Final Year Project Logbook

 A final draft was submitted today to my supervisor, Dr. Pemberton. I feel very relieved as I really tried my best for this project and I hope it is represented as such. I hope to receive constructive feedback since I am very open to improving my project. I really want to do well in this preliminary report so I put a lot of time and energy into it. I am very thankful to Miss Pemberton for being so patient and easy to talk to which made this whole process quite simple and manageable. When talking to my fellow colleagues, I learned that this is a luxury that I am utmost grateful for.  Personal concerns: I am confident in my work. With that said, one of my greatest concerns currently is the length of my project. I am a bit worried that I was not concise enough and the information comes across as irrelevant. Any guidance from my supervisor in this regard will be very useful. I tried to look at each component separately but maybe a wider scope could have been taken. I just wanted t...

 This is a little illustration I did using Canva to show what the end product may look like in a resealable, recyclable paper bag. The logo is also made by myself and was mentioned in this logbook a few weeks ago. 

  This table can be very useful in identifying appropriate locations to set up operations. From the literature review, a pH of 5.5-6.5 is most suitable for corn cultivation.  

An interview was also conducted to obtain knowledge and gauge opinions, needs and preferences. The interview was done virtually to maintain social distancing and safety, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic. Katana Mahabir, a fitness coach and certified dietitian, was interviewed on Thursday 28 th October 2021 via a 30-minute Zoom meeting due to the ongoing pandemic. Ms. Mahabir was selected to gain viable information about nutritional content in food. 

A questionnaire will be distributed to gather customer needs. It will be created using google forms and the results of the final questionnaire can be seen in the Appendix of my preliminary report. The following are possible questions I thought could be relevant to ask Are you interested in gluten-free corn items? Yes No Would you be interested in vegan corn products? Yes No What corn items would you be interested in purchasing? Cornmeal Corn flour Corn flakes Corn chips Tortillas Do you prefer locally manufactured food or imported goods? Locally made food Imported food Indifferent

In this meeting, a review of my progress thus far was done and feedback was given. From this, I will continue to use engineering tools to justify the product that I will manufacture. It was advised to conduct a survey to gather information about the customer needs which I will seek to work on tonight. My focus currently is on market research and product development. Thereafter, I can shift my focus to the manufacturing process and equipment research.  I am nearing the end of this preliminary report which I am ecstatic about. I cannot wait to take a step back and look at the progress I made over the past few months

As with any product, rivalry exists. I took it upon myself to go to my local grocery store, Cost Cutters, and scan the shelves for corn-based products, paying close attention to their nutritional facts, ingredients, cost and weight. I made note of these things and decided to compare them as part of product research for existing products. In this way, the products I manufacture stand out and are not overshadowed by the competition. I tried my best to gather products manufactured locally however, some products such as the tortillas were only imported.  Owing to the current global pandemic, I tried my best not to touch many products and I took a maximum of 15 minutes in the grocery.  I took some images of the nutritional contents and ingredients at the back of the product which will be synthesized as part of desk research. 

Upon researching, I found a plethora of corn products that I can manufacture. I will compare them using engineering tools and choose the best options. These are the various products I found and will narrow down a bit before I start the comparison.  Corn chips, corn oil, corn tortillas, corn tortilla chips, corn starch, corn flour, corn syrup, cornmeal, corn flakes Interestingly, there are no corn tortilla manufactures in Trinidad and Tobago. In fact, I could not find any regional manufacturers either.  I learned there is a difference between corn chips and corn tortilla chips. Corn tortilla chips absorb less oil and seem healthier so I may sway towards it as opposed to corn chips. I do not believe corn starch and corn syrup are necessities, at least in the Caribbean so I do not think I will be including them in my research. They are uncommon and not very utilized.  Final Listing:  Corn oil, corn tortillas, corn tortilla chips, cornflour, cornmeal, cornflakes. 

This meeting was a group meeting with my other colleagues as opposed to the individual setting I was used to for the past meetings which was interesting to say the least. I got the opportunity to gauge where others are and the progress they made with their respective projects. Honestly speaking, I feel as though I am in a good place with my project. I enjoy this topic and I am comfortable discussing it. What I noticed some peers had issues with was understanding their project and gathering information on it.  In general, this meeting with Dr Pemberton was brief and I was encouraged to continue posting in my log book. I will keep working on my project to the best of my ability.  DEADLINE: FINAL DRAFT SUNDAY 31ST OCTOBER, 2021

 FEASIBILITY CRITERIA FOR PRODUCT SELECTION From a manufacturing standpoint, these are some points compiled over the course of 3 days Time taken to manufacture the product Energy requirements to manufacture The manufacturing costs Cost of raw materials Costing of machinery and equipment needed Risks associated- Analysed using HACPP principles Space needed The extent of human resources needed Input to output ratio- ideally, low input yet high yield The market demands and needs In other words, the economic, financial, social, ethical and market needs must all be considered in the selection stage of the project 

