PACE - Process & Control Engineering - October 2015

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OCTOBER 2015 | VOL.68 NO.9 | Est. 1953

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OCTOBER 2015 | VOL.68 NO.9 |

INSIDE PACE

Est. 1953

Networks

Healthcare Solutions

SCADA & Security

How the switch to 4G will affect industry

Digital strategies for the healthcare sector

How to keep your SCADA network safe

The Quality of Power

EXCLUSIVE: Interview with ABB Managing Director Axel Kuhr

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CONTENTS

Publisher: Martin Sinclair Email: martin.sinclair@cirrusmedia.com.au Editor: Branko Miletic Tel: (02) 8484 0976 Fax: (02) 8484 0722 Email: branko.miletic@cirrusmedia.com.au Group Sales Manager: Tim Richards Tel: (02) 8484 0829 Mobile: 0420 550 799 Email: tim.richards@cirrusmedia.com.au Graphic Designer: Louis Santos Email: louis.santos@cirrusmedia.com.au

IN THIS ISSUE News 6

8

The latest industry news Networks 8

The upcoming changes in GSM networks Energy Management 10

How power quality copes with demand Instrumentation 12

Production Co-ordinator: Tracy Engle Tel: (02) 8484 0707 Fax: (02) 8484 0722 Email: tracy.engle@cirrusmedia.com.au

Three questions to ask when buying a temperature logger Interview 14

ABB MD Axle Kuhr talks to PACE Minerals Processing 15

New technology from Metso SUBSCRIPTION: $99 pa incl GST OVERSEAS SUBSCRIPTIONS: NZ: $A109 pa & OS: $A119 pa CUSTOMER SERVICE: 1300 360 126

12

Healthcare Solutions 16

Digital technology in Australia’s growing healthcare sector Advanced Manufacturing 18

A leading crop protection products manufacturer opens a new production facility Security 20

SCADA & Security Cirrus Media Tower 2, Level 3, 475 Victoria Ave, Chatswood, NSW 2067, Australia Locked Bag 4700, Chatswood Delivery Centre, NSW 2067, Australia Phone: 02 8484 0888 Fax: 02 8484 0633 ABN 80 132 719 861 ISSN 1329-6221 www.cirrusmedia.com.au © Copyright Cirrus Media, 2015

Mobile Apps 22

14

HMI 24

The future of HMIs New Products 26

New Product showcase for Process & Control Engineering ON THE COVER PA1 0 1 5 _ 0 0 3

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OCTOBER 2015 | VOL.68 NO.9 |

INSIDE PACE

Est. 1953

Networks

Healthcare Solutions

SCADA & Security

How the switch to 4G will affect industry

Digital strategies for the healthcare sector

How to keep your SCADA network safe

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF:

The Quality of Power

EXCLUSIVE: Interview with ABB Managing Director Axel Kuhr

Average Net Distribution Period ending Mar ’15 5,739

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New apps for manufacturers

Power is about quality too POWER quality has become vital to safeguarding equipment and improving the efficiency of entire industrial and commercial processes and in providing substantial energy cost savings.

The biggest challenge in this industry area is a lack of understanding across the industry in how to analyse and reduce consumption, and competently install an active power filter as a full turnkey package.

To rectify this, Delta Energy Systems has partnered with SAGE Automation taking a significant step in the industry to deliver a fully integrated service: educating users about the effects of poor power quality, conducting site audits and commissioning and installing active power filters across Australia.

OCTOBER 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 5

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COMMENT

EDITOR’S MESSAGE

It’s not just cars that need sensors UNLESS you have been living air-fuel ratios and exhaust under a rock, by now you would flows, and in some (though have heard how Volkswagen not most VWs) injecting a has been cheating emission tests urea-based solution to render by making its cars appear far NOx harmless. When running less polluting than they really normally, requiring greater are. The US Environmental performance, VW’s controls Branko Miletic Protection Agency discovered would not operate in the same Editor that 482,000 VW diesel cars on way.”

US roads were emitting up to Apart from the unfolding 40 times more toxic fumes than legal and PR disasters that VW permitted – and VW has since has yet to fully contend with, are able to ‘beat the system’. admitted the cheat affects 11m the biggest problem the German Regardless of how many cars worldwide. carmaker faces is the potential of Internet of Things devices According to the UK’s up to $USD77 billion in fines. we have interconnected and Guardian newspaper, “VW’s While this penalty in itself plugged into each other, the “defeat device” is not a physical is eye watering to say the least, VW saga is a timely and salient Next Issue device but a programme in the the other question that comes reminder that without proper, engine software that lets the to mind is how was this even independent and multi-layered • Test & Measurement car perceive if it is being driven possible? procedures, the possibility • SCADA under test conditions - and After all, with the sheer of ‘fixing the game’ is all-too • Motors, Drives & Motion only then pull out all the antivolume and inherent intelligence present in society.

Control pollution stops. “Clean diesel” of technology and automation How this bodes for the • Fluid Handling engines • Sensors rise of autonomous robots is a P A 0 2&1Analysers 5 _ 0 0 0 _ A MS 1 - cut 1emissions 2 0 1through 5 - 0 1 - 0gadgetry 9 T 1 5at: our 1 5disposal, : 2 4 humans + 1 1 : 0 0 • Wireless Technology techniques such as adjusting have once again shown that they story for another day, however

the fact remains, that without proper procedures, checks, balances and independent and rigorous testing regimes, what happened with VW may not be an isolated case So it’s no use relying on the fig leaf of industry selfregulation-perhaps it’s high time that humans- especially those in critical control and operational situations-are measured, checked and coordinated by intelligent sensors.

No matter how technologically advanced and inter-connected we become, it remains a fact that humans are the weak link in the world of technology and automation. branko.miletic@ cirrusmedia.com.au Like us on Facebook and join the conversation facebook.com/PACEtoday

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NEWS ANALYSIS

LEGISLATION

Oil & Gas industry body welcomes rejection of Greens’ bill THE oil and gas industry welcomes the decision of the Federal Senate’s Environment and Communications Committee to reject a Greens’ bill proposing Commonwealth intervention into State regulation of land access and a ban on hydraulic fracturing.

“The gas industry understands that access to private land is a sensitive issue. The industry operates under rigorous State regulation, which requires agreements to be made with landowners before explorers can enter private land. Landowners are entitled to compensation. Exploration is prohibited within set distances of buildings and other improvements,” said APPEA CEO Malcolm Roberts.

“The gas industry has more than Picture courtesy www.oxtenergy.com 5000 access agreements with land owners in Queensland alone. With its relatively small footprint, gas can readily “The Committee also found that The Committee warned that co-exist with other land uses.” the bill would reduce the return to the “By providing an absolute right for to 0veto land access, the P“The A 1 Committee 0 1 5 _ 0 rightly 0 0 _ found WI Kthat1 community 2 0 1 5 from - 1 0the - development 0 7 T 1 0 : of 1 3 : 1 landholders 3 + 1 1 : 0 the bill would be unworkable.” resources owned by the community.“ bill could introduce what is essentially

Pharmaceutical

Food & Beverage

Oil & Gas

Chemical

Test & Measurement

Energy

akin to a private ownership scheme for certain resources. Large amounts of compensation that private landholders may secure as a result of this would reduce the wider public benefit that arises from state ownership of the resources.”

“There is no justification for the Commonwealth to override the power of State and Territory governments to regulate access to resources belonging to the States,” Mr. Roberts said.

“People rightly expect that governments adopt a sensible and science based approach to resource development and that this should deliver benefits to all Australians through significant royalty streams, jobs and investment.”

“Such an approach is a key reason why, by decade’s end, the oil and gas industry’s contribution to national GDP is expected to be more than $AUD55 billion per year, while taxes and royalties paid to governments are expected to exceed $AUD13 billion per year.”

Oil

WIKA Australia Pty Ltd : 02 8845 5222 : www.wika.com.au OCTOBER 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 7

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NETWORKS

Preparing for the 2G/GSM network shutdown

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ellular network operators around the world are planning to shut down their 2G networks to re-farm spectrum for more efficient 4G/LTE services. In the USA, AT&T plans to shut their 2G Network by January 1 2017.

Singapore is one of the first countries in the world to have all 2G networks shut down at once with M1, Starhub & Singtel announcing a joint shutdown on April 1 2017.

Here in Australia, Telstra’s 2G will be shut down on December 1 2016, with Optus following suit with their 2G network closure on 1 April 2017.

This leaves only Vodafone Australia which has yet to express plans to discontinue its 2G service in Australia, 8 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

with no official word from Vodafone many M2M/IoT players in Australia are hedging their bets and looking to migrate to 3G or 4G/LTE in anticipation.

