Results: An information system for optimal control of the baking process for bakery products is presented, implemented as a software module with the option of integration into an MES environment. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the mathematical formulation of the optimization problem and the development of a mathematical model for controlling the baking process, on which the solution is based. Unlike existing studies that focus on production line scheduling or quality assessment without integration into automated control loops, the proposed model enables optimization of both formulation and baking regimes within a unified control loop. Testing in an emulation environment demonstrated a 15% reduction in mean quality deviations and up to a 7% reduction in raw material costs (R² from 0.48 to 0.79; MSE from 0.0009 to 7.89 for the regression models).

Conclusion: The developed system can be integrated into an MES system as a specialized module for optimal control of the baking process. The proposed approach formalizes control and optimization processes in bakery production and can be scaled to other segments of the food industry.

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