Case Study - Lindt

The famous “Lindor” truffles have been sold since 1969, when they were introduced as a seasonal treat. Half a century later, billions of Lindor truffles are made every year. To produce at such a large scale while maintaining quality excellence, Lindt & Sprüngli runs several high-​end factories in Europe and the US.

Producing Lindor truffles is a complex, end-to-end process that makes consistent quality challenging. While factory setups are broadly similar, local differences in infrastructure, product variants, and machine age complicate consistent parameter optimization. Additionally, seasonal factors such as humidity and temperature add further variability. However, understanding how process parameters and environmental conditions interact is critical to delivering consistently high-quality Lindor truffles, and that’s where Ethon comes in.

Ethon connected process data from Lindor production lines with factory quality control systems, giving line managers and production teams a holistic view of dozens of process parameters and quality metrics. This visibility supports local optimization on each line while also enabling a bird’s-eye view of performance across factories. As a result, teams can share insights, standardize quality management, and drive group-level learning across countries. Ethon is now used across multiple continents, countries, and factories at Lindt.

Yield: Millions of Lindor balls produced first time right, at more consistent quality.

Productivity: Improved process stability, reduced the need for operator interventions.

Group-wide learning: Ethon's unified platform enables factories to carry insights from one factory across the entire factory network.