Research firm Berg Insight has concluded that globally 3G & 4G/ LTE technologies will dominate cellular M2M communications by 2018.

Pointing to the declining use of 2G by M2M developers in favour of 3G and 4G/LTE technologies, concluding the greater reliability, coverage and speeds as the major drawing factor.

LTE in particular delivers peak speeds of up to 100Mbps allowing for faster transfers and better handling of more data intensive applications like video cameras or digital displays.

The majority of mobile networks that are shutting down 2G have plans

to re-farm spectrum for additional 4G/ LTE network capacity. The business driver behind this decision is that it consolidates and makes more efficient use of their networks resulting in lower operating costs, fewer networks to support, and frees up spectrum for faster more lucrative services.

So why is 2G so popular?

The closure of 2G networks has the largest impact in the M2M space with an estimated 70 per cent of M2M devices worldwide still utilising 2G technologies. The major factor behind the prevalence of 2G devices in the M2M/IoT space is a simple one, cost.

Not as simple are the factors that make up the costs behind an M2M device:

Hardware Cost – The fact that 2G modems are less expensive than 3G modems should come as no surprise, it’s not very often that an older technology commands higher prices than it’s successor.

The problem in the hardware space has been compounded by the ‘Qualcomm tax’, due to the high volume of patents related to 3G owned by Qualcomm the price for 3G modules and modems has remained relatively static, and only recently as companies have got more economical with other elements and 4G/LTE development is ramping up, has the cost started to come down closer to 2G pricing. This has meant that a lot of businesses that probably should have been developing with 3G technology

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NETWORKS

two or three years ago have put it off to avoid raising prices. The problem now is that businesses have a much shorter development time frame due to the impending 2G shut down.

Lifecycle – M2M data needs are typically light compared to consumer applications that require the faster speeds and bandwidth of 3G and 4G/ LTE so the lifecycle of a field device can be anywhere from 3-10 years compared to an average phone or tablet, which is replaced nearly yearly by most consumers.

Upgrade costs – The nature of most M2M devices is that they are deployed in very remote areas and connected to mobile assets. In countries with large remote areas like Australia the cost of sending a person out to upgrade or change a device can be in the thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars.

Customer Perception – With customers conditioned to think that prices should come down over time, businesses working on a very thin margin have found themselves in a precarious position as the cost of deploying 3G increases their costs, but their customer base is unwilling to pay for what they feel is an ‘unnecessary’ upgrade. This has meant several businesses have decided to keep 2G technologies in place longer than their initial roadmap might have dictated.

Where do we go from here?

There is no doubt about it, with development times in M2M/IoT ranging from 6-18 months for new solutions. M2M system vendors in Australia need to make a decision now on PtheA next solution.

0 4 iteration 1 5 _ 0 of 0 their 0 _ M ET While some companies are choosing

the ‘mystery box’ and gambling on Vodafone Australia maintaining it’s 2G network the majority of companies we work with across M2M One are looking at 3G & 4G/LTE upgrade paths.

Upgrade options?

modules on the market now, you can build a device that can be shipped anywhere in the world without having to worry about your base module.

The major consideration here is the rapid growth of 4G/LTE. With coverage set to match and surpass 3G in the coming year, a lot of people are questioning the long-term future of 3G, while none of the carriers are making any statements regarding this.

Build vs. Buy – The first question you really need to ask yourself is whether you need to build a new product from scratch or if a solution already exists that can save you development time and cost.

The problem with upgrading a 2G solution from a module level is that most 2G modules have a completely different form factor, where most major modules suppliers now keep a common form factor for 3G & 4G/LTE – This often leads to a complete redesign of your base board, which adds time and money to the upgrade.

A lot of businesses that were early adopters of M2M/IoT from the 2G or even Circuit Switch Data (CSD) days had to develop their own solution, as nothing was available. Now we live in a time where M2M hardware has a level of standardisation in terms of inputs and functionality meaning it may be cheaper and easier for businesses to go from building a solution from a board level upwards to perhaps buying an 2G to 4G/LTE – As coverage grows off-the-shelf finished modem or even a the idea of leapfrogging 3G altogether complete product and white labelling and going with a pure 4G/LTE solution (this is becoming increasingly popular or a solution that is 4G/LTE with 3G in the competitive vehicle tracking and fallback is looking like the most sensible telematics space). path for a majority of solution providers.

2G to 3G – The most immediate fix While a lot of M2M devices don’t for the majority of businesses is to make need the added speed that comes with the jump from 2G to 3G. The good 4G/LTE the greater coverage, capacity news is that the cost of developing a 3G and reliability of service is a huge draw.

M2M device has reduced considerably Several module manufactures and M2M specific 1 making 2 0 1the 5 process - 0 3 -slightly 1 7 Tless 1 1painful. : 2 1 : 3 networks 9 + 1 1 are : 0discussing 0 With quad and penta-band 3G operations on LTE Cat-0, a lower

bandwidth M2M specific subset of LTE which will reduce both module and data costs.

This isn’t to say 4G/LTE doesn’t bring it’s own difficulties along with it.

While LTE modules are expected to drop in price much quicker than their 3G counterparts, they are still reasonably expensive compared to 2G. Another headache is the number of LTE bands currently being used; there are currently 32 LTE bands in use with 44 including LTE-TDD. There are currently no easily accessible modules on the market that will cover all LTE bands, which means deploying a global single SKU M2M device is currently impossible on LTE. Several countries have common bands making regional applications possible, but for a true global option your choices are limited.

Where do I get started?

The best place to get started is to speak to your supplier about upgrade paths.

Every module and modem supplier in Australia will be able to give you a number of options for upgrading your existing product and you might be pleasantly surprised by the ease and cost of some of these.

If you don’t have contact with a supplier, most mobile network operators will be able to supply you with a list of approved hardware and integrators that can assist. Some may even assist with discounts, subsidies or consolidation of services as they want to minimise the number of 2G connections come shutdown time.

M2M One 03 9696 3011 www.m2mone.com.au

OCTOBER 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 9

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ENERGY MANAGEMENT

How power quality technology copes with demand and regulations Now more than ever, modern industry is dependent on electronic technologies and automated processes such as variable speed drives (VSDs) and uninterruptable power supplies (UPS), which introduce non-linear loads to the power system, writes Rajiv Khanna.

I

ndeed, our increasing dependence on energy-hungry automated processes is contributing to a host of systemic power distortion issues that can lead to increased costs, protracted equipment downtime and drastic energy losses that negate many of the efficiency gains of automation. Unless your newlyadopted non-linear devices are properly conditioned to the load, these can create long term damage to the system and increase operating costs.

Power quality has become vital to safeguarding equipment and improving the efficiency of entire industrial and commercial processes and in providing substantial energy cost savings.

The biggest challenge in this industry area is a lack of understanding across the industry in how to analyse and reduce consumption, and competently install an active power filter as a full turn-key package. To rectify this, Delta Energy Systems has partnered with SAGE Automation taking a significant step in the industry to deliver a fully integrated service: educating users about the effects of poor power quality, conducting site audits and commissioning and installing active power filters across Australia.

To appreciate the fundamental principles of power quality, it is important to comprehend the three primary factors that contribute to poor power quality:

1. Harmonic current distortion

Much of the equipment we use today (computers, variable speed drives, and switch mode power supplies, etc.) contains circuits that convert alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC).

These are non-linear devices, which, when running, create harmonics that can severely distort power supply and cause problems for other devices connected 10 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

to the same source. Harmonic currents can overload and overheat wiring and transformers, creating a fire risk.

Harmonics are represented in ‘orders’, where (in Australia) the 1st or fundamental order is 50Hz; the 2nd order 100Hz; and so on for each consecutive order. Orders after the first are considered harmful energy, or power pollution within the circuit.

2. Low power factor

Power factor is the relationship between real (kW) and apparent power (kVA). A site with a poor power factor is likely to be paying for energy that cannot be used.

This can be explained using a very simple analogy: coffee. When you buy a latte, the last thing you want is more froth than coffee. The same thing can be said about power, where the extra froth on a latte is equivalent to wasted energy.

Taking control of and monitoring power factor can reduce kVA demand and electricity costs.

3. Load imbalance

Unbalanced loads or single-phase loads that are unevenly distributed between the phases of a three-phase system will cause voltage imbalance and may contribute to premature equipment aging.

Load imbalance also causes power supply ripples and severe insulation degradation due to heat generation, decreasing the mean time between failure (MTBF) on all affected equipment.

The relationship between total harmonic distortion (THD) rate and power factor

With a better understanding of factors that contribute to poor power quality,

it is easier to comprehend how these elements relate to one another.

