Tyson Foods has opened a new $300 million fully cooked food production facility in Danville, Va., accelerating the company’s long-term growth. The 325,000-sq-ft will produce approximately 4 million lb of fully cooked poultry products weekly to meet the increasing demand for Tyson brand products, in both the retail and foodservice sectors.
The Danville facility is one of Tyson’s most highly automated plants to date, featuring high-speed automated case packing lines and high-speed robotic case palletizing units that help maximize operational efficiency and increase overall team member safety. In addition, the site includes a product inspection process that incorporates metal detection, X-ray, and vision grading to ensure consumers receive high-quality products.
The Danville facility also is the company’s first to include at-scale integration of wearable armband devices to improve worker health, safety, and productivity. Each frontline worker wears the integrated technology, which features sensors that relay environmental data to safety managers to better identify risk exposures. To support the growing field of industrial maintenance, Tyson has partnered with Danville Community College to create a maintenance technology training program.
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“Danville represents a significant commitment to the region and we take our responsibility to enhance the communities where we live and work seriously. This plant is also a significant step toward our ongoing goal of operational excellence by investing in innovative technology and automation,” says Donnie King, president and CEO, Tyson Foods. “This facility delivers on our commitment to ensuring best-in-class service for our customers and accelerating our long-term growth.”
“The combination of our team and technology at Danville will strengthen our ability to better meet demand for retail and foodservice fully cooked Tyson brand products,” adds Wes Morris, group president, poultry, Tyson Foods. “The Danville plant incorporates the latest technology that brings real-time intelligence to our processes, products, and workplace experience for team members.”
