Optimizing gula apong production with an IoT-based temperature monitoring system

Determining the quality of gula apong is crucial to optimizing its production, with cooking temperature being a key factor affecting both taste and shelf life. The gula apong industry faced challenges due to the lack of reliable real-time temperature monitoring methods during the cooking process. Traditional approaches were inefficient and inaccurate, leading to difficulties in maintaining consistent product quality and meeting market demands. This highlights the necessity of monitoring the temperature throughout each cooking process. This research aims to develop an internet of things (IoT)- based cooking temperature monitoring system to enhance quality control measures in the production of gula apong. The IoT prototype collects temperature data from the thermocouple sensor, then transmits it to cloud storage through a Wi-Fi communication network, utilizing the Node-RED platform for data processing and analysis. Data obtained from the on-site measurement shows that the optimal temperature for producing standard-quality gula apong is approximately around 165 °C. The recommended boiling temperature for Nipah sap is 140 °C. This IoT system can reduce the cooking time of gula apong to 3 hours from the traditional 4 to 6 hours. Utilizing the data acquired from this study helps the producers not only maintaining the quality of gula apong but also reduce the cooking time and cost.