Brisbane Melbourne Hobart Launceston Devonport
Case Study
Migrating a Food Manufacturer's Legacy Soft PLC to a Hardware Platform
"You wanted to be in this business, so you better harden up!" - Jennifer Lopez
Industry
Manufacturing
Sector
Beverage
Segment
Production Systems
Project
- The client is global dairy nutrition company, employing over 1,500 people in Australia.
- The client identified that a Soft PLC installed at their Tasmanian facility presented an operational risk.
- The Soft PLC was operating on a system with an aging processor and there was limited local support so a failure could take production down for a significant period.
- To address the risk and to facilitate an upcoming process upgrade the client desired to upgrade the Soft PLC.
- The plant could only be shut down for one day to allow the upgrade to be completed.
- Based on a long history of working together, the client trusted Cromarty Automation to deliver the project effectively and on time.
Solution
To deliver the required outcome Cromarty Automation:
- Extensively planned the design, equipment, materials and installation work required to successfully implement the upgrade.
- Converted the code and identified all consequential changes required in dependent PLCs and SCADA screens that interface directly or indirectly with Soft PLC.
- Carried out comprehensive simulation testing in advance of the deployment to prove all functionality before cut-over.
- Worked closely with the client to develop a deployment strategy.
- Performed the upgrade works in accordance with the agreed strategy.
- Ensured the functionality such as control sequences, alarms, and measurements post deployment were the same as before deployment, so that no operator re-training was required,
- Provided engineering support post 7 days after changeover.
Outcome
A famous golfer once said, "the more I practice, the luckier I get"; this is evident in how smoothly the upgrade was implemented. The window for the upgrade was opened and closed in one day and production didn't miss a beat. Cromarty Automation not only met but exceeded the clients brief.
