Most manufacturing or process plant sand factories rely on one group or one single individual to keep record and track of current PLC hardware throughout the facility. This is somewhat a daunting and can be overwhelming task and often overlooked because when manufacturing is happening, and product is leaving the doors this becomes an afterthought until something goes wrong. This can normally go one of two ways, the company has plenty of spare hardware to replace the faulty or broken component and the Firmware is compatible, a quick swap and back to normal. The other route could be that there is no spare hardware available in spare parts and to make matters worse the hardware has become obsolete from the Manufacturer, this is worst-case nightmare conditions and could pose a huge threat to manufacturing and sending product out the doors. BC Young Co, throughout it's years is familiar to these conditions. Our approach to this is with a facility wide Hardware Audit of major components that pose a downtime threat to your facility. We go thoroughly through each Machine/Equipment and record the vital hardware components and compare to current replacements in your spare parts and compare to availability/lead times from the manufacturer. Once this is completed and some components are obsolete a replacement is offered that is available and easily accessible. Not only does the hardware itself pose a threat but the Firmware/Revision of each component become a factor in these cases because not all components even though same part number and type it may be manufactured more current and the previous firmware is no longer compatible with the new hardware which means the new item must be flashed back to older firmware or forward to new which may require new software your technicians will need to be able to service the device. This case applies to not only PLC's but any hardware/components requiring firmware such as VFD's/HMI's.
Take a minute and think, do you currently have a backup program/file for all automation devices in your facility? If yes, then your company is ahead of most companies throughout the industry. If no, then no worries a simple back up of all your devices can be performed. Knowing this is crucial for support from OEM's/Vendors or current and future modifications to help the next steps be more fluid. Having a current Backup of your devices is a must in case something happens to the machine/equipment and it is no longer functioning or a backup is no longer able to be pulled from the machine, you will be grasping at straws or relying on the OEM to provide you one granted they kept up with it after the installation. Taking a simple backup of a machine's PLC/Hardware is rather simple and often time quick and it ensures your plant is up to date and ready for the worst.
Most companies hire new employees/maintenance or PLC Technicians throughout the year, with this in modern factories is the need for Specialized Software the technicians use to interface and troubleshoot the machine. Not only knowing which type and how many licenses you need for the software is important but the ability to use it. BC Young Co can offer services to breakdown your current expenses on Software related subscriptions as well as provide a cost savings package to bundle or reduce your software packages and still maintain what your technicians need.
Companies that are expanding or growing require new equipment and machinery, and most times they provide their own project management team which is a great way to stay in the loop and have control over the project but what they also fail to do is realize the importance of the installation and integration of the new equipment and machinery. There is so much more to expanding and growth than just the facility itself such as construction site and utilities. The machines which in the end make the product and provide the revenue get overlooked and it's left to the maintenance group to work out the kinks and integration. This shouldn't be the case; the maintenance teams need to focus on their primary roles of reactive and preventative maintenance and let the project teams focus on the projects. Since BC Young Co's routes are deep in Industrial Automation, we know how an installation/integration/commissioning of a machine should go. Let us assist you on your next project so you can focus on what your company needs and leave this to us.
Problem: Most manufacturers face the endless situation where operators are using the Human Machine Interface (HMI) in a manner than can cause issues resulting in downtime, product loss and overall quality issues. Most OEMs protect their equipment including Recipe Data, Machine Parameters and Process Controls by implementing Username and Passwords that restrict the user from changing these features when they may not be authorized in doing so. The downside to utilizing Username and Passwords is that they can easily be shared and logged, the solution that we have found to this is, the utilization of RFID Badge Readers. Most facilities in today's time have adapted the RFID coded employee ID for facility access, timecard information and many other uses, since the employee including the operator always or should always have their employee badge on them, we decided to try this concept and use the RFID code on the badge and replace the Username and Passwords.
Process: The way this works is similar to the Username and Password, the same protection of critical user interface parameters is protected but instead of having Username and Passwords to grant access, the user simply scans their badge. This does a couple of different things; it eliminates the need to constantly update Username and Passwords across your facility and also reduces the risk of sharing credentials to other employees since the user must always have their Badge ID on them to do other daily activities. The badge reader is small in design so it does not take up any real estate and most times can be integrated into the existing HMI Panel; the RFID Badge readers also come in POE (Power Over Ethernet) which requires a 24VDC supply which most modern HMI's already have along with an Ethernet connection, so the installation is simple and easy.
Usage: Currently installed and used in a large manufacturing facility in the Southeast this concept has seemed to eliminate almost all previous issues with Operators modifying and editing machine parameters to the point of stopping machine production.
Concept: The idea is to have (1) maybe (2) "Master Users" depending on facility, shifts and size, these Master Users have a login with their badge that gives them ability to add or remove users from having certain access to certain parameters with that employee's badge. The reason for this is so that when employee's turnover from the company or new employees come on board there is no need to change Usernames or Password the Master User which often times is the shift/area supervisor or team lead can add or remove these users. The employee's Badge ID is not shared through the HMI but stored locally on the machine PLC so no security issues are present. The Master User can give the employee a User Number and also store a username for that employee so when they scan in their name is displayed showing other users who is currently logged in. This also has the ability to auto log out a user out after a specified time set by the end user.
Design: With most modern equipment/machines they already have a PLC onboard which runs the current HMI, so the RFID codes are stored inside the PLC which takes up a fraction of PLC capacity with no harm to processing power or speed/scan times. With pre canned software already written and tested to perform this design the integration is simple and quick. The software includes (2) master users, (10) maintenance techs, and (15) operators all which fall under an access level of A, B or C with each having special access to whatever the end user decides. The numbers and access levels can be modified and changed to suit.
Hardware Required: Existing PLC, Current HMI (user interface), RFID Badge Reader, POE injector (if required) and current use of RFID Badges.
Results: When this solution was added to a large manufacturing facility, they requested to have all machines integrated with the RFID badge readers, the maintenance and engineering teams loved the concept because it eliminated the need to remember and store Username and Passwords for their machines. Production, Quality, and Process also came on board with this since it protects the machines, quality of product and reduced downtime.
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