PACE - Process & Control Engineering - February 2015

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FEBRUARY 2015 | VOL.68 NO.1

INSIDE PACE

Sensors

Mining Automation

Food Processing

Introduction of smart field devices poses challenges

AGL Loy Yang’s mine conveyor system upgrade

Focus on sustainability and energy performance

Protect against

Post Print Approved PP100008186

cyber threats

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CONTENTS

Publisher: Martin Sinclair Email: martin.sinclair@cirrusmedia.com.au Editor: Kevin Gomez Tel: (02) 8484 0976 Fax: (02) 8484 0722 Email: kevin.gomez@cirrusmedia.com.au

IN THIS ISSUE 16

Group Sales Manager: Tim Richards Tel: (02) 8484 0829 Mobile: 0420 550 799 Email: tim.richards@cirrusmedia.com.au

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QLD Sales Manager: Sharon R. Amos PO Box 3136, Bracken Ridge, QLD 4017 Tel: (07) 3261 8857 Fax: (07) 3261 8347 Mobile: 0417 072 625 Email: sharon.amos@cirrusmedia.com.au

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Graphic Designer: Dave Ashley Email: david.ashley@cirrusmedia.com.au Production Co-ordinator: Tracy Engle Tel: (02) 8484 0707 Fax: (02) 8484 0722 Email: tracy.engle@cirrusmedia.com.au

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Security 8

Engineer’s Corner 20

Insight 10

Technology Update 22

Cyber threats Industry must boost its cyber defences quickly Sensors State of automation is changing with smart devices Conversation 12

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Craig Roseman Food industry must produce more with less resources

Switchboards Equip your assets to respond flexibly to future needs New Products 24

Control on the wire Wireless technology will become easier to implement

7 of the Best Embedded Ethernet switches. Moisture analyser for stored natural gas. Flexible POD mounting accelerometer. Compact safety light curtains.

Smart wireless gateway. Variable area flowmeter.

Temperature transmitter with IO-Link.

Mining 16

The Last Word 26

Fieldbus 14

AGL Loy Yang Innovative drive solution enables mine conveyor system upgrade

Careers Engineering remains one of the most imbalanced professions in Australia

ON THE COVER PA0 2 1 5 _ 0 0 1

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF:

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Protect against cyber threats

FEBRUARY 2015 | VOL.68 NO.1

INSIDE PACE

Sensors

Mining Automation

Food Processing

Introduction of smart field devices poses challenges

AGL Loy Yang’s mine conveyor system upgrade

Focus on sustainability and energy performance

Protect against

Post Print Approved PP100008186

cyber threats Average Net Distribution Period ending Sept ’14 5,725

Oil & Gas Precision gears enable efficient gas extraction

Many organisations have taken steps to secure their ICS and OT using traditional protection methods such as firewalls, anti-virus, anti-malware, and intrusion detection and prevention systems.

While they are important to protect the overall IT environment, these measures fall short in delivering the comprehensive protection needed to secure ICS and OT. Threats to these systems vary from conventional malware, spam and phishing to highly-targeted

advanced persistent threats. Australian industry must improve its threat intelligence and protection via both technologies and processes.

Protection has evolved as both systems and cyber criminals have become more advanced.

Air gapping, where critical ICS and OT systems are physically separated from corporate IT, is no longer adequate since these networks are never completely isolated from the internet.

(See page 8) FEBRUARY 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 3

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COMMENT

WHAT’S ON

EDITOR’S MESSAGE

EtherNet/IP Fundamentals and Troubleshooting 17 February 2015, Melbourne www.rockwellautomation.com/ training

Address security concerns

TÜV Functional Safety Engineer 23-26 February 2015, Sydney www.rockwellautomation.com/ training Hazards Australasia 2015 26-27 May 2015, Brisbane www.icheme.org/hazardsaus2015 APCChE 2015 Congress incorporating Chemeca 2015 27 September-1 October 2015, Melbourne www.apcche2015.org For daily updates visit www.pacetoday.com.au

Kevin Gomez Editor

Next Issue

• Instrumentation • PLCs and Soft Control • Energy Management • Process Control in Mining • Focus on Fieldbus

SECURITY concerns always grab headlines and in automation there is growing concern with the convergence of operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT).

