Digital Production and Traceability System Development

About The Business: Spirit of Manchester Distillery currently manages operational information across spreadsheets, Google Drive, email and paper-based records. Supplier, raw-material, production, stock and traceability information is therefore not held within one connected system. As the business prepares for future growth, including whisky production, it wants to establish a more structured and scalable approach to managing production information and product traceability. Previous off-the-shelf systems have not sufficiently matched the requirements of the business.

Overview: This internship will investigate and develop a minimum viable digital production and traceability system. Appropriate digital technologies and AI-assisted development tools may be explored where they add value, with the focus on creating a practical solution that the business can continue to use and develop following the internship. Project Aim To design, build, test and hand over a minimum viable digital system that connects key supplier, raw-material, production and finished-product information, improving traceability and creating a scalable foundation for future digital development.

Desirable Skills: An interest in Digital System Integration and process mapping

Job Description:

Project Aim

To design, build, test and hand over a minimum viable digital system that connects key supplier, raw-material, production and finished-product information, improving traceability and creating a scalable foundation for future digital development.

SMART Objectives

Within the first 50 hours, map and agree the end-to-end production and traceability process, identifying the data required from incoming raw materials through production to finished product.

By hour 100, design and agree a digital data structure that connects supplier, raw-material, production batch and finished-product information and supports the agreed traceability requirements.

By hour 220, develop a functional MVP that enables Spirit of Manchester to digitally record and connect an incoming raw-material batch through production to the resulting finished-product batch.

By hour 260, test the MVP using representative business records and demonstrate successful forward and backward traceability through the agreed production process.

By hour 300, hand over the tested MVP with user guidance and practical training, enabling a nominated business user to complete the core production and traceability workflow without support from the intern.

Project Activities

The intern will:

• Review the existing production and traceability process and relevant records.
• Map the flow of information from suppliers and incoming materials through production to finished product.
• Identify the data required to support effective production tracking and traceability.
• Design a structured data model for the agreed process. 
• Assess suitable technology approaches and recommend an appropriate solution.
• Develop and configure the agreed minimum viable product.
• Test the solution using representative business records.
• Demonstrate forward traceability from an incoming material batch to finished product.
• Demonstrate backward traceability from a finished-product batch to the associated production and incoming material records.
• Refine the solution following user testing and feedback.
• Document the solution and provide practical training to nominated business users.

The system design should consider the current operating environment, which includes approximately 10 to 12 suppliers and 80 ingredients.

Indicative Allocation of Hours

Process Mapping and Requirements Definition: 50 hours

Data and System Design, including Technology Selection: 50 hours

MVP Development: 120 hours Testing and Refinement: 40 hours

Knowledge Transfer, Documentation and Handover: 40 hours

Total: 300 hours

Expected Deliverables

By completion of the internship, Spirit of Manchester will have:

• An agreed production and traceability process map.
• A structured production and traceability data model.
• A documented technology assessment and selected approach.
• A working minimum viable production and traceability system. 
• Demonstrated forward and backward batch traceability.
• A tested and refined MVP using representative business records.
• User and system documentation. Trained nominated business users.
• A prioritised list of recommended future developments.

Stretch Objectives
If the core objectives are completed within the 300-hour allocation, remaining hours may be used for agreed enhancements such as:

• Basic stock-level monitoring and alerts.
• Mobile or tablet-friendly data capture.
• Document or image-assisted data capture.
• Operational dashboards. Recipe management.
• Investigation of future integration with existing business systems.

Out of Scope
To maintain a realistic internship scope, the project will not include:

• Installation or modification of production equipment.
• Installation of IoT sensors. Automated collection of whisky production or environmental data.
• Development of a complete ERP or CRM system. 
• Replacement of the existing finance system.
• Autonomous purchasing or ordering.
• Guaranteeing regulatory or accreditation compliance

Candidate Profile
The internship would suit a student or recent graduate studying a relevant discipline such as: 

• Data Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Computer Science
• Software Engineering
• Information Systems
• Digital Manufacturing
• Business or Data Analytics
• Process or Chemical Engineering with strong digital skills 

The candidate should have an interest in structured data and digital application development and be comfortable working with a small manufacturing business to translate operational requirements into a practical solution. 

Knowledge Transfer 

The intern will work alongside nominated Spirit of Manchester employees throughout the project to ensure knowledge is retained within the business. 

Before completing the internship, the intern will provide appropriate documentation and practical training covering use of the MVP, its data structure and routine maintenance. 

The final solution and associated documentation will be handed over to Spirit of Manchester, together with a prioritised development backlog identifying potential next-stage improvements.