Transforming Production at Country Maid

When production metrics are inconsistent and scattered across numerous spreadsheets or chat threads, understanding what drives your facility’s performance can be a challenge. At Country Maid, known for its Butter Braid® pastries and cake rolls, the lack of real-time visibility had become a barrier to scaling operations and sustaining performance. Facing high employee turnover and limited insight into downtime and run rates, the company turned to Interstates for a more data-driven approach. 

The ultimate goal was to help the client gain clarity on production performance, improve employee engagement, and eliminate ambiguity in operational data. The solution came in the form of PLEX Production Monitoring (PM), configured and installed by Interstates. 

"Country Maid wanted to better understand their cost per unit and how engaged employees were in the manufacturing process," says Alec Vanden Brink, Software Development Manager at Interstates. "We helped them deploy dashboards that gave everyone, from the floor to management, a real-time view of what was happening.” 

From Guesswork to Clarity

Before the implementation of the PLEX solution, Country Maid’s production data was fragmented. "We tried various methods to understand downtime," says Marc Banwart, Vice President of Engineering & Technology at Country Maid, "but using TEAMS posts or spreadsheets, there was no standard way to collect or report data. We needed something more consistent and actionable."

Interstates managed the full commissioning of the PLEX PM environment, including server provisioning, defining plant areas, setting target rates, and integrating data from existing systems. This technical foundation enabled the creation of dashboards that tracked cycle counts and status codes for production, downtime, and idle events. "The dashboards let you see upstream and downstream across the production process," says Vanden Brink. "If one area is slow, operators can step in to help, which increases throughput."

These gains are especially significant on complex production lines like Country Maid’s cake roll operation, which spans three floors. Operators involved in batching, baking, filling, and packaging must coordinate effectively – something that real-time visibility makes possible. 

Measurable Results and New Capabilities 

Since the system went live, it has become central to Country Maid’s core operations. "We have a daily meeting where we go over KPIs," says Banwart. "Before, it was a mix of handwritten notes and memory. Now, we can look at the PM dashboards and see exactly when downtime occurred and what the notes were." The system also helped uncover inefficiencies. For example, inconsistent start-up routines led to the launch of a new initiative called "Hour of Power," which uses 5S principles to optimize the first hour of production. “We uncovered process improvements we didn’t even realize we needed until we saw the data laid out,” Banwart says. 

Another benefit was improved accountability. Previously, vague downtime entries made it difficult to assess performance. “Now, with objective tracking, operators can’t sandbag performance. Everything is transparent,” Vanden Brink notes. 

The system has also made communication and engagement easier. Country Maid extended the dashboard visibility to breakrooms and remote offices via Yodeck digital displays. This not only improved awareness but also helped newer employees understand what success looks like in their roles. "The dashboards show new employees what matters each day," Banwart says. "They can focus on their task and trust the system to show them the bigger picture." 

Solving Problems Beyond Production Monitoring 

The PLEX PM rollout was not Interstates’ first project at the West Bend, IA, facility. Previously, Interstates had delivered a turnkey electrical control system that yielded a 220% increase in production, reduced mix times by 23%, and lowered batch labor costs by $45,000 annually. That foundation enabled Interstates to integrate PLEX with existing automation systems, including FactoryTalk Batch, which was originally deployed in 2012. This integration required creative problem solving. “We had to pull values out of a PLC, which isn’t standard across customers,” Vanden Brink explains. “The values extracted from the PLC keep the dashboards running in real time without delay.”

Country Maid was also able to digitize shift notes using a virtual whiteboard feature they hadn’t previously explored. “Instead of focusing meetings on what someone wrote down last shift, teams can now zero in on continuous improvement,” says Banwart. 

Partnership, Transparency, and What’s Next

Despite challenges during the provisioning phase, some of which stemmed from delays in enabling the correct cloud features, Interstates maintained a transparent, solution-focused approach to this project. “They were very transparent and kept us informed,” Banwart says. “They essentially acted as a buffer between us and PLEX, helping to manage issues and communication.”

On-site implementation and training were handled by Interstates’ team, with Aaron DeBoer and Kalvin Gerdes working closely with Country Maid’s staff. “The solution is intuitive and easy to use, so handoff and adoption were smooth,” says Vanden Brink.  

With a solid foundation in place, Country Maid is now exploring historical reporting and expanding their PM coverage to packaging and palletizing areas. They are also leveraging real-time data to respond to increased demand across product lines. “We now have a better understanding of our processes and a system that supports smarter decisions,” Banwart says. “It’s changed the way we run our production floor.”

Vanden Brink echoed the sentiment: 

“This project shows how digital tools, when configured with the right logic and training, can fundamentally transform a facility’s performance.”