In this issue of PACE, our correspondent argues that traditional air-gapping, or separating IT and OT systems, is no longer adequate.

A deeper defence approach is being advocated and this involves placing multiple, independent security layers through the automation network. It is important for industrial automation engineers

to assess the threat landscape and stay one step ahead of cybercriminals.

We also look at sensors which are getting smarter, generating 20 times more readings than they did a few years back. The flip side of the sensor evolution is the need for an enterprise device management solution to collect and analyse all this information.

Also in this issue, we look at an innovative drive solution that helped streamline AGL Loy Yang’s mine conveyor system upgrade. Interestingly, the new drive technology was implemented in a gradual

manner to enable integration with the existing drive system and control architecture.

The deadline is fast approaching for the close of nominations to the PACE Zenith Awards. Hurry and send in your entries. As always, every finalist gets two free tickets to the gala dinner in Sydney.

We are interested to hear your opinion.

Email us, follow us on twitter and sound off on Facebook. kevin.gomez@cirrusmedia.com.au

Like us on Facebook and join the conversation facebook.com/PACEtoday

INSIGHT

Technologies to transform the world over next five years THE Internet of Everything, cloud computing/big data and 3-D printing are the three technologies most likely to transform the world during the next five years, according to IHS Technology.

“We know that technology has the capability to change the world: from the Gutenberg printing press to the steam engine to the microchip,” said Ian Weightman, vice president, research & operations, IHS Technology.

“But how can we determine which technologies are likely to have the greatest potential to transform the future of the human race?

To answer these questions, IHS Technology gathered its leading experts representing the technology supply chain from electronic components to finished products across applications markets ranging from consumer, media, and telecom; to industrial, medical, and power. These experts were asked to nominate and vote for their top 10 most impactful technologies over the next five years.

The top three technologies were: 3-D printing in third place; cloud computing/ big data at No. 2; and the Internet of Everything coming out on top.

Also called additive manufacturing, 3-D printing encourages design innovation by facilitating the creation of new structures and shapes, and 4 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

allows limitless product complexity without additional production costs. It also greatly speeds up time to market by making the idea-to-prototype cycle much shorter.

Total revenue for the 3-D printing industry is forecast to grow by nearly 40 percent annually through 2020, when the aggregated market size is expected to exceed $35.0 billion, up from US$5.6 billion in 2014.

The cloud has become a ubiquitous description for on-demand provisioning of data, storage, computing power and services that are touching nearly every consumer and enterprise across the globe.

Together with data analytics and mobile broadband, the cloud and big data are poised to reshape almost every facet of the consumer digital lifestyle experience and dramatically impact enterprise information technology (IT) strategies, while creating new opportunities and challenges for the various nodes in the entire information, communications and technology (ICT) value chain.

The cloud is transformational in the business landscape, changing the way enterprises interact with their suppliers, customers and developers.

The big data and data analytics

segment is a separate but related transformational technology that harnesses the power of the cloud to analyze data for disparate sources to uncover hidden patterns, enable predictive analysis and achieve huge efficiencies in performance.

IHS forecasts that global enterprise IT spending on cloudbased architectures will double to approximately US$230 billion in 2017, up from about US$115 billion in 2012.

The world is in the early stages of the Internet of Things (IoT) – a technological evolution that is based on the way that Internet-connected devices can be used to enhance communication, automate complex industrial processes and generate a wealth of information.

To provide some context on the magnitude of this evolution, more than 80 billion Internet-connected devices are projected to be in use in 2024, up from less than 20 billion in 2014, as presented in the attached figure.

While the IoT concept is still relatively new, it is already transforming into a broader model: the Internet of Everything (IoE). The metamorphosis covers not just the number of devices but envisages a complete departure from the way these devices have used the Internet in the past. technology.ihs.com

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NEWS

EXCELLENCE

2015 PACE Awards: Nominations open NOMINATIONS for the 12th Annual Phoenix Contact, SICK, Delta and ifm PACE Zenith Awards are now open so efector. get your entriess ready. Check out our Categories for the 2015 PACE new Awards site (www.paceawards.com.

Awards are: au). It’s now easier to nominate and find • Manufacturing related information.

• Food & Beverage This is a unique opportunity to • Oil & Gas showcase your project in the company of • Machine Builder your peers.

