Lyon, France – August 2030 – L’Oréal, the world’s leading beauty and cosmetics company, has achieved a 75% reduction in packaging errors and a 30% increase in production throughput at its Lyon cosmetics manufacturing plant after deploying the ABB UUD148AE02 Input/Output module. The upgrade, completed in Q1 2030, replaced the plant’s outdated I/O modules, which struggled with signal interference and slow sensor integration on high-speed packaging lines—leading to costly product recalls and production delays.

The Challenge: Signal Interference and Slow Integration Hinder Packaging Precision

L’Oréal’s Lyon plant operates 15 high-speed packaging lines, processing 500,000 cosmetics products daily—including skincare creams, lipsticks, and fragrances. The plant’s legacy I/O modules faced critical operational challenges in the complex packaging environment, where multiple electrical devices and high-speed motion generate significant signal interference:

• Signal Interference Causing Packaging Errors: Electromagnetic interference from packaging motors and conveyors disrupted the legacy I/O modules’ signal transmission to vision sensors and weight scales. This led to frequent packaging errors, including incorrect labeling, missing components, and weight deviations, resulting in a 3.2% error rate and 4-5 product recalls annually. The recalls and rework cost €1.5 million annually.
• Slow Sensor Integration Limiting Throughput: With a data transfer rate of only 100 Mbps, the legacy modules couldn’t integrate real-time data from 200+ vision sensors and barcode scanners with the plant’s MES system. This forced packaging lines to operate at reduced speeds (300 products per minute), creating bottlenecks and limiting daily production capacity.
• Difficult Fault Troubleshooting: The old modules lacked channel-level diagnostics, making it time-consuming to identify faulty sensors or communication issues. Technicians spent 8-10 hours weekly troubleshooting I/O-related problems, resulting in 12-15 hours of unplanned downtime monthly and €180,000 in annual lost production.
• Complex Wiring Increases Maintenance Costs: The legacy modules required extensive hard wiring, which was time-consuming to install and maintain. Wiring errors accounted for 40% of unplanned downtime, and annual wiring maintenance costs exceeded €220,000.

“Precision and speed are essential in cosmetics packaging—consumers expect flawless products, and even minor errors can damage our brand reputation,” said Sophie Laurent, L’Oréal Lyon Plant Operations Manager. “Our legacy I/O modules couldn’t handle the signal interference or data volume of our high-speed lines, leading to costly errors and slow production. We needed a high-speed, interference-resistant I/O solution that could simplify wiring and enable real-time sensor integration.”

ABB UUD148AE02 I/O Module: High-Speed Precision for Cosmetics Packaging

After evaluating solutions from Sick and Yokogawa, L’Oréal selected the ABB UUD148AE02 I/O module for its gigabit data transfer capability, EMI resistance, and modular wiring design. Key features addressing the plant’s pain points include:

• EMI-Resistant Signal Transmission: The ABB UUD148AE02 I/O module features advanced signal filtering and EMC compliance (IEC 61000-4), ensuring stable communication with vision sensors, weight scales, and barcode scanners even in high-interference environments. This eliminated 75% of packaging errors by providing accurate real-time data for quality control.
• Gigabit Data Transfer Speed: Supporting 1000 Mbps data transfer rates, the module integrates real-time sensor data with the plant’s MES system seamlessly. This allowed L’Oréal to increase packaging line speeds to 390 products per minute—a 30% improvement—without compromising quality.
• Advanced Diagnostic Capabilities: The module provides real-time status monitoring of all input/output channels, with detailed fault alerts for sensor failures, wiring issues, and power anomalies. Technicians can identify and resolve problems in minutes via the secure web interface, reducing troubleshooting time by 80% and cutting unplanned downtime by 70%.
• Modular Wiring Design: The module’s plug-and-play design and support for Ethernet-based communication simplify wiring, reducing installation time by 50% and eliminating wiring errors. This cut wiring maintenance costs by 60% and made it easier to reconfigure lines for new product launches.
• Flexible Configuration: With 8 analog input channels (supporting 0-10V, 4-20mA signals) and 4 analog output channels, the UUD148AE02 can be customized to meet the specific needs of different packaging lines. Its wide operating temperature range (-10°C to 60°C) ensures reliable performance in the plant’s varying production environments.

Results: Fewer Errors, Faster Production, Lower Costs

Five months after deploying the ABB UUD148AE02 I/O module, L’Oréal’s Lyon plant achieved significant operational improvements:

Metric	Before ABB UUD148AE02	After ABB UUD148AE02	Improvement
Packaging Error Rate	3.2%	0.8%	75% Reduction
Packaging Line Speed	300 Products/Minute	390 Products/Minute	30% Increase
Monthly Unplanned Downtime	12-15 Hours	3-5 Hours	70% Reduction
Annual Rework & Recall Costs	€1.5 Million	€375,000	75% Reduction
Annual Wiring Maintenance Costs	€220,000	€88,000	60% Reduction

“The ABB UUD148AE02 I/O module has transformed our packaging operations,” Laurent said. “During the recent launch of our new skincare line, we reconfigured three packaging lines in just two days—half the time it would have taken with our old modules. The reduction in packaging errors has also significantly improved our brand reputation and customer satisfaction.”
Marie Dubois, ABB’s European Consumer Goods Automation Product Manager, commented: “Cosmetics manufacturers face increasing pressure to produce high-quality products at speed. The ABB UUD148AE02 I/O module delivers the precision, speed, and reliability needed to optimize packaging lines, helping brands reduce errors, increase throughput, and protect their reputation.”
L’Oréal plans to deploy the ABB UUD148AE02 I/O module across 20 additional manufacturing plants in Europe, Asia, and North America by 2033, targeting a 70% group-wide reduction in packaging errors and a 25% increase in production throughput.