Whilst harmonic current distortion and power factor issues have long been addressed as two separate issues, it can easily be seen that reducing the amount of harmonic current distortion will inherently improve a site’s power factor, due to the fact that the calculation for power factor takes the total current Irms into consideration, which includes harmonic current.

Why VSDs generate harmonic pollution

As one of the most widely used technologies in modern industry, variable speed drives (VSDs) are a strong case to illustrate the benefits of harmonic mitigation.

The advent of VSDs enabled motor drive systems to control the motor speed and torque by varying the input frequency and voltage, allowing greater control over the output and huge reductions in energy usage. A caveat of this non-linear device however, is the effect caused by the internal architecture of the power stage of the VSD, which traditionally involves a

fast acting switch – specifically a 6-pole IGBT (Inter Gate Bipolar Transistor).

The resultant switching from the IGBT creates harmonics specific to the 5th, 7th, 11th and 13th harmonic orders – as clearly indicated on the harmonic trace above that indicates the use of a 6-pole IGBT driven VSD. Where there are harmonic orders away from the 1st fundamental order of 50Hz (the output of Australian mains), energy is wasted and associated electricity costs will rise. In many cases, larger VSDs are installed to overcome these inefficiencies, adding to capital expenditure and overlay even further.

Active vs passive power quality solutions

There are two popular but very different technologies available for correcting the three main inhibitors of power quality.

Passive capacitor banks have historically been used to improve the power factor and tuned LC or trap filters have been used to mitigate harmonic current frequency components “5th order(250Hz) tuned”. However these target only the major order of what VSDs produce, eliminating around

Passive Solution Overview

Active Solution Overview

Uses traditional mechanical switch based capacitor architecture

Uses IGBT chemical switching architecture to increase response time and system lifespan

Targets specific orders of harmonics, usually 5th order as a tuned capacitor

Targets a wide spectrum of orders up to 50th in most cases

No software monitoring attributes

Provides direct online and real-time monitoring capabilities through the inbuilt HMI and Ethernet comms protocols to connect to a SCADA system.

Shorter life cycle (3-5 years)

Lasts 2-3 times longer than passive technology

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ENERGY MANAGEMENT

80 per cent of the harmonics present, but fail to address the resultant higher orders of harmonics.

Active harmonic filters are fundamentally different from traditional passive solutions in terms of design, and are becoming the fastest adopted technology for improving power quality in modern industry.

Such devices are software-controlledhardware, effectively using fast IGBT and thyristor controlled reactor chemical switches to improve THD and PF to significantly higher levels than those obtained by traditional passive devices. Active technology also offers

inbuilt capabilities for online and realtime monitoring and dynamic autoadjustment when a load’s characteristics change from its original conditions.

While still effective when used independently, passive solutions in collaboration with active filters provide the most energy-saving and cost efficient solution to pre-condition the supply. For sites without power quality technology implemented, active filters are becoming the new and affordable industry standard to cope with the rise in non-linear load devices and deliver a higher benchmark of power quality.

ROI: Fixing your bottom line with improved power quality Active power quality technology is designed to lower energy bills, ensure system reliability and prevent system alarms. The return on investment is fundamental to determine which active power quality solution is appropriate for each site and application. To calculate ROI, you need to understand how your energy costs are distributed and the overall bill is calculated – this is where differentiating kVA and kW is crucial. These values can be identified looking at your standard energy bill or via a comprehensive site audit.

Rajiv Khanna is the Power Quality specialist project engineer at Delta Energy Systems. He graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor in Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering, and has since specialised in technical efficiency and power quality solutions.

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INSTRUMENTATION

Three questions to ask when buying a temperature logger It’s reasonable to say that building managers are paying more attention to indoor temperatures than ever before.

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or example, evidence has shown that office temperatures impact employee productivity. A study conducted by researchers from Helsinki University of Technology and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that personnel performance might decrease two per cent when temperatures rise by one degree Celsius.

Therefore, it’s not surprising that organisations have taken an interest in climate control. As a building manager, you depend on temperature data loggers to monitor facilities.

Here are three questions you should ask yourself when looking for such instruments: 1. How many rooms am I monitoring?

12 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

Asking this question helps you not only determine how many data loggers you need, but also identifies the functions they must possess. You may install one instrument in a walk-in refrigerator and another one in a call centre.

Each room has its own climate requirements.

Thanks to smartphones, it’s not difficult to receive information from anywhere with an Internet connection.

All in all, this workflow is much more convenient than visiting each room at a time.

2. What kind of facilities are you monitoring?

Some facilities must adhere to strict temperature standards.

The World Health Organization

(WHO) advised technicians to purchase loggers that match their facilities.

For instance, let’s say you’re the building manager of a large pharmaceutical warehouse. Such a facility may consist of vaults, cages, cold rooms, walk-in coolers, primary warehousing and mezzanine floors.

Therefore, you’d do well to purchase temperature data loggers that are easy to configure. Consider buying a data logger that can also calculate indoor humidity levels.

3. What are the requirements for wireless connections?

In regard to the first two questions, it’s possible you’ll need temperature data loggers that can connect to your Wi-Fi. Now, you need to think about

the back-end functions and protocols associated with this convenient function.

Consider the differences between accessing temperature data from a secure website or a smartphone app. In addition, note WHO’s recommendation to buffer data. This means your data loggers will store information for a set period of time before sending it across networks. The process ensures data isn’t lost in the event of a network outage.

You should consider a number of other factors before buying a logger, but the three above will help you address the fundamentals. testo (03) 8202 8282 www.testoaus.com.au

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INTERVIEW

ABB gets excited about energy management & robots In this issue, Branko Miletic talks to Axel Kuhr, Managing Director for ABB in Australia, about where future opportunities lie and what will be the robotics, power and automation company’s focus over the next few years.

PACE: With the mix of technologies ABB offers, what is the current focus of growth for the company in Australia and how does this compare to the rest of the world?

Axel Kuhr: ABB Australia continues to be a major solution and service provider for power and automation technologies to the utilities, process and manufacturing industries. We are also seeing opportunities for growth in the renewable energy, data centre, transportation and infrastructure sectors. Strengthening our service activities, particularly in the advanced and remote services solutions categories, is a strong focus for us across all the industry sectors we serve.

Our low voltage automation products in the home and commercial space are also seeing some growth, with consumers and businesses more conscious of cost, efficiency and environmental concerns.

We have been successful in supporting the awareness of open source KNX technology, a worldwide standard for all applications in home and building controls which provides users with so many more options than the old fashioned c-bus technology. We also recently launched the ABB-Free@ Home home automation system to the Australian market and across the globe.

This system is easy to install and easy for consumers to manage the heating, lighting and other controls in the home, via a smart device or personal computer.

This is really taking off now.

Rail is particularly exciting, with the approval of many rail projects across Australia. Energy management and an advanced asset management software suite have the potential to bring significant environmental and cost benefits to the rail industry. For example capturing normally wasted energy from trains breaking, can be productively 14 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

applied back into the rail system using solutions such ABB’s wayside substation Energy Recuperation System. Earlier this year, ABB also introduced an Australiandesigned range of modular substations.

These DC prefabricated rail substations are fully designed, tested and assembled in ABB’s factories, so they can be easily transported and installed.

Although the oil & gas industry is slowing down due to the global overcapacity, it still provides huge potential for us in service and retrofit opportunities. Let us not forget that some of the installations are quite old already and highly utilised, not servicing them properly will yield less output, which would be particularly harmful in Australia’s high cost environment.

Food and Beverage is another sector that has always interested us and due to recent acquisitions, it is an area that we see great potential for growth.

Lastly, microgrid technology provides an alternative for network stability and more sustainable electricity generation for remote locations in Australia, but also in countries with a geographic composition similar to Australia.

PACE: You mention renewable energy is a growing sector for the company.

Can you expand on this?

Axel Kuhr: Despite the challenges currently faced within the renewables sector in Australia, ABB sees a tremendous amount of growth potential for the industry in the future. With its huge breadth of offering, covering the entire renewables value chain, from power generation through to transmission and distribution, ABB is well placed to address the specific needs of the Australian market, as renewables become an increasingly important part of the energy mix in the future. In my

opinion, the future for renewables will be strongly connected with electrical vehicle charging and making use of car batteries for renewable energy storage. There is a lot of ongoing research in this area.

ABB products are integral to wind, solar, hydro, wave energy projects and EV-charging as well as micro-grid solutions that provide greater energy security for more remote communities.

Globally, ABB has spent over $US1 billion in acquisitions in the renewables sector.

PACE: Is promoting battery-style domestic energy storage an area that ABB is looking to expand into?

Axel Kuhr: ABB has been at the forefront of microgrid technology development. This technology utilises batteries for energy storage. An example of this is the hybrid Grid Energy Storage and Diesel Generation System (GESS) ABB built at the end of last year for AusNet Services for its electricity distribution network in Victoria.