• Mining & Minerals Processing All finalists get two free tickets to the • Power and Energy Management gala dinner which be in Sydney in June • Transport, Power and Infrastructure 2015.

• Water & Wastewater It is a entertaining and fun night and • Young Achiever a fantastic opportunity to network with • Best Fieldbus Implementation other professionals in the industry.

• Lifetime Achievement The awards offer an opportunity • Project of the Year for engineers, suppliers, integrators We encourage you to nominate and industrial business-owners to be colleagues and peers for the two peoplerecognised publicly in front of their peers based awards. The Project of the andApotential D _ P Acustomers.

C E A M S F E B _ 1 3 . p Year d f Award P a is g given e 1out 9to /the 0 most 1 / 1 3 , The sponsors so far are: Honeywell, innovative project overall.

Entering the PACE Awards is free.

This is the only awards program specific to process, control and automation in Australia and New Zealand.

1 0Participating : 0 0 A in M the awards is a great way to boost your team’s morale by

celebrating their work and exposing it to a large audience. Finalists are profiled in PACE magazine, on www.pacetoday.com. au as well through as our social media channels. www.paceawards.com.au

FEBRUARY 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 7

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OPINION

SECURITY

Protect against cyber threats Australian industry must ensure its cyber defences evolve even quickly, writes Craig Searle.

A

NEW approach is needed to counter a new threat from cyber criminals that could dramatically affect many of Australia’s industries and even the economy itself.

Increasingly well-funded and sophisticated cyber criminals are looking to attack industrial control systems (ICS) and other operational technologies (OT) with the intent to sabotage operations or even conduct terrorist acts.

These systems were previously less of a target for cyber criminals because they were well-protected by virtue of the fact that they were not connected to the internet. As organisations have looked to achieve operational efficiencies and increased automation, these systems have become more tightly integrated with corporate IT systems and, by extension, the internet. Yet many organisations have not yet implemented adequate

8 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

security measures to protect them.

This opens up new opportunities for cyber criminals, some of which are sponsored by nation states. The results of an attack could be severe, including loss of life in the most extreme cases.

In 2010 the Stuxnet computer worm reportedly attacked the industrial Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) of a nuclear facility in Iran.

The PLCs automate electromechanical processes. In this case, the attack caused the centrifuges to fail, disrupting production. Subsequent to Stuxnet, variants such as DuQu have appeared and similar attacks could be mounted against Australian infrastructure.

Many organisations have already taken steps to secure their ICS and OT using traditional protection methods such as firewalls, anti-virus, anti-malware, and intrusion detection and prevention systems. While they

are important to protect the overall IT environment, these measures fall short in delivering the comprehensive protection needed to secure ICS and OT.

Persistent threats

Threats to these systems vary from conventional malware, spam and phishing to highly-targeted advanced persistent threats (APTs). Australian industry must improve its threat intelligence and protection via both technologies and processes.

Protection has evolved as both systems and cyber criminals have become more advanced. Air gapping, where critical ICS and OT systems are physically separated from corporate IT, is no longer adequate since these networks are never completely isolated from the internet.

The traditional approach of identifying and blocking or remediating

cyber risks before they can cause damage doesn’t take into account the fact that cyber criminals may use a series of seemingly innocuous and unrelated events that are deliberately spaced to avoid raising suspicion. Simply being able to identify and stop viruses and malware is not enough.

A deeper defence approach involves placing multiple, independent security layers throughout the network. This protects against a variety of different kinds of attacks at different levels and can give organisations more time to detect and respond to intrusions. For best results it should be combined with advanced monitoring that can see these seemingly-unrelated events for what they are: an orchestrated cyber attack in which the cyber criminals are patient and motivated enough to carry out the attack over a long period of time.

BAE Systems Applied Intelligence

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OPINION

offers a solution called IndustrialProtect – a military-grade solution that protects ICS. IndustrialProtect works by verifying the identity of the individual or system sending information, that the information is received as it was sent, and also that the content is intended and appropriate for the receiving system.

IndustrialProtect has five key features: 1. network segmentation without breaking critical business process 2. prevention of unauthorised systems from exchanging information 3. assurance that the integrity of information is preserved from source to destination 4. transparency to existing systems and a very low attack surface

high assurance of the confidentiality of the destination system and protect the operation and data integrity of the source system from attacks originating in the destination. This makes them ideal to monitor systems remotely without risk of being compromised by the remote system.

