Case Studies

Sanitation System Overhaul for a New Production Plant

3 minute read

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: A dairy and meat producer launched a new cheese processing plant and wastewater treatment facility, only to encounter critical sanitation failures that halted operations and threatened regulatory compliance. Catena Solutions deployed a Facility Sanitation Expert to uncover the root causes, stabilize production, and rebuild the sanitation program from the ground up. Within months, the plant achieved dramatic reductions in product loss, improved sterility across production lines, and restored safe, reliable operations.

The Challenge: Sanitation Failures

A dairy and meat producer had recently opened a new cheese processing plant and wastewater treatment facility, but an early inspection uncovered serious sanitation failures that prevented the site from operating effectively. These issues were damaging the wastewater treatment system, leading to penalties and two OSHA incidents caused by chemical misuse during Clean-In-Place (CIP) procedures. The existing Sanitation Manager did not have the expertise or leadership capability required to correct the problems or build a sustainable sanitation program.

Key issues included:

• Massive product loss: More than one million pounds of cheese were lost due to undetected CIP and manual cleaning failures.
• Maintenance breakdowns: Critical valve, pump, and piping failures went unresolved due to inadequate oversight and resourcing.
• Cross-contamination risks: Cultured cheese production caused sterility failures in other product lines, with no visibility or containment strategy in place.
• Organizational barriers: Misalignment across Quality, Safety, and Operations slowed progress and stalled sanitation validation efforts.
• Intense timelines: Executives required rapid CIP validation, leading to overnight work and 24/7 efforts.
• Limited resources: A lack of skilled personnel, insufficient stockroom support, and heavy production pressure compounded the sanitation challenges.

The Solution: CIP Program Overhaul

Catena Solutions deployed a Facility Sanitation Expert to resolve the existing CIP problem and develop a better sanitation strategy. The consultant:

• Diagnosed and prevented product losses by identifying the valve, pump, and CIP system failures that were causing cheese loss and sterility issues.
• Directed a sanitation system overhaul, calibrating and validating 105 CIP circuits, optimizing sanitation parameters, authoring documentation, and completing testing ahead of schedule.
• Improved production line sterility by diagnosing and eliminating cross-contamination risks from cultured cheese lines through enhanced segregation practices.
• Restructured the workforce and built team capability by reorganizing sanitation shifts, mentoring supervisors, and advising leadership on staffing decisions to improve long-term stability.
• Enhanced data accuracy and accountability by correcting misreported sanitation issues, ensuring accurate root cause analysis.
• Enhanced plant safety and compliance by identifying key sanitation-related safety risks and recommending new software and practices to improve plant safety protocols.

The consultant was able to drive this solution using their unique background of engineering, sanitation, and operations experience in the food and beverage industry. This included critically examining each CIP circuit and manual cleaning process, partnering with Operations, Engineering, and Maintenance resources to fix systemic issues from the original installation that weren’t properly addressed.

The consultant was able to drive the solution using their unique background of engineering, sanitation, and operations experience in the food and beverage industry.

The Benefit: Restored Stability & Reduced Waste

• Reduced product waste by 90% within five months, decreasing losses from over 1 million pounds to just 110,000 pounds from December 2024 to April 2025.
• Achieved over $700K in sanitation cost savings by optimizing chemical use and eliminating redundant vendor projects, while also preventing future capital expenses tied to wastewater treatment upgrades.
• Stabilized production after recurring shutdowns through resolving underlying sanitation and maintenance failures (e.g. freezing pipes, failed pumps/valves) that had caused multiple 3.5+ day production halts.
• Established sanitation process standards by developing baseline documentation for sanitation and CIP processes, creating a foundation for consistent, auditable operations.
• Improving team capability and oversight through training supervisors in both Sanitation and Operations to manage and verify cleaning processes effectively, ensuring long-term sustainability of improvements.

These results were achieved through a highly self-directed approach, engaging frontline employees, and collaborating with internal and external teams to meet corporate goals, all during a period without a Plant Manager or Maintenance Manager on site. If you’re facing similar sanitation challenges and need help, contact us to get started.