Earlier this year ABB and Samsung SDI, the leading manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries, signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote microgrid solutions globally.

Battery storage is fundamental to increasing the utilisation capacity of solar and other renewable energy sources.

As consumers become more conscious and active in their energy choices, and as battery storage becomes cheaper, battery-style energy storage may eventually become a viable option for the consumer.

PACE: How will ABB’s acquisition of CGM impact customers here, if at all?

Axel Kuhr: Buying CGM (a company which provides modern control room

Axel Kuhr, Managing Director for ABB Australia. design and ergonomic solutions for control rooms) will enable process industry customers’ access to the most up-to-date, ergonomic control room equipment available on the market today. Given the challenges of the ageing operator workforces, ergonomic constraints and consolidation of control rooms – ABB can now offer the most modern control room design for Australia’s process industries.

PACE: In terms of robotics, is this an area that ABB finds is becoming more competitive as more players enter the market?

Axel Kuhr: As the market continues to grow, we are seeing many new entrants into the Australian market, both in the industrial robot segment, an area ABB has always been very strong in, but also more recently in the area of collaborative robots. In April of this year, ABB launched its own dual-arm collaborative robot, known as YuMi, to a huge fanfare at the Hannover Fair in Germany. We are looking forward to releasing YuMi to the Australian market over the next few months. In the coming year, ABB will also be launching a complete new range of single-arm collaborative robots.

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MINERALS PROCESSING

Orange is the new black for uptime & safety Operational uptime plays a key role in today’s crushing operations, where maximising productivity and the reduction of production costs are paramount.

T

o meet these challenges, Metso has developed the new Orange series rotor for its Barmac vertical shaft impactor (VSI) crushers. These new rotors can help to significantly increase machine uptime through improved wear part life and rapid maintenance operations.

The new Orange series rotor has been designed with easy wear component replacement and maximum wear life in mind. Change-out of a rotor’s primary wear components via the machine’s service door has never been simpler.

Significant gains in machine maintenance time have been enabled through the reduction of wear parts by 30 per cent and the overall number of components by 25 per cent.

Tuomas Takalo, Metso’s global Product Manager for Barmac VSI’s, said the increase in wear part life achieved with the Orange rotor is significant.

“We have tested the new primary components in real life quarry operations, achieving greatly enhanced wear life. Tip life was increased by as much as 30-50 per cent,” he said.

“In quarry operations, this extended life will provide operators with significantly increased operational uptime.”

“Longer intervals between wear part changes will help our

The new Orange series rotor.

customers to increase their production output capacity.”

Since its introduction into the market late in 2014, Orange series rotors have now been installed in a number of fixed and mobile plants in both Australia and New Zealand.

Metso’s Australasian Barmac Product Specialist, Adam Lane said, “While it’s a little early for us to announce definitive performance statistics, feedback from our customers’ sites is very encouraging. The new rotors seem to be performing really well.”

“Our clients estimate that rotor component wear life is more than 25 per cent better than the previous design. They say that down time is being reduced by up to 50 per cent.

“So far everyone has been very impressed by the Orange rotor. Many quarry personnel are saying that it’s the new benchmark in VSI rotor technology.”

“At Metso we take safety very seriously. We always aim to design our equipment with operator safety in mind; the Orange rotor is no exception.

“I’m really pleased that this innovation is helping our customers to improve the safety of their personnel.”

The Orange series rotors are proving to be a valuable asset to the sites that have installed them. Changing of tips and cavity plates has been made easy in the Orange Series Rotor. The new retaining bar system allows experienced maintenance staff to change a full set of wear components in around twenty minutes.

“This represents a massive saving to an industry that is very cost savvy and is always looking to reduce downtime”, said Lane.

“ A real alternative to ultrasonics at an amazingly reasonable price.”

New from VEGA: Radar level measurement specifically for the water and sewage sector.

The radar sensor VEGAPULS WL 61 is ideal for any applications involving distance, level and flow measurement in water preparation and sewage treatment. Completely unfazed by weather or surface conditions, radar technology delivers precise monitoring of water levels, ensuring reliable measurement data and maintenance-free operation. www.vega.com/au/innovation Phone: 1800 817 135

OCTOBER 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 15

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HEALTHCARE SOLUTIONS

Digital technology to power up Australia’s healthcare industry Globally, the challenges impacting the healthcare industry vary widely. However, all around the world there is one similar objective: to deliver the highest quality care to the community in the most efficient and effective way possible, writes Irina Lindquist, Healthcare Solution Architect at Schneider Electric.

H

ealthcare is one of the most complex and challenging sectors to manage.

The increasing pressure on existing healthcare resources, the escalating costs and the communities’ limited capacity to pay for care demand, With more attention paid towards how we create the balance of an equitable, efficient, high quality healthcare system in Australia, we are hopeful we can provide a solution.

Research bodies, commercial partners and health providers around the world are working on finding solutions to increase efficiencies and decrease the cost of delivering healthcare services to the community. The focus has shifted towards digital technology and how it can be implemented into our healthcare systems to build a ‘fit’ Australia.

Research from Polycom found Australian healthcare professionals are encouraging the adoption of technology, with 70 per cent agreeing that it can help overcome some of the challenges facing the sector. Technology, in particular digital technology, can change the overall experience for all areas of healthcare operations – whether it’s a shift from paper to electronic records or complementing face-to-face consultations with tele-health innovations to support doctors and nurses.

Sustainable solutions

In Australia, there is an opportunity to transform our healthcare industry to operates sustainably. The current challenges for the healthcare system are calling us to find and implement solutions that make a difference.

16 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

In response, digital hospitals are emerging as the answer to provide greater efficiency, improve quality of care and deliver healthcare access for more people than ever before.

Fundamental to this transformation is digital infrastructure and the adoption of IT and OT technology, including information sharing among healthcare providers, patients and doctors, greater efficiencies across clinical, built environment and commercial perspectives and improving hospital workflows. However, as the building of new digital hospitals slows, the critical question is how do we take this knowledge and technology from new facilities and embed them in the huge array of existing hospitals across the country?

Currently there are over 700 public hospitals and more than 500 private hospitals that remain in an incremental evolution and would benefit from digital technology and network modernisation.

The implementation of digital technology provides the opportunity to transform our hospitals. However the path to hospital modernisation is not without its obstacles.

We are currently at a stage where we understand the benefits; the question now is how we transform existing hospitals with digital technology? This is a critical issue in health planning and a momentous challenge for the healthcare industry – both in the choice of technology and culturally.

A positive outcome requires strong management across core healthcare domains – clinical, built environment and business support.

It requires the establishment of early and clear management processes that interlock the vision and outline a roadmap for the implementation of digital technology for everyone in the healthcare sector. It also requires a strong and insightful leadership across the domains.

However, the challenge is the collaboration and engagement from everyone in the healthcare sector from patients, clinicians and staff to ensure digital technology is adopted and the possible adverse conditions generated from mismanagement of transition to digital technology has little impact on the patient health care outcome. This is why it is important for technology improvement programmes in healthcare settings to consider the value and outcome in the planning phase, how resistant staff will be to change and all the pathways to achieve success.

The healthcare industry is a complex ecosystem, with hundreds of people coming in and out every-day, challenging clinical and business processes, and many moving parts.

Professional organisations like Schneider Electric are actively looking to provide solutions that seamlessly unite patients, clinicians, staff, assets and information throughout the hospital, around the relevance and purpose, while delivering the right information and resources at the right time.

There is an untapped understanding in both the problems and potential solutions in healthcare that we need to unlock through better models of problem engagement and technology delivery. However, success in implementation and adoption of digital technology in the healthcare sector requires strong alignment between domains, strategy and governance of strategy around the common objective of equitable and sustainable service delivery.

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Producers & suppliers of high quality

Demineralised Water

Vintage Water has been supplying Demineralised and Potable (drinking) water to the Western Australian market for the past 20 years.

So control of quality could be maintained at all times Vintage decided to purchase and install a new high tech machine.

The Plant required approval from the WA Department of Water and the local city before it was able to start production.

The process starts with extraction of high quality ground water, passed through a reverse Osmosis machine, then through an EDI polisher. The end product is a high quality demineralised water. This process allows for lower quality water to be re farmed back to the Aquifer in a number of unique ways. The process is a very environmentally friendly, with a minimal carbon footprint.

The plant has the capacity to produce in excess of 100,000-150,000 litres per day on a continual basis.