Data diodes are simple and relatively low-cost but a unidirectional data flow is not always appropriate, particularly in cases where remote access and configuration management is required.

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Firewalls

Firewalls can effectively prevent obvious or known attacks at the network perimeter. They work by setting network traffic rules either based on

Companies cannot rely on firewalls alone because they can only prevent known and identified attacks 5. full remote management from a central console.

IndustrialProtect can be enhanced when organisations deploy a variety of layered solutions. This could include externalised cloud web browsers, data diodes and firewalls.

Cloud web browsers

It could be tempting to try to avoid cyber attacks by blocking web access to ICS and OT systems but this is not practical. Instead, organisations could use externalised web browsing. With this solution, web connectivity is provided via an externally-hosted, virtualised, secure browser.

This approach means web-based threats can no longer infiltrate the enterprise network. Any attacks would be constrained to the cloud-based web sandbox, which would be rapidly repaired by reverting to clean virtual machines.

The protection works both ways.

Malware installed into the network via email or USB sticks would be unable to communicate via the web to its controllers, rendering it practically useless.

Data diodes

A data diode is a hardware solution that only lets information pass through one way. As hardware solutions they cannot be compromised by software attacks.

Data diodes are ideal in OT environments because they give very

metadata or, in more advanced systems, by checking the contents of each data packet against a set of known bad signatures.

Next generation firewalls offer deep content inspection, which examines the entire file at a set inspection point.

Firewalls are relatively inexpensive but companies cannot rely on firewalls alone because they can only prevent known, identified attacks.

Regardless of the technologies used, organisations must ensure monitoring is in place. This includes the enterprise LAN as well as the supervisory networks, OT and industrial processes. Looking for malware is not enough; organisations must also seek behaviours, data or indicators that could mean there is malicious intent present.

As the threat landscape continues to change, Australian industry must ensure its cyber defences evolve even more quickly. An enterprise approach to these challenges supported by technology, process and cooperation across the organisation will help improve threat intelligence and let mining companies and other organisations that rely heavily on industrial control systems stay one step ahead of cyber criminals.

[Craig Searle is Head of Cyber Security Asia Pacific, BAE Systems Applied Intelligence.]

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INSIGHT

SMART SENSORS

Sensors reshape automation The introduction of smart field devices pose some challenges write, Dave Lafferty and Tim Shea.

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HE state of automation is rapidly changing. One of the main reasons for this changing landscape is the advent of smart devices. ARC Advisory Group defines smart devices as having: • Embedded computing and storage • Wired and/or wireless communications to the outside world • Ability to interact with the outside world (e.g. queries, setting parameters, interaction with other devices) • Ability to perform autonomous actions such as control; and • Some degree of descriptive or predictive analytics capabilities The various types of smart devices include sensors, mobile devices (such as tablets and smartphones), or even skinlike devices like “smart” cement. In this ARC report, We’ll focus on smart “sensors,” which, in the automation context, generally refers to smart field devices with sensing (and often additional) capabilities.

Add value for users

There are many examples of smart sensors that add value to users of automation technology. The smart gas chromatograph for example, has a built-in “software assistant” that guides even less experienced personnel through most installation, operation, and maintenance procedures.

Many conventional sensors now also have additional “smart” features such as pressure sensors that detect electrical loop issues, temperature sensors that can detect thermocouple degradation, and radar level gauges that include selfcalibration capabilities.

Video cameras now can have onboard video analytics for applications such as intrusion detection. Vibration sensors can perform fast Fourier transform (FFT) of the data to compute the “health” of the equipment by performing analysis of the various frequencies of the vibrations right on the sensor.

Smart sensors can be attached to the electrical line of industrial electrical motors to compute power factors (i.e., 10 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

the efficiency of converting electrical energy to mechanical energy) and the probability of failure for key failure modes – all from analysis performed right on the sensor.

Unique capabilities

Smart sensors represent a natural technology evolution from simple, equipment-mounted mechanical indicating sensors; to “dumb” pneumatic and analog electronic sensors capable of transmitting raw measurements to another device for “massaging” and transforming: to today’s microprocessorenabled smart field devices with on-board processing capabilities and often full, bidirectional digital communications.

