Project Overview
GMG Corporation was contracted to design, build, and program an automated control system for two (2) bulk ink inventory systems at a large newspaper publisher.
Design
Specialized level instrumentation was selected to meet the unique conditions present in the bulk ink storage tanks. The control system consisted of two (2) control panel's each outfitted with an industrial panel mount touchsreen SCADA interface. Process controls were handled by two PACs (Process Automation Controllers) communicating over 100Mbit industrial Ethernet. The bulk inventory historical data and daily summary reports was logged on an SQL Server 2000 database. The historical and report data was made available to the customer's personnel using thin clients (standard web browsers) via IIS (Internet Information Server).
The Solution
This project showcases OPTO 22 Ultimate I/O & PAC controller technology. OPTO 22 PAC technology was selected for this project for several reasons: Open PLC architecture, Industrial ethernet communications, hardware cost, and small physical footprint. Because 24 hour operation was a requirement, redundancy was implemented via multiple PACs and HMIs (1 active master, one hot spare).
Technologies In Use
OPTO 22 Ultimate Controller
OPTO 22 Ultimate I/O
OPTO 22 ioControl Software
Xycom Industrial Panel Mount PC
High Speed Industrial Ethernet Communications.
Specialized Ultrasonic Level Transmitters
Specialized Discrete Level Switches
Benefits
This project allowed the customer to more efficiently monitor, alarm, and track their bulk ink inventory. To achieve scalability, all process process data, alarms, and reports were made available to the customer's key personnel via thin client access. To help control costs, remote control system access was utilized for support, troubleshooting, and system upgrades.