PRODUCERS AND TRANSPORTERS OF DEMINERALISED WATER, BULK LIQUIDS, WINE AND CONTROLLED WASTE Office address- 117 Dalison Ave Wattleup WA 6066 Postal Address- PO Box 31 Wattleup WA 6166 Telephone 08 94101726 Fax 08 94101224 ABN 84 814 817 369

The water is frequently tested by a NATA approved laboratory and on request the results can be provided.

As well as demineralised water, Vintage has been an approved Potable water supplier, licensed by the WA Water Corporation for the same number of years. Providing drinking water to a number of customers and projects during this time Being approved under the City of Cockburn as a Food Producer ( Potable Water is deemed a food under the Food Act) and having a HACCP program in

place, to ensure that quality drinking water is supplied at all times and is monitoring during this process makes Vintage a market leader and unique within the market.

Our fleet and packaging offer consists of road tankers, ISO tanks, Flexible bladders and IBC’S we can accommodate any requests and have the fleet to provide a timely delivery schedule.

Some of the major projects and areas we have been involved in: Gorgon, Wheatstone, other Gas projects, Aircraft industry, Shipping industry, Coolant industry and other Chemical industries.

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AUTOMATION & CONTROL

New advanced manufacturing facility launches on Greenfield site A leading crop protection products manufacturer has launched a new world best practice $20 million production facility on a greenfield site at Lara near Geelong that is expected to deliver significant efficiency and safety benefits, writes Hartley Henderson.

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ccensi, which already operates established plants for the production of a range of crop protection products in Queensland and WA, launched the new facility to provide its customers with a more cost effective transport structure into the south eastern Australia agricultural region.

Apart from advanced automation systems, the new facility demonstrates excellence in a number of other areas including environmental and stormwater management, product line segregation, dangerous goods storage and handling, operational efficiency and control, plant layout, equipment selection and packaging systems.

The company’s technical manager, Eugene Shanahan, said a major challenge was the tight timeframe as the project was effectively delivered in just over six months, from a paddock to an operating facility. This meant that all contributing parties, including trades, had to work closely together to successfully deliver the project on time.

“Central to this project is the automation of our large volume products with a view to ensuring minimum long term manufacturing costs. This is focused around automation of 20L packaging lines, conveying of raw materials, and simultaneous charging of raw materials to mixing vessels,” he told PACE. “This should allow us to respond quicker to customer order requirements and not require as much overhead to ramp up production volume.”

Segregated facilities

PM Design Group’s Greg Aimer was the project manager for the equipment design, procurement and fit-out process for the new Accensi plant, which requires segregated manufacturing facilities.

Greg points out that for the most part all of the products are liquid formulations that require exact quantities of liquid ingredients (with solids added to some products) to be blended in specific order of addition.

“Some of the base ingredients and finished goods have DG classifications. As a result, the bulk receivable, bulk storage, liquid transfer, mixing and storage systems installed required a high degree of integrity and assurance that they were safe, reliable and accurate,” he explained.

“There are seven separate production lines installed in the plant, all of which are fed raw materials from a common bulk storage facility but operate autonomously.

Product packaging for five of the seven production lines is provided through a common automated packing 18 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

line installed remotely in a separate building from the production facility.

“The automation systems installed are specified to purpose, which in this case is for a liquids formulation plant producing a wide range of products.

“Accensi wished to have a high degree of integrity over the source, destination and quantity of all ingredients added but with operator control over batch mixing and downstream storage and packaging operations.

“Thus the systems are not controlled from a centrally located SCADA but from local, PLC driven, control stations. Therefore, items of equipment and sections of the plant are technically advanced state-of-the-art suppliers models, but not at the expense of making each individual process uncontrollable at local level.”

Electrical control

Furst Electrical Services was engaged to design and fabricate the electrical control system for the Lara operation.

The company’s Director, Mark Furst, said that because of the nature of the products manufactured by Accensi, it is critical to guard against cross contamination and to ensure that production facilities are secure.

“Key areas are physically separated with vapour barriers and each area has a control station with control parameters for operators. Also, every vessel is on load cells with weight indicators, rather than just relying on flow meters,” he said.

“The electrical control system for the Lara project involved eight areas containing varying hazardous zones including 1, 2, C1 and C2 classifications. Furst fabricated 11 multi-door, freestanding enclosures and six control cabinets mounted in the field.

“We also managed the electrical installation and PLC programming of the new system including six touch screen HMI’s for operators to control parameters in the field. The installation involved 38,000 metres of cable, 90 electric motors and 300 instruments.

“In addition, Furst prepared the Hazardous Areas Dossier and coordinated the inspection and certification.”

Furst was recently awarded the best start-up business in Australia at the national Telstra Business Awards.

Integrated automation

Automation technology selected for the Accensi plant was Siemens’ SIMATIC automation technology with a S7-300 PLC, ET200M remote IO and SIMATIC HMIs forming the base of a Totally Integrated Automation (TIA) system.

Siemens General Manager – Factory Automation, Chris Vains, says the system’s scalability allows users to customise solutions to their own unique requirements very quickly and cost effectively, and provides genuine forward compatibility for maximum investment protection.

“All components of the TIA system seamlessly integrate into the same engineering platform and

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AUTOMATION & CONTROL

provide automatically generated diagnostics from the system to the PLC and the operator’s HMI. Open communication protocols such as PROFIBUS were utilised for integrating field instrumentation,” he explained.

“The common engineering platform of SIMATIC TIA helped maximise Furst Electrical’s engineering efficiency and reduce commissioning time due to the built-in simulation tools before installation (for PLC, HMI and IO), as well as providing real time diagnostics during on-site commissioning.

“Integrated HMIs and Controllers enable maximum transparency of processes for the operator. Also, integrated diagnostics pinpoint system faults such as wire breaks or a failed input channel automatically and communicate them to the operator and maintenance staff for minimisation of downtime.

“Hot-swappable I/O modules mean that if an input or output module does need replacing, the process does not need to be stopped. In addition, ruggedized components and high reliability maximises system uptime.”

David Smith, at Plant and Control Instruments, said technology provided for the project included pressure instruments from Badotherm, temperature transmitters from Yokogawa, temperature sensors and thermowells from Temperature Controls, and level and flow instruments from Krone.

“As an international leader in process measurement technology, Krone worked with us to offer a variety of instruments and measurement technologies to meet the exacting service requirements of the project,” Smith said.

“The main Krone sensors used were the Optiswitch Process control Vibrating Fork level sensors, Optiflex Guided Geelong-based company, Plant and Control Radar transmitters, Optiwave non-contact Radar Instruments, was contacted by PM Design to provide Level transmitters, Optiflux Magnetic Flow Meter assistance in 1selecting Ultrasonic PA1 0 5 _ 0 the 0 0 most _ D suitable E L - process 1 2 0 1 5 - 0transmitters, 9 - 2 8 T and 1 5Optisonic : 2 1 : 3 2 + 1 0 Flow : 0 0Meter equipment for the new Accensi plant. transmitters.

“A complete package solution was provided by Plant and Control Instruments, including the ability to provide comprehensive levels of local backup and technical support, and to assist in delivering improved reliability, product quality and efficiency for the plant.”

Accensi’s Eugene Shanahan said that the new Lara facility provides a testing ground for innovations and if successful it is likely that some of these initiatives will be retrofitted to the company’s other sites in Queensland and WA. Furst Electrical 0499 857 777 www.furstelectrical.com.au Plant & Control Instruments 03 5278 4222 www.pcipro.net PM Design Group 03 5221 8010 www.pmdesign.com.au Siemens 03 9721 2000 www.siemens.com

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OCTOBER 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 19

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SECURITY

Looming cyber attacks threaten critical control systems With computerised control systems operating everything from power plants, water treatment facilities to transport systems and factories, the potential for disruptive cyber attacks grows bigger by the week, writes Kurt Hansen, Regional Managing Director – ANZ, Check Point Software Technologies.

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ublic infrastructure, along with industrial and manufacturing companies, has come to rely on such dedicated computer management systems for daily operation. Linked to networks of controllers and sensors, the systems are critical for the ongoing proper function of these assets.

Known as SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) and ICS (Industrial Control System) solutions, 20 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

these systems enable the collection and analysis of data and help automate control of equipment such as pumps, valves and relays.

Any disruption to these systems would have a dramatic impact.

Power services could be disrupted, water supplies compromised, and manufacturing facilities brought to a halt. The resulting financial and societal ramifications could be immense.

Already, attacks on such critical

infrastructure have been reported around the world. Facilities have been hit with an array of network breaches, data thefts and denial of service attacks. With the number of attacks on the rise, now is the time to take preventative action.

The size of the challenge

Details of the vulnerabilities within many SCADA and ICS systems are, unfortunately, readily available on the Internet. These vulnerabilities vary from

basic issues, such as poor password security, to configuration issues and software bugs. Once an attacker can run software with access to a controller, the likelihood of a successful attack is very high.