Today’s smart sensors can generate 20 to 50 times more readings beyond the primary value (PV). Some of these secondary values (SVs) are associated with statistics such as standard deviation of the PV, mean of the PV, and maximum and minimum PV values.

Other readings are associated with sensor health. These include sensor drift, sensor degradation, and calibration verification.

Rather than sending raw, unprocessed data, today’s smart sensors also produce more refined readings.

For example, an ultrasonic corrosion

The networks must be designed to accommodate all the secondary readings. detection tool that sends wall thickness, rather than the raw ultrasonic transducer (UT) waveforms.

Another major complication is that business rules are now stored in the device rather in a centralized system.

This allows the smart device to perform autonomous actions based on those business rules.

As devices get smarter, they might not even transmit the raw data; just the results of the analytics performed on those data. For example, a hyperspectral camera might transmit gas levels rather

than just the video images, which would require further analysis.

All this means that smart devices are uniquely qualified to be key enablers for the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).

When you consider the key elements of the IIoT -- sensors, networks, “big data”, analytics, and visualization -- smart sensors contribute to all these areas.

Distributed acoustic sensing provides a good example. Here, a fiber cable is inserted into a producing oil or gas well and on-board processing transforms light pulses into a measure of acoustic energy at specific points about every meter along the length of the cable.

These measurements are then used to optimise production by improving visibility into the reservoir behaviours.

Since these systems can acquire over a terabyte of data per day, this new sensor is bundled into a “smart” sensor package that provides methods for networking, handling big data, computing analytics, and visualizing these data.

Unique challenges

The introduction of these smart field devices pose some significant challenges for technology users.

With so much intelligence being pushed to the field device, end user companies need to distribute, verify,

and audit those rules in a distributed environment. While reasonably straightforward to do in a centralized system, managing those business rules in a non-centralized world is far more challenging.

The networks for gathering and backhauling readings must also be designed to accommodate all the secondary readings being generated. The classical ISA 95 security model in which all the data are funneled through the DCS and process control network does not scale easily. An enterprise approach is needed to avoid overwhelming the process control system.

While the smart devices now generate and communicate sensor health readings, an enterprise device management solution is needed that can collect and analyse this sensor health data. Systems need to be designed to collect, process, and transform all this additional secondary, non-control data into actionable information to help improve the performance of the plants and associated assets.

[David Lafferty (dlafferty@arcweb. com) was CTO with BP (retired) and is currently President, Scientific Technical Services, Texas. Tim Shea (tshea@arcweb. com) is Senior Analyst, ARC.] www.arcweb.com

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CONVERSATION

Food processing: Efficiency is key Australian food manufacturers should place a large focus on sustainability and energy performance, Craig Roseman tells Kevin Gomez.

AUSTRALIA is often viewed as a key food supplier to Asia with the ability to sell premium products into these markets.

For that to happen, the country’s food industry needs to get its manufacturing process and automation strategies right, says Craig Roseman, Schneider Electric Australia’s National Segment Manager for Food & Beverage.

What are the biggest technology challenges facing food manufacturers in Australia?

I believe the main challenge of the Australian Food & Beverage industry now more than ever is to produce better with less resources.

One of the foremost reasons is the growing consumer knowledge of production processes. This is increasing the demands they are making for safer, healthier, tastier and more ethical products, which is putting pressure on an already highly regulated industry.

Additionally, the method in which you inform consumers about product quality and specifications should be clear. Honesty is often the best policy in this case. How companies communicate with consumers and regulators is especially important as enforcement of regulations continues to rise.

Another challenge facing companies is the need to adapt to new distribution channels created by the digital transformation of society.

Producing better in order to adapt to a fluctuating environment with, for example, high volatility of raw material prices or of energy and new regulations enforcement is also a key consideration for manufacturers in this industry.

Producing in a considered and thought-out approach has always been key to reduce the amount of resources necessary for production.

However, the idea that more is less is becoming increasingly important in order to combat the growing power of direct retail and to reach significant market share. Correct allocation of resources allows for energy and capital to be implemented in other areas where it is needed, this is especially important 12 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

as food and beverage companies face fiercer competition in Australia and internationally.

