Case Study: Carel & Guglielmi Stragionatura

In the world of artisan cheesemaking, the ripening process is as much an art as it is a science. For more than 50 years, Guglielmi Stagionatura has lived and breathed the traditions of cheese aging, carefully crafting products that capture unique aromas, textures, and flavors. However, as modern production demands grew and quality parameters became ever more exact, the company recognized that the key to enhancing its offerings lay in harmonizing time-honored techniques with state-of-the-art technology.

The Challenge: Precision in a Demanding Environment

Cheese ripening is highly sensitive to environmental factors. Temperature, humidity, and ventilation must remain perfectly balanced within expansive cold stores—each spanning 4,000 m²—within the production facility in Valdastico. Traditionally, achieving such rigorous control in rooms that replicate the natural cave conditions of aging was a challenge. Variations in environmental conditions could lead to considerable deviations, potentially affecting product quality and consistency. Moreover, the need for energy savings and operational efficiency pushed Guglielmi to search for a more sustainable approach.

The CAREL Solution: Marrying Artisanal Craft with Advanced Control

In a strategic partnership with Merenti Refrigerazione, Guglielmi Stagionatura embraced CAREL’s innovative technology as the answer to their exacting needs. The solution revolved around a multi-faceted control system that delivered:

• Unprecedented Environmental Control:   The installation of a direct expansion system, first implemented in 2021 and upgraded in 2024, ensured precise stabilization of temperature and humidity across the 8,000 m² of ripening space. Central to this system is the c.pCO5⁺ programmable controller combined with custom applications that fine-tune environmental parameters to levels previously unattainable.

• Energy Efficiency Through Smart Technology:   By enabling “free cooling”—a process that activates a damper to admit cool, moist outside air when weather conditions permit—the system significantly reduces reliance on mechanical cooling. Complemented by advanced features such as E3VS electronic valves and EVD EVO drivers, the solution not only achieves perfect temperature regulation but also brings energy consumption down by around 30%. An external compressor rack, managed by the pRack pR300 controller, further optimizes performance by balancing floating condensation pressure and enhancing heat recovery.

• Seamless Continuous Supervision and Transparency:   To guarantee operational excellence, the system incorporates the boss mini supervisory system, which monitors up to 50 devices via RS485 serial lines. This centralizes data from 16 active devices, alerting maintenance teams via email or Telegram when anomalies are detected. Furthermore, Guglielmi offers its valued customers access to a dedicated website, where they can track, in real time, the status of their aging cheese wheels—a move that bolsters trust through transparency and quality assurance.

Expanded Horizons: Innovating with the New Creamery

Embracing innovation, Guglielmi Stagionatura expanded its capabilities in 2023 with the opening of a new processing plant dedicated to artisan cheese production. In this facility, products such as blue cheese and other specialties now benefit from the integration of UltraCella controllers, which offer enhanced flexibility to suit diverse aging methods. Like its predecessor, this new plant is also woven into the CAREL ecosystem via seamless integration with the boss mini supervisory system. The result is a beautifully synchronized operation that balances the demands of modern production with the time-honored traditions of artisan cheesemaking.

The Impact: Quality, Sustainability, and Customer Confidence

The adoption of CAREL solutions has allowed Guglielmi Stagionatura to significantly optimize its ripening process. By keeping environmental conditions stable with minimal deviations—a far cry from the tens-of-degrees variance seen with previous systems—the company has elevated product quality while achieving noteworthy savings in energy consumption. As Claudio Guglielmi himself puts it: “CAREL technology has allowed us to improve control over the ripening of our cheese, bringing efficiency and energy savings, and therefore reducing our impact in terms of emissions.”

This leap in operational efficiency not only ensures a higher quality end product but also reinforces the company’s commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility.

A Model for Modern Artisan Production

The success of the Guglielmi Stagionatura case study is a testament to how blending traditional craftsmanship with modern technology can create a win-win scenario. By adopting CAREL’s advanced control solutions, Guglielmi has managed to honor the artisanal essence of its cheese while venturing boldly into a future marked by enhanced quality, lower energy consumption, and operational transparency.

For dairy producers, this case study offers an inspiring example of how leveraging smart control technology can reinvent traditional processes. It invites us to reflect on how innovation can drive sustainability in even the most time-honored industries, setting a benchmark that others may follow.

What other aspects of integrating high-tech solutions into artisanal production are you curious about? How do you see sustainability shaping the future of traditional industries?