Siemens will be placing smart solutions for the industry-specific implementation of Industry 4.0 at the heart of its Hannover Messe 2019 exhibit under the banner “Digital Enterprise – Thinking industry further!”. On around 4000 m² of exhibition space in Hall 9, Siemens will be showcasing these solutions with an array of new additions to its Digital Enterprise offering, which is designed to enable the digital transformation of the discrete and process industries. By integrating future technologies into its portfolio, Siemens provides users with new and far more extensive scope for leveraging the exponential growth in industrial data. The spectrum covers everything from the use of artificial intelligence and edge computing through to factory and process automation of the future.
Siemens will be illustrating its vision for the industry-specific implementation of Digital Enterprise and the use of future technologies with a range of exhibits, including two especially notable highlights. One of these is the chemical industry showcase featuring a fully virtual representation of a greenfield plant complete with laboratory, automation and control technology to facilitate the sustainable and environmentally responsible production of polyamide made from biomass.
New process control system
The Simatic PCS7 process control system was developed by Siemens more than 20 years ago as an effective tool consisting of powerful hardware, an extensive set of standards and numerous libraries. Responding to new issues such as “modular plants”, “global engineering” and “scalability of plants”, Siemens decided to launch a novel, web-based process control system on the market. “The new system focuses on continuous processes like those found in the petrochemical or water and wastewater industries”, explains Process Automation Business Unit CEO Eckard Eberle. “The totally web-based new system and the multi-user concept for engineering and operation will open up radically new and efficient ways of working for our customers.” Up to 30 experts worldwide can log in simultaneously and work on the system collision-free. “We attached particular importance to manageability and user-friendliness”, Eberle continues. “The process industry also thinks in terms of process engineering objects. We mapped this in the new control system and thus created integrated workflows.”
Besides this, customers will benefit from Plantsight, a system which draws data from several different sources to permit rapid access to previously unobtainable information. By synchronising the physical plant with the relevant engineering data, it is possible to create a digital twin of the manufacturing process. Plant operators are ensured a high level of trustworthiness and information quality, enabling continuous operational readiness and greater reliability.
Digital service optimises maintenance
Siemens has expanded its Digital Enterprise portfolio to include a new digital service for optimising plant maintenance. The Lifecycle Management Suite paves the way for consistent planning, execution and documentation of all service activities. This cloud-based system can even be used from mobile terminals in order to immediately document activities in the plant. Furthermore, those responsible for maintenance always have a transparent and up-to-date overview of all service activities and plant states, allowing maintenance to be planned even more efficiently and cutting maintenance costs.
This comprehensive and consistent database has benefits for the maintenance and asset managers of industrial plants. They can store all planned and performed service activities in a single system, even on-site on a mobile terminal, so that absolute consistency is guaranteed. Maintenance managers can take advantage of the Lifecycle Management Suite to schedule service activities, create job orders and monitor performance, so as to make maximum use of resources and streamline maintenance costs. Plant asset managers are permanently aware of the current lifecycle status of all products and systems in use, for example through extensive information on obsolete hardware and software components. Field service engineers working in the plant can view their jobs directly on a mobile device.
The pre-configured system is based on Comos MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhauls) and provides standard operating procedures (SOP) in the form of checkpoints for lifecycle services, which are assigned to components of the Simatic PCS7 process control system. The system can be upgraded at any time with additional maintenance objects. Thanks to the modular portfolio, plant operators everywhere can take sound decisions on a site’s service requirements.
An annual subscription scheme lets users access the various modules in the portfolios from a cloud without having to purchase any supplementary hardware or software. Siemens offers comprehensive software support, including updates.
Online search: cpp0119siemens
Hall 9, Booth D35
Dr. Bernd Rademacher
Editor
