PI Technologies Everywhere

December 1, 2019|Michael Bowne

2019 Application Stories

This year, PROFINEWS featured several application stories that highlighted the role of PROFINET, PROFIBUS, or IO-Link in a current automation project. The list below includes all of those application stories. Click on any title below to read the full article. Also, don’t forget, PI North America is always looking for exciting new content. If you are already using a PI technology in your automation environment, we welcome you to consider sharing your application with us (contact us).

Remote Battery Monitoring with PROFINET

Electric Rubber Tired Gantry Cranes are high-tech machines that operate in shipping container terminals. Instead of being restricted to moving on a track, these cranes can straddle multiple lanes on their rubber wheels. But how do you provide a stable supply of power? PROFINET plus a radio-based IoT Edge Gateway play key roles.

Smart Control System for Otto Bock

Efficiency, whether it’s on the production line or in engineering design, is the primary goal in manufacturing today. Otto Bock deploys a control system devised with 18 smart drives. It’s based on a state of the art PROFINET network for process control and automation.

Water Treatment Plant Modernization

PROFINET is modernizing wastewater treatment plants across Denmark. The customer is Novafos, a major water company serving nine municipalities in eastern Denmark, close to Copenhagen. Novafos operates 17 drinking water plants and 18 sewage treatment plants and treats around 20 million cubic meters of water annually.

Grinding Machine 4.0

IO-Link brings greater flexibility, efficiency, and easier handling to the new Fives Giustina grinding machines. With IO-Link and centrally-stored parameter recipes, format and product changes are easy and can be accomplished in the shortest possible time. Together with Balluff, the Italian manufacturer has made its machines Industry 4.0-capable.

A Power Duo: PROFINET and PROFIBUS PA

PROFINET and PROFIBUS PA jointly provide the best value in a new spirit bottling and packaging plant. Highly efficient motion control solutions, high availability, flexibility, scalable redundancy structures, and integration of a variety of process devices are among the many benefits.

Palm Oil Tank Farms Ready for Digitalization

Giant tank farms are coming into existence with the flourishing palm oil industry in Southeast Asia. In Indonesia, a new project has been implemented which directly integrates PROFIBUS PA segments via PROFINET. This tight integration was critical when it came time to design an installation that would be up to Industry 4.0.

PROFINET Network Reduces Energy Costs

A national food supplier sought to expand its Florida, USA distribution center to match growing business demand. A PROFINET industrial Ethernet network was deployed to improve communications and optimize operational efficiency for $125,000 in annual energy savings.

The IIoT Approach with Remote Monitoring

IIoT concepts are inspiring new business models. Manufacturers are asking equipment makers to help them improve machine reliability and production uptime. Ecoclean’s innovative approach is breaking new grounds with remote monitoring and diagnostics services for PROFINET networks. Read this application story to find out what they achieved.

Rotary Table Speeds Up Automated Grinder

Improved surface finish and faster cycle times were high priorities in developing a new surfacing center with robot cell. Much of this success was made possible by strategically specifying pneumatic and electromechanical drives with PROFINET interfaces.

Wireless PROFINET to Control a Giant Tunnel Boring Machine

Tunnel boring machines are enormous, highly automated, mobile “factories,” which can perform all stages of tunnel construction in a single run. A challenge for these machines is the transmission of relevant data from the head to the controller located further back. PROFINET over wireless played a vital role in solving that challenge.

-Nelly Ayllon