Amber Wave (via Kice Industries)

Amber Wave faced the challenge of standing up a greenfield wheat protein extraction facility from scratch — one designed to become the largest of its kind in North America. Wheat protein (vital wheat gluten) production is energy-intensive, requiring precise motor control across dozens of high-horsepower systems running continuous extraction and separation processes. The facility needed large-scale electrical infrastructure, motor control, and automation systems designed, delivered, and commissioned under a tight startup timeline. Missing that window would have delayed revenue generation and market entry for a flagship-scale operation where first-mover capacity matters significantly in the food ingredient supply chain.

Kice Industries, a systems integrator and Rockwell Automation partner, designed and deployed the full automation and power distribution architecture for the facility. The core of the solution comprised Allen-Bradley Motor Control Centers (MCCs) equipped with IntelliCENTER technology, which provides embedded intelligence and real-time device-level diagnostics across the MCC lineup. PowerFlex Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) were deployed to manage motor speed and energy consumption across the facility's high-demand extraction processes, while ControlLogix programmable automation controllers served as the central control layer coordinating process sequencing and equipment interlocks. Kice pre-engineered the system packages before delivery, enabling faster on-site commissioning and reducing integration risk during the critical startup window. IntelliCENTER's built-in data collection gave operators immediate visibility into production parameters from day one.

The project met its commissioning deadline, bringing North America's largest wheat protein facility online on schedule — a significant achievement for a complex greenfield build of this scale. Beyond timeline success, the intelligent MCC infrastructure delivered immediate operational value:

• On-time startup of a flagship-scale greenfield facility with no major commissioning delays
• Real-time production analytics available from initial startup, without a separate data integration phase
• Operators gained the ability to monitor device-level performance across the MCC lineup and identify process inefficiencies early
• The facility established itself as North America's largest wheat protein operation, positioning Amber Wave for scale advantages in a competitive food ingredient market

• Pre-engineering MCC and VFD packages before site delivery compresses commissioning timelines on greenfield builds — critical when facility startup dates are tied to market commitments.
• Embedding intelligence at the motor control level (IntelliCENTER) eliminates the need for a separate data layer to achieve production visibility from day one.
• For power-intensive food processing facilities, VFDs on high-horsepower loads are both a process control tool and an energy management asset worth specifying early in design.
• Selecting a systems integrator with deep product expertise in the chosen automation platform reduces integration risk on large-scale, first-of-kind facilities.