This logbook entry is to keep a record of a new piece of equipment that can be included in the manufacturing line. It  acts as a peeler, degerminator and flour miller. The machine can produce 2-5 kinds of different corn grits,2-3 kinds of low-fat corn flour as well as cornflour. It has a lot of potential to increase productivity.  https://hnlyjx.en.made-in-china.com/product/lKknWAtDXdUw/China-2021-New-Technology-Corn-Maize-Milling-Machine.html  

 Today at 3pm, a zoom meeting was arranged with persons at ARCTT. Upon presenting a brief scope of my project, these were the remarks made of which I will further look into -Re-evaluating the area of land assigned to corn cultivation. Corn is a crop with a high yield for its small size. As such, 2 acres for a corn farm may be pricy and out of reach for rural farmers. -Researching other varieties of corn. Many hybrids are constantly being developed each with its own favourable characteristics. By researching a plethora of corn species, the right one can be chosen that is suitable for its uses. For example, some corn varieties give a better end result for corn tortillas as compared to others. -Considering cross-pollination Overall, I am very grateful for this opportunity to speak and discuss my ideas with persons that are well educated in the field. Their feedback and comments were greatly valued. 

 Finally, the literature review has been completed. Now the focus turns to the feasibility selection. Various engineering tools must be implemented here to justify the choice of value-added products, machinery, methods, etc. This section of the project is crucial in ensuring its validity. 

 A meeting with ARCTT has been scheduled for Thursday 14th.  Content for the presentation(3-5slides): Background of the project Overview and objectives Comparison of products from which product selection can be made

 For this meeting, the plan of action after the literature review was discussed. There was great emphasis on utilizing the relevant engineering tools to justify the processes, products and equipment involved in the project. Moving forward, I will work on creating a list of criteria to aid in the selection process.  Some ideas for the criteria are in terms of the energy required, costs, space, process

 Is renewable energy power supply possible for factory production? Is it worth it? The manufacturing industry is one of the biggest consumers of electricity in the global energy market. Due to the sheer number of equipment and machinery that needs to be powered along with utilities for office facilities, manufacturing companies need a continuous and heavy supply of electricity. To ensure a sustainable energy future, the use of renewable energy sources and technologies needs to be scaled up. Turning raw materials into usable products are one of the most energy-intensive and expensive activities within manufacturing. Geopolitical uncertainty makes it difficult to predict future oil prices with any kind of certainty. Fossil fuels are, in comparison, increasingly difficult to justify from an investment perspective. 

 Topics to discuss in the literature review ·         Methods of making the end products ·         Health and safety policies/regulations that must be abided by ·         Ways to promote productivity for efficient process ·         Possible target audiences, suppliers, retailers, workers ·         Discuss value-added products            As mentioned in a prior logbook entry, I have estimated my completion of the literature review within the next two weeks. Since there are only a few topics of discussion left as listed above, I believe I am on track with my Gantt Chart.  A ·

 Envisioning Food Security in 2030 Via New Technologies: The Case of the Caribbean by Mark D. Wenner  Whilst researching articles for the literature review, this one truly stood out. From it, I gathered that developing technology such as information communication technology (ICT),  drones, robotics, and artificial intelligence; three-dimensional (3D) printing, biotechnology, nanotechnology, and synthetic biology can significantly improve productivity, especially in the agricultural industry. As such I will try to include such machinery on the farm.  http://www.caestt.com/home/documents/Farm%20&%20Business%20%20Volume%2010,%20No.%201,%20August%202018.pdf#page=7

 The intention of this project is to create a farm capable of manufacturing corn-based products. In order for these end products to be fit for consumption, they must be considered food safe. Certain protocols must hence be followed. Whilst working on the literature review, I stumbled across this article  https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10061289 Blockchain-Based Traceability System That Ensures Food Safety Measures to Protect Consumer Safety and COVID-19 Free Supply Chains by  Adnan Iftekhar  and Xiaohui Cui  * Key Laboratory of Aerospace Information Security and Trusted Computing, Ministry of Education, School of Cyber Science and Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China From the article, I learned about tamper-proof audit trails. A tamper-proof audit trail helps to make sure that all safety measures are undertaken to minimize the risk of COVID-19 and other bacteria, fungi, and parasites. 

  The Alliance of Rural Communities of Trinidad & Tobago (ARC) , is a non-profit organization founded in 2014 and made up of residents of rural and semi-rural communities and their urban allies. ARC is made up of a core advisory team of individuals and affiliated rural community companies (that were formed with ARC’s support) as well as our supportive customer base. ARC is a non-profit organization that is responsible for continued training and support and expansion of the current community groups and new projects. As such, partnering with them for this project will be ideal.