November 2020

Focus on: Maintenance 4.0 Maintenance Matters November 2020 www.pwemag.co.uk Plant & Works Engineering | 19 production. In essence, it makes life simpler. It’s also designed to address three major challenges faced almost universally by producers and manufacturers: 1. Increasing productivity: How can you best innovate when disparate systems throughout the enterprise create bottlenecks and inefficiencies? The sheer amount of information from supply chains, plant assets and business systems can overwhelm teams trying to function in real-time or create a new concept. Rapid improvements in technology allow producers to access more information than ever for decision-making purposes. 2. Doing more with less to help the bottom line: Production teams must do more with less to meet budget expectations throughout their plant’s life cycle. Your operators must find ways to gain the visibility and control needed to reduce unplanned downtime, prevent quality issues, and eliminate waste from production. Producers are looking for plant-wide automation that’s easily updated and supported, and technology must help the plant remain in continuous operation. 3. Reducing operational risk: Risk is everywhere and takes many forms respective to your network infrastructure, the backbone of your system. Even when contingencies are considered, unforeseen events can impact safe and reliable plant operations. As you identify factors that contribute to various risks, you need systems that can navigate dynamic conditions and that allow them to aggressively respond armed with information. And, as threats shift from operational risks to external actors, control systems need to be strong yet adaptable. Are you implementing a robust infrastructure for your system? Examples of modern DCS at work One pharmaceutical company used a modern DCS to automate its bioprocess equipment and access data by integrating with a manufacturing execution system (MES) application and electronic batch records. They’ve seen 10 to 20% increases in production throughput, availability and production-employee efficiency, and 5 to 30% decreases in energy use, scrap material, batch-release time, maintenance, and downtime investigations. A firm in the food and beverage industry needed to scale operations and upgrade its automation system, and experienced a 20% increase in capacity in just one year after implementing a modern DCS. The real-time data now available provides constant access so staff can make immediate, informed decisions on the fly. Foundation of digital transformation Digital transformation isn’t going away — at some point, every manufacturer and producer will have to start their journey. For many manufacturers, it’s considered the new normal. At its highest level, digital transformation is a foundational and potentially radical evolution for industrial producers. Embracing new technologies will fundamentally change how you do business. Evaluate your legacy DCS to see if the latest DCS platform can help in your digital transformation journey. *Blair Wilson, is PlantPAx marketing manager, and Lisa Ridgely is from Rockwell Automation Systems and Solutions Business Tel: 01142 889464 Email :sales@dpdoorsandshutters.co.uk Website:www.dpdoorsandshutters.co.uk Aluminium Support Legs and Head meaning easier and quicker installation. Built in integral Windbar system giving excellent wind resistance,no need for additional add on wind bars. Designed for external door locations where wind resistance is Key. Variety of activation options available,from basic push button,to remote handsets,movement detectors,pull chords and induction loops. Safety features as standard,Multi Light beam and electronic safe edge. High Speed Doors PROVIDING PRACTICAL ENGINEERING SKILLS TRAINING FOR INDUSTRY Technical Training Solutions Est 1980 t: 01634 731 470 e: tech.training@zen.co.uk www . technicaltrainingsolutions.co.uk

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ0NzM=