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How to effectively monitor electricity in a factory?

In the article:

  • how to monitor electricity in a big production facility
  • what is Inteligent Platform for Energy Optimization (IPOE)
  • what can bring to you electricity monitoring
Modern industrial plant is not only efficient production processes, innovative machine park or high safety standards. To enter the competitive market, industrial companies must constantly seek for new sources of savings. One of such methods is increasingly the management of electricity, which in factories is an important expense point, and on the other hand is necessary for efficient production. 
 
To reasonably manage energy, you need to efficiently measure it in the first place. With such request global industrial concern, which designes and manufactures plastic parts, turned to APA Group.
 
Company of this kind – specializing in the method of injection molding of consumer products and producing components for the automotive, electrical industry, telecomunications and households – consumes enormous amounts of energy in daily production. Active injection molding machines, transmission belt, lighting of production hall – all those production element have high demand for energy. Connecting devices that provide insight into energy consumption and constant monitoring allows you to find bottlenecks, optimize expenses and electrical effiency.
 

Energy monitoring step by step

In this particular case APA’s task was to measure power connections and transformer stations on the low-voltage side, including injection molding machines and other key plant components. Bearing in mind the specifics of production in the factory and its complex nature, we started with a local vision on site. Thanks to this, we were able to fully understand the production process and areas in which the manufacturer expected us to propose process improvements or pilot solutions. The next stage of work was the exchange of technical correspondence related to the electrical diagrams of the points where the electricity analyzers were to be installed.
 
On this basis, we proposed measuring three main energy distribution points, on the low voltage side at the transformer stations. Inteligent Platform for Energy Optimization (IPOE). became tool, that helped us achieve this goal. 

Implementation of measurements without loses in production

Exchanging informations with chief energy engineer allowed us to determine, that the facility has greater power demand then initialy expected. This resulted in the preparation of a suitable class of current converters for high currents in the range from 2000 to 6000 A.
 
Considering the continuity of the plant’s operation, the installation took place on a non-working day. This made possibility to turn off the power at individual transformation stations and securely install measuring devices.
Inteligent Platform for Energy Optimization

Time for serious savings

To communicate each measurement point with each other we used already existing infrastructure of the facility. Each analizer was connected to the neariest LAN distribution point. In the central point, which in this case was server room, router (data concentrator) with build-in GSM modem was installed. Data from the router was transfered directly to Azure cloud collecting informations from each measurement point.

So far, first stage of the project was completed, which was measuring plant in terms of energy usage. In the project we used following technologies:
1 Gwiazda2 Gwiazdki3 Gwiazdki4 Gwiazdki5 Gwiazdek (oddanych głosów: 3 średnia: 5.00 z 5)
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