Articles
Tools are the key to successful Profibus implementation
When Coopers Brewery relocated from Leabrook to Regency Park in 2001, the company took the opportunity to expand its capacity by commissioning an entirely new brew house. International brew house designers Briggs of Burton proposed linking all measuring points with a Profibus communications system, based on its outstanding success in other brew houses worldwide.
[ + ]Wings that waggle "could cut aircraft emissions"
Aircraft wings that redirect air to waggle sideways could reduce airline fuel bills by 20%, according to research in the United Kingdom.
[ + ]Socially interactive devices: Have you talked to your device lately?
As well as being a source of information, the internet allows people to interact on a social level. Social internet-based environments have many powerful applications that can be utilised to service equipment in the industrial sector.
[ + ]Six key control applications: Is there one controller that can do it all?
What kind of controller is best for your application? Is it a PLC? Perhaps you should use a PAC? Maybe a PAD? When it comes down to it, the name is not that important. What is important is developing a clear understanding of your needs and then finding the controller that best targets them.
[ + ]Robot solves skills shortage for coatings specialist
Finding specialised qualified staff and the need for greater efficiency in an increasingly competitive marketplace motivated Peter Harrison, the General Manager of Melbourne-based Hilustre Coatings Pty Ltd, to investigate the possibility of using a robot at the company’s spray painting facility.
[ + ]Pump keeps working in flood
Sykes Group was recently approached by a mine in Central Queensland to supply a pump for a duty of 200 L/s at 90 m head in an area that is inaccessible in wet weather and can also flood.
[ + ]Pumps bring nature back to life
In 2006, Sykes Group sold a number of QSPCP200 (Quiet Solution) pumps to a South Australian government department. The pumps have been commissioned to take water from one of the Murray River tributaries and discharge it onto the dry flood planes. The result is, its not only saving the old river red gums but bringing life back to trees.
[ + ]Solution to assist industry calculate compressed air energy savings
SMC Pneumatics has developed an Energy Saving Software Package which is designed to assist industry calculate the cost of compressed air and to assess cost savings associated with the implementation of proposed energy-reduction strategies.
[ + ]Compressed air system implementation reduces carbon footprint by 35%
Australian milk processor Murray Goulburn (MGC) has reduced its carbon footprint by 35% after the implementation of CompAirs recommendations in its demand side audit of the plants air system. The company has saved over AU$147,000 in energy and maintenance costs and cut carbon emissions by more than 1900 t at its Leongatha plant in Victoria after just five months.
[ + ]Determinism in industrial ethernet:
A technology overview — Part 2
In Part 1 of this article we looked generally at the types of innovations that have been used to make use of ethernet in process plants and factory automation. This month we look at some of the most well-known implementations.
[ + ]Mining sustainability — through modernisation and optimisation
Every mining operation has budgets, production targets, business goals and a sustainability plan, but achieving budgets and business goals requires the efficient use of all internal resources, such as people, plant, raw materials, maintenance, reagents and procedures.
[ + ]Colourblind no more — contrast and colour sensors for packaging and converting applications
In a black and white world, using photoelectric sensors would be very straightforward. In the real world, things are not so simple. In their technicolour lives, photoelectric sensors are often utilised to sort coloured products, identify coded markings and confirm the presence of an adhesive or date codes on a package.
[ + ]Online support saves OneSteel time and money
As part of its Solution Enhancement Support Program (SESP), OneSteel implemented a secure, online connection to Honeywell’s global technical assistance centre (TAC) support team enabling faster and more accurate problem identification and resolution.
[ + ]Laser particle sampling at Paraburdoo iron ore
The installation of an Outotec PSI 500 particle size analyser at Rio Tinto Iron Ore at Paraburdoo, in the Pilbara, is the first in Australia.
[ + ]Compact manifold design increases flexibility
In response to a specific request to improve safety and operating efficiency, a hydraulic system has been redesigned to eliminate the use of multiple manifolds and valves. Effectively replacing these items with a single manifold, the new design also incorporates state-of-the-art electronic control components.
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