By altering commands sent to controllers, or by changing sensors readings, attackers can create changes in electrical, chemical, mechanical or other processes. These changes can result in loss of productivity, disruption of

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services or worse, and could become a genuine risk to public safety.

The problem is made more acute by the fact that many control systems have been in place for long periods of time.

Their rugged design and dependability means they can be operational for more than ten years, and in some cases well beyond.

Most SCADA and ICS networks have some level of traditional perimeter defence, such as a firewall, which makes access from outside relatively difficult.

For this reason, attackers are constantly looking for alternative ways to penetrate the systems. Potential attack vectors include: • Using a remote access port used for system maintenance • Hacking a legitimate communications channel between IT systems and SCADA/ICS systems • Social Engineering or convincing an internal user to click on a URL link in an email from a workstation connected both to the SCADA/ICS network and to the internet • Infecting laptops or removable media outside the SCADA/ICS network which later infect internal systems when they’re connected to the network SCADA/ICS networks and their components, are designed to provide manageability and control with maximum reliability. Originally they were not designed with security in mind. Security was simply the gap of air between the control network and the internet. Often, they do not feature mechanisms to avoid unauthorised access or to cope with the evolving security threats originating from external or internal networks.

While their implementation is often proprietary, SCADA controllers are essentially computers. They use standard computing elements such as operating systems (often embedded Windows or Unix), software applications, accounts and logins. As a result, organisations need to ensure they take a similar approach to their SCACD/ICS security as they do for other parts of their IT infrastructure.

Securing SCADA and ICS

Many SCADA and ICS systems have been built and extended over a long period of time. As a result, knowledge of exactly what is in place may be incomplete. For this reason, the first step in any security review is to capture

leakage. Staff members need to be informed and educated on the security policy and their expected behaviour when accessing and using systems.

• Enforcement: Steps should be taken to ensure the new policies are understood, followed and enforced.

4. Implementation Once complete, the security strategy should be implemented across the infrastructure. Importantly, physical network separation should be maintained between the real-time components of the SCADA /ICS network and other networks.

At the same time, security gateways should be installed at all interconnect points, ensuring only relevant and allowed traffic is entering or leaving the network. An anti-bot solution should also be implemented to deal with identification of malware that may infiltrate devices on the network.

Also, all workstations and portable equipment used for management and maintenance must be checked to ensure they are free of malware.

It is recommended to assign separate workstations for SCADA management software.

Finally, ongoing strict analysis of all traffic, files and payloads must be Kurt Hansen, Regional Managing Director – ANZ, Check Point Software performed, in real time, across the Technologies. infrastructure. In-house or independent a complete picture of what exists. Once devised. This multi-faceted policy specialist intelligence feeds, will increase this has been done, a comprehensive should address: the dependability of the analysis. This approach to security can be undertaken.

• Policies: Strong security begins with will ensure early identification of any The key steps to take to secure a well-defined policy closely aligned unauthorised access or activity within critical infrastructure SCADA systems to business needs. The policy must the critical systems. are: address the critical nature of the By following this strategy, 1. Mapping control systems to the organisation. organisations can ensure the Create an up-to-date map of all • People: Unfortunately, it is often users SCADA and ICS controlling critical AD _ F mistakes E N I Nthat D Jresult UL _ f P a g eremain 1 secure 8 / 0and 6 / 1 0 , components. This must include who make in 1 0 . p dinfrastructure an inventory of all devices and malware infections and information operational at all times. communication links, diagrams of the physical and logical connections between devices, lists of hardware and software versions, and a list of accounts and users together with their access privileges.

2. Initial analysis Cost Effective Solutions for Once mapping has been completed, an your automation technology needs initial analysis of security risks should Australia wide. be undertaken. This process assesses We specialise in the potential severity, probability and Systems Integration business impact of any attack, and and Projects how easy it would be for an attacker to Big and Small. launch an attack.

3. Creation of security strategy Once a comprehensive picture of the Industrial Software & Electronics infrastructure and potential Tel: (07) 3856 2232 Fax: (07) 3355 1012 vulnerabilities has been created, a Email: info@industrialsoftware.com.au suitable security strategy must be

PC & PLC Programming Video Image Processing

OCTOBER 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 21

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MOBILE APPS

The latest in manufacturing productivity apps When it comes to mobility, nothing gives more flexibility and optionality to manufacturers and engineers than mobile apps.

M

uch like their consumer counterparts, the number and scope of manufacturing apps is growing by the day and to cover all of them would be near impossible. Branko Miletic has highlighted the following select few manufacturing apps that can be used on a variety of mobile devices, operating platforms and across many different industrial sectors.

Kanban Size

Life Cycle Cost

iOS LCC is often used for option evaluation when procuring new assets and for decision-making to minimise whole-life costs throughout the life of an asset. www.autolean.com/apps/

Economic Order Quantity

iOS, Version: 2.3 A kanban calculator used to determine the ideal bin quantity of units within the kanban. Great for any manufacturing process. www.autolean.com/apps/

iOS, Version: 2.3 Calculate economic order quantity to minimise total inventory holding costs and ordering costs. www.autolean.com/apps/

OEE Monitor

iOS, Version: 2.3 Continuous improvement starts with understanding your processes and key performance indicators. If your organisation can’t measure performance, how do you decide on which problems to solve? To help identify which problems to work on, you need a metric that considers uptime, productivity, and product quality. www.autolean.com/apps/

Safety Inspection-Lockout and Tagout Mobile App

Manufacturing 360

iOS, Version: 3.0 MFG 360 lets you experience digital manufacturing in an interactive factory environment.

Learn how to compete more effectively with next generation manufacturing technology, including advanced robotics and logistics simulation, closed-loop quality solutions, and the latest CAD/CAM software. www.itunes.apple.com/au/app/ manufacturing-360/id498450268?mt=8 22 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

LuxCalc Fluid Prop I Mobile

iOS LuxCalc Fluid Prop I Mobile allows the users to quickly and accurately (within 5 per cent) calculate the thermophysical properties of common fluids found in heat transfer books for a user specified temperature. www.luxea.com/

iPhone, iPad Android Android Blackberry Blackberry, PlayBook Windows Windows Mobile, Desktop Lockout and Tagout is a safety procedure which is used to ensure dangerous machines are properly shut off and not started up again prior to the completion of maintenance or servicing work. It requires that hazardous power sources be “isolated and rendered inoperative” before any repair procedure is started. This app helps you make sure your workers have a clear process for dealing with dangerous machinery. This app comes with date, time and signature capture, and can be easily customized to meet your company’s needs. www.gocanvas.com

5S Audit

iOS, Version: 2.3 If you have identified that housekeeping deficiencies are causing inadequate performance then your organisation should implement 5S. AutoLean’s 5S Audit app is the best way to benchmark your 5S performance. Ideal for manufacturing areas, offices, and work sites. www.autolean.com/apps/

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HMI

Future HMI trends

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ver time, the quality of user experience on mobile phones, computers and even televisions has dramatically evolved. Improving user experience is clearly a key priority for designers of consumer technology, but can the same be said for industrial automation?

Jonathan Wilkins, marketing director of industrial automation components supplier European Automation examines how industrial equipment is evolving to keep up with user expectations.

For many industrial projects, implementing user-friendly Human Machine Interfaces (HMIs) is essential.

Put simply, a HMI is the interface that makes human-to-machine communication and vice versa, possible.

Aside from translating complex data into understandable information for the user, a HMI can also relay user commands back to machinery.

Typically, HMIs are computerised and use an interactive display screen to show operator messages, variable program data and system information.

The future of HMIs

‘HMI 4.0’ is the term coined by a consortium led by the Fraunhofer Institute for Labour Economics and Organisation (Fraunhofer IAO) to describe a new generation of HMIs. HMI 4.0 has been dubbed as the future trend in human-machine interaction.

The HMI 4.0 study identifies and examines fields of action for improving human-to-machine communication by focusing on the integration of social media, interaction and recognition technologies. ”In the future, the meaning of HMIs will go over and beyond pure monitoring and operation,” explained Dr Matthias Peissner, project manager at Fraunhofer IAO, “HMIs will also become a platform for the team where cooperative decisions, knowledge building and problem solving can take place.”

Generally speaking, the key objective of a HMI is to produce a user interface, which is easy, efficient and enjoyable to use, but HMI 4.0 believes that devices should be evolving beyond this. Over the past decade, 24 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

we’ve seen HMI screens get bigger, gain resolution and incorporate colour.

