Industrial Professional Articles

Smart devices provide operators not only with I/O data but also with a wealth of information about industrial plant operation. Information collected from field devices such as diagnostic data, status information on devices and specific device parameters can also help plan predictive maintenance programs.

Data from intelligent field devices helps in planning preventive maintenance work and helps to reduce downtime and lower maintenance costs. Before the plant operator can use them for process optimization, the data of all installed field devices must be made transparent and at the same time securely available.

Direct integration of Profibus PA field level into Ethernet control systems has created transparency and consistency for a provider of palm oil tank farms. An integrated platform handles reporting and offers real-time transparency for total inventory management of both raw materials and finished goods.

In the spotlight: Softing joins Emerson’s DeltaV Alliance Product Program and extends intelligent device management across the field to islands of devices and out to the enterprise to remote subject matter experts.

Simple fieldbus integration without programming effort.

Digital, mobile, networked and standardized solutions are providing new connectivity for process control users to communicate via HART, FOUNDATION Fieldbus and Profibus PA.

In order to even further increase system safety when handling magnesium, the light metal foundry Leichtmetallgießerei Handtmann has equipped four new die casting machines with the PROFINET diagnostics solution TH SCOPE and TH LINK by Softing Industrial Automation.

Troubleshooting with PROFIBUS Tester 5 gets machine back to 100% capacity in less than one hour.

Even modern fieldbuses like PROFIBUS are unable to maintain their perfect post-installation condition indefinitely. Some “aging“ is inevitable and this could eventually lead to bus faults and costly production losses. These problems can be avoided by continuously monitoring the PROFIBUS networks. The Softing solution deployed at the Aschaffenburg paper mill delivers benefits that receive the “thumbs up” from its staff.

Typically, implementing a PROFIBUS PA field device means developing custom hardware and device-specific software, requiring in-depth PROFIBUS knowledge. However, there is a simpler solution.