Alongside this, user expectations for wireless connectivity and touch screens have impacted the design standards for modern HMIs. But this doesn’t mean that older HMIs are rendered useless. In fact, many organisations rely on older, used or even obsolete HMIs to keep operations up and running, especially those who can’t afford costly production downtime or expensive system upgrades.

HMI manufacturers are almost constantly developing new devices in order to keep up with the rapid advancements of industrial technology.

As a result HMIs that are just a few years old are discontinued by the manufacturer.

The rise of Eco Obsolete Technology

This is where Eco Obsolete Technology (EOT) comes in. EOT describes technology that is no longer in production by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), but is still energy efficient, so it can still be used in industrial settings. EOT can refer to older generations of HMIs, programmable logic controllers (PLCs), drives, motors, CNC machines and so on.

It’s important to at least consider the option of replacing an obsolete HMI with an identical one, should it break down, especially if it was energy efficient and if the staff who use it on a regular basis were happy with it. Not only will it save on parts, but sometimes, when it comes to user experience, the biggest enemy is change.

The thought of downgrading back to numeric messaging, dial up Internet and tiny television screens would fill most modern consumers with dread.

As technology has evolved, our user expectations have been elevated.

The next generation of engineers will have grown up with iPads, smartphones and wireless connectivity in their homes and classrooms and subsequently, will expect the same in the workplace. EOT gives manufacturers the opportunity to keep up with these advancements in technology, without the cost implications of commissioning a brand new device.

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•A variety of I/O modules are available for flexible and optimal PLC system configuration. The I/O numbering system is decimal.

Built-in Communications •CLICK Basic CPUs have two built-in RS-232 communications ports that can be configured for either MODBUS RTU or ASCII networks.

•CLICK Standard and Analog CPUs have an additional built-in RS-485 communications port Analog Input/ Analog Output •Analog CPU modules have built-in analog I/O (2-channel analog inputs and 2-channel analog outputs).

•Each channel can be separately set for voltage (0 to 5 VDC) or current (4 to 20 mA).

Calendar / Clock & Battery Backup •Standard and Analog CPU modules include the real time clock and battery backup for the internal SRAM. •Battery allows data to be stored for 5 years.

FREE PLC Programming Software •The CLICK PLC supports a very simple, but useful set of 21 easy to use instructions.

•The 21 instructions cover most applications that are suitable for this class of programmable logic controller.

•Download FREE CLICK PLC Programming Software Now! Analog I/O Modules •4-channel analog current & voltage input modules •4-channel RTD & thermocouple input modules •4-channel analog current and voltage output modules •4-channel analog current input / 2-channel analog current output module Call Toll free 1800-633-040 •4-channel analog voltage input / 2-channel analog voltage output module

DirectAutomation is committed to bringing you the best automation products at prices that won’t break your budget.

Direct Automation makes your job easier

www.directautomation.com.au

Australia Wide: 1-800-633040 New Zealand: 0-800-6330405 Asia Pacific: 61-7-5535 3217 Email: sales@directautomation.com.au Fax: 61-7-55357284

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NEW PRODUCTS

Thermal flow meter for hydrogen in biomass measurement Process engineers responsible for managing biomass gasification plants will find the ST75 Series air/gas flow meter from Fluid Components International (FCI) operates in hot, wet, dirty environments to provide highly accurate measurement of mixed composition gases, including: hydrogen (H2), carbon monoxide (CO) and trace methane (CH4).

The ST75 flow meter operates over a wide flow range in mixed gas environments from 0.01 to 950 NCMH, depending on line size. For variable process conditions such as those in biomass gasification plants, the ST75 meter is factory preset to a turndown range of 10:1 to 100:1.

With built-in process temperature compensation for accuracy, the precision ST75 flow meter maintains consistent performance in rugged, hot biomass gasification plant environments. It features highly dependable accuracy to ±2% of reading with ±0.5% repeatability in line sizes from 6 to 51mm.

The ST75 flow meter’s precision flow element has a no-moving parts design, which employs platinum RTD sensors embedded in equal mass thermowells with its microprocessor electronics calibrated to laboratory standards for a wide variety of gases. This no-moving parts design provides extra reliability where process safety is a concern.

Suitable for crowded equipment areas in biomass gasification plants, the insertion style ST75 flow meter features remote mounting capabilities for hazardous plant environments. The transmitter, which includes a full digital display, can be mounted up to 15 metres away from its thermal mass flow sensor in the process piping and connected via two 0.50-inch FNPT or M conduit connections.

The ST75 flow meter’s fully scalable dual 4-20mA standard outputs are user assignable to flow rate and/or temperature and a 0-1kHz pulse output of total flow. The instrument can be ordered for input power with either 18 to 36Vdc or 85 to 265Vac, with or without a built-in LCD digital display.

The durable ST75 flow meter withstands process temperatures from -18 to 121°C. It operates at pressures up to 16.5bar (g) with a standard t-fitting (NPT female) process connection. With a tube process connection, the meter withstands 41bar (g).

Offering direct-flow measurement for higher performance at a lower cost with proven thermal dispersion technology, the ST75 flow meter eliminates the need for additional pressure and temperature sensors, flow computers, or other devices that are required with orifice plates, Venturis, Vortex shedding, and other volumetric meters.

AMS Instrumentation & Calibration 03 9017 8225 www.ams-ic.com.au

Surface area and porosity instrument Particle & Surface Sciences has launched the Micromeritics ASAP 2060 Surface Area & Porosity Instrument.

The ASAP 2060 is equipped with both 10-mmHg and 0.1-mmHg, highresolution transducers to permit krypton (low surface area) and micropore measurements, respectively.

Increased throughput with the addition of up to three additional units on a shared turbo pumping system, without adding the additional cost of multiple dedicated vacuum systems. This instrument provides research grade results and MicroActive software to the user.

Specifications are: • Pressure Measurement: 0 to 950 mmHg • Resolution: Up to 1 x 10-7 torr (0.1 mmHg transducer) • System Capacity: Single Port, up to four individual instruments can share a single turbo vacuum system Cryogen System: 3 L, > 80 hr. dewar Particle & Surface Sciences 02 4323 7822 www.pss.aus.net 26 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

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NEW PRODUCTS

Improving plant operations with OSIsoft’s PI Connector for HART-IP Emerson Process Management and OSIsoft have introduced the OSIsoft PI Connector for HART-IP, a link between HART field devices and OSIsoft’s PI System enterprise software infrastructure for managing streaming sensor data in real-time.

The PI Connector for HART-IP automatically and seamlessly maps wired and WirelessHART devices to the asset structure in the PI Server, eliminating effort and chances for error.

It leverages the widely used PI System to serve up information to these application suites and enables end users to gain benefits from their intelligent field networks faster, more easily, and at lower overall cost.

The connector was jointly developed as an integral extension of OSIsoft’s capability.

With the connector for, all of the necessary linkages populate to their respective applications automatically, giving the user instant access to valuable process and diagnostic information.

Emerson Process

M A 0 9 1 5 _ 0 0 0 _ S I E 203 9721 - 0309 2 2 0 1 5 - 0 8 - 2 7 T0 9 : 4 5 : 2 9 + 1 0 : 0 0 www.emersonprocess.com.au

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NEW PRODUCTS

Circuit protection for IoT wearable devices Mouser Electronics now stocks circuit protection components from Littelfuse which are specifically designed for use in Internet of Things (IoT) and wearable applications.

As demand grows for wearable devices that provide anything from fitness tracking to communications, the circuits in these devices will require electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection.

Littelfuse circuit protection components provide ESD protection for a variety of circuits found in both the simplest and most robust wearable devices.

Littelfuse offers general-purpose TVS diode arrays in wearables-sized footprints — including 01005, the industry’s smallest ESD footprint.

For high radio frequency (RF) circuits, the SP3022 is available with a low capacitance of 0.35pF and in 0201 and 0402 packages.

As an alternative technology, polymer-based ESD suppressors can be used for protection where minimal impact on signal/data rates is required.

Since batteries are the essential power sources of any wearable device, the charging process must be adequately controlled and protected against overcurrent P A 1effects.

0 1 5 _ 0 0 0 _ A MS 2 1 2 0 1 5 The Littelfuse Lo Rho series of resettable polymer

28 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

Ergonomic pendant switch

positive temperature coefficient devices provide reliable over-current protection for the battery when it is being charged, helping to ensure a safe charge and preserve the life of the battery.

- 1 0 - 0 2 T 1 4 : 1 0 : 4 0 + Mouser 1 0 : 0Electronics 0 www.au.mouser.com

This ergonomic pendant switch has been designed to fit more comfortably in the hand and features a button that is easier to press than any other switch.

Less that 2lbs of actuating force is needed, allowing for easy operation, even for physically challenged users.

The E921KA (A Circuit – normally open) and the E921KC (C Circuit – Transfer) comes with a preassembled 1.8m cable terminated to strip and tin on the open end. It has a sturdy thermoplastic housing with yellow elastomer button and strain relief.

The double-redundant circuit offers high reliability for critical applications and can also be used as two independent switching circuits.

Clarke & Severn Electronics 02-94821944 www.clarke.com.au

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NEW PRODUCTS

Remote control and monitoring of automation RS Components has announced availability of the new groov box industrial appliance, which enables maintenance engineers, facility and automation managers, as well as service companies, to easily and securely monitor and control just about any automation system or equipment from devices such as smartphones, tablets, PCs or smart TVs. Developed by Opto 22, groov is a web-based way to build and view operator interfaces to monitor and control automation systems and equipment, and requires zero programming or coding. It allows access to system data from anywhere a network is available and also allows users to receive real-time notifications based on configurable events.

The system is also secure, as all communications are encrypted over HTTPS and all connections need to be authenticated with username and password.

Developed as an Internet of Things tool for the Industry 4.0 paradigm for smart factories, the appliance is a hardware/software solution that means that a PC is not required on site.

The appliance has a rugged and solid-state fan-less design, operating across a 0 to 70° C temperature range, which makes it well suited for deployment in harsh industrial environments.

Offering a compact footprint with dimensions of just 106 x 171 x 33mm, it also features gigabit Ethernet interfaces and USB expansion for wireless LAN interfaces.

Humidity sensor Michell Instruments, through AMS Instrumentation & Calibration, has launched an improved version of its interchangeable relative humidity sensor – the HygroSmart I7000XP – which enables users to carry out maintenance on industrial relative humidity and temperature transmitters in as little as 30 seconds.

The unit has been developed by Michell’s research department and features the latest polymer capacitive technology to give an accuracy of 1%RH. The main benefit of the sensor is its modular format, which makes maintenance of compatible transmitters and probes fast, easy and cost-effective. The calibration data is stored in the electronics of the unit.

The sensor forms the heart of Michell’s range of RH probes and transmitters, including the newly launched HygroSmart 280/290 series of RH transmitters and probes for industrial processes.

RS Components

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Experts in Tank Linings

Wattyl Industrial Coatings delivers proven solutions for steel and concrete structures.

Ideal solutions for reservoirs, potable and wastewater storage tanks, clarifiers, pipelines, surge vessels and spiral casings. Approved to AS/NZS 4020 standards.

Solvent free, single coat, high build properties.

Toll Free 132 101

wattylindustrial@valspar.com www.wattylindustrial.com.au OCTOBER 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 29

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NEW PRODUCTS

Upgraded open-source SCADA software

Crystal Group has launched two new products in their rugged server series, the RS549 and RS5718L24 Rugged 5U Servers. The RS549 and RS5718L24 Rugged 5U Servers are specifically developed for applications in industries such oil & gas, public transportation, utilities, mining, military and security.

The new 5U servers provide performance in the toughest of environmental conditions. Designed to collect, store and process more data than ever while providing the space necessary to customise platforms for unique purposes.

The dimensions of the RS549 are 17.5” X 8.72” X 20”. The CPU is an Intel Quad E5-4600 Class processor. It has multiple expansion slots: (4x) PCIe X16 (double-width) slots, and 32-1024 GB Registered DDR3 with ECC memory.

The unit has four options on external bays configurations: nine removable SATA or SAS 2.5” or 3.5” HDD; eighteen 2.5” SATA or SAS HDDs; three drive packs and eight removable SATA or SAS 2.5”; or One CD/DVD/BD (R/W). The RS5718L24 dimensions are 17.5” X 8.75” X 23.75”.

The unit has three CPU options: Sandy Bridge or Ivy Bridge LGA2011, X9DRL-IF; Sandy Bridge or Ivy Bridge LGA1155, X9SAE-V; or Haswell LGA2011, X10SRL-F or X10DRL-I. The unit has seven full height slots; combinations configuration dependent.

And two options for external bays: Up to 18 removable SATA or SAS 3.5” HDD; or Rugged Drive pack (RDp) offer up to 30 hot swappable 2.5” HDDs, or eight x four Drive packs.

Schneider Electric has announced an updated release of StruxureWare SCADA Expert ClearSCADA, the open software platform for management and optimisation of remote assets in critical infrastructures.

These functionalities are embedded in a new ribbon-style framework that is the current standard for other Windows applications, while still providing the familiar core SCADA Expert ClearSCADA functionality.

The new features include: • Improved security and protection of system information, with restricted access to sensitive IP Address and Node Name information (including servers, clients, and other IP-connected devices) and unsuccessful user logons.

• Enhanced operational intelligence, thanks to new advanced OPC driver, 3D trending, and integration with Aquis (Schneider Electric’s software for water network modeling).

• Reduced time to market, with simplified calculations for internal points and Bulk Edit tool.

SCADA Expert ClearSCADA allows users to turn field data into actionable business information that is instrumental to improving their efficiency. It is ideally suited for demanding telemetry applications in Oil & Gas and Water & Wastewater as it eliminates the need for additional software to collect data from remote devices.

SCADA Expert ClearSCADA is part of StruxureWare software from Schneider Electric, a platform of integrated software applications that helps maximise business performance while conserving enterprise resources. It provides a holistic view of the enterprise, helping users to eliminate data silos and manage, analyse, and control critical energy and resource data across all operational levels.

Metromatics Pty Ltd 03 9872 4592 www.metromatics.com.au

Schneider Electric 1300 369 233 www.schneider-electric.com.au

5U rugged servers

Servo drive Machine builders that traditionally have used separate servo drives to meet high axis-count and power requirements for large custom machines can now consolidate to a single platform with the new Allen-Bradley Kinetix 5700 servo drive from Rockwell Automation.

The servo drive offers dual-axis servos, a large 1.6 to 60 kilowatt power range, and time-saving tuning technology.

Used in place of multiple servo drives, this next-generation platform can help machine builders reduce cabinetspace requirements by up to 70 per cent, reduce wiring requirements by as much as 60 per cent, and achieve easier configuration and commissioning.

The servo drive uses Load Observer real-time tuning technology, which helps remove the need to tune each individual axis. This can help machine builders deliver high-performance motion control out of the box, and reduce commissioning time by days, weeks or even months for the largest machines.

Once a machine is operational, the servo drive uses Tracking Notch Filter technology to detect and remove resonant frequencies, and automatically make tuning adjustments over time to help optimize machine performance.

This can reduce the need for regular tuning maintenance and help prevent machine failures.

Rockwell Automation 03 9757 1111 www.rockwellautomation.com

30 www.pacetoday.com.au OCTOBER 2015

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ADVERTORIAL

Southern Ports set loading records with Wonderware Australia

S

outhern Ports reduced downtime, increased their bottom line and is moving a record tonnage of product since reassessing its systems and software.

Effectively managing data is becoming increasingly vital for Australian Manufacturers. These businesses are under pressure to perform as they continue to operate in an environment with reduced profit margins and the challenges of cheap imports.

Southern Ports Authority were previously using a home grown, manual system for the tracking of trains, ships, tonnages and stoppages. The technology that the system used was no longer supported and they faced issues such as security and long term support.

Following a review, Southern Ports realised the solution was improving their data management.

In particular, they needed software that could understand the incoming trains and the type of product they contained, where incoming ore was to be stored and if product were to be direct loaded to a vessel, it needed to know which one. Southern Ports needed to improve vessel loading sequences, better manage its stockpile and to be able to identify stoppages and report on product movements including quality and overall efficiency.

Southern Ports sought to implement a commercial off-the-shelf software product that could be supported in

the future. The new system needed to provide all the current functionality of the home grown solution and provide an automated method for port supervisors and operators to manage the incoming trains and outgoing vessels. Reports needed to instant, with notification particularly important in improving the ports throughput.

The review led Southern Ports to Wonderware Australia, who specialise in software solutions to help industrial businesses measure and improve performance.

Wonderware Australia has over two decades of experience, is backed by Schneider Electric and offers assistance including in product selection, training, consultation and tech support.

Southern Ports installed the Wonderware MES system after determining it was the best fit to its needs.

Since installation, the operators have significantly reduced their interaction with the system as most data is atomically generated through the control system, increasing automation and data accuracy..

This improvement is allowing Southern Ports to investigate and reduce stoppages through continuous improvement programs.

Port Management also enjoy a significantly higher level of visibility due to all data being live, achieved thorough the Wonderware Information Server - a web based data and reporting solution.

Next year, the plant expects to expand its operation with an additional ship berth and car dumper and due to its object orientated nature, will be able to rapidly deploy the Wonderware MES System.

For more information on Wonderware Australia, visit www. wonderware.com.au.

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