Using less resources is also key in minimising the environmental footprint of operations, which helps meet consumer and stakeholder’s growing sustainability concerns. The correct management of resources now helps future-proof against climate change, water scarcity, shrinking farmland and food waste.

With the growing population estimated to be 9 billion by 2050, mismanagement of resources could contribute towards a global food crisis.

What should Australian food manufacturers be focusing on in terms of process control, automation and energy?

In my opinion the focus should be on: 1. Sustainability and Energy Performance Australian food manufacturers should place a large focus on sustainability and energy performance, assessing the use and waste of resources is particularly important.

Energy, but also WAGES (water, air, gas, electricity and steam) and products are good examples of this.

In a production context, implementing collection systems (automated when necessary) to generate KPIs will allow businesses to view and benchmark poorly performing processes or machines and deploy continuous improvement actions.

2. Manufacturing Efficiency Implementing Manufacturing Operation Management software to increase the

production flexibility while improving the overall performance is another key focus for companies for a number of reasons: • Financially, improving OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) to reduce cost of goods sold and increase capacity utilisation can reduce inventory to improve return on assets.

• Higher customer satisfaction by delivering the brand promise of variety, food safety, quality, delivery time, labelling.

• Improved food safety by documenting that critical control points were correct during production. This adds accountability to the process and includes operator action and the use of materials from raw to end products.

• Compensating for an aging workforce as systems contain embedded expertise

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CONVERSATION

to guide new staff in their tasks wherever they perform it.

The benefits of such systems are even higher when they are applied across plants. This gives the management a real-time visibility of the performance and the capability to drive it. Choosing the best plant to produce a specific batch is a good example.

Using more powerful (more throughput in less space) packaging machines also allows more flexibility (packaging change on the fly, modification of lines in a few minutes).

Using completely transparent automation architecture based on Ethernet to increase the capability to manage the production assets in a proper way extends machinery lifetime and aids in predicting potential future failures.

3. Power Quality Power availability is key for production performance. However, a Food and Beverage a living P A 0 production 2 1 5 _ 0 plant 0 0 _is A MS 1 asset evolving year after year (when it

is not month after month) to face the new customer requirements (adding machines, expanding storage area, creating a new reception dock).

These modifications can have an impact on power quality and can cause significant downtime in a plant – this can occur even if power factor correction measures are implemented

companies. A focus on decision making tools for supply chain optimisation will be key for next year’s performance.

These decision making tools must work both on a strategic dimension (for example, where to build a new plant?

Close to production or consumption area?

Is it better to build one big plant

Implementing Manufacturing Operation Management software to increase the production flexibility while improving the overall performance is a key focus when designing the facilities. Bad power quality can also lead to device failure.

Food & Beverage companies should keep a significant focus on power quality monitoring systems able to detect and prevent issues and additional costs.

or several smaller ones?) and operation dimension (for example, where should I manufacture this batch? In plant A or B? What is the impact of this decision on other organisations or the overall profitability?).

4. Supply Chain Optimisation What innovative technologies and Supply Chain 1 2 0 1 5 complexity - 0 1 - 0 is9 also T 1 a5 : 1 5 : products 2 4 + 1 can 1 : food 0 0 manufacturers challenge for Food and Beverage expect to see over the next year or two?

We think Mobility and Workflows will have a significant impact over the next year in the F&B industry. These applications will allow users to interact from any place where cyber security measures are implemented - whether from the machine at the shop floor, the office or from home - with the right level of information and guidance.

The workflow will provide embedded expertise to compensate for lost expertise with older staff retirement.

Cloud and Big Data analysis will also contribute strongly to the understanding of the phenomenon occurring in complex manufacturing environments and improve knowledge and efficiency of the process.

Last but not least, the capability to connect more smart and communicating devices in the production environment will improve the capability to diagnose issues and increase production flexibility, adapting production systems to specific production batches.

Schneider Electric www.schneider-electric.com

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OPINION

FIELDBUS

Control on the wire(less) Although wireless communication reliability is still somewhat questionable the building blocks are in place to alleviate these concerns, writes Mark Sen Gupta.

S

INCE the industrial revolution, industrial control had relied on tightly coupled systems to transmit control signals.

Industrial plants have used “modern” control via wired electronic signals for over half a century, making the market ripe for a new technology to disrupt the current methods.

Advances in wireless technologies now promise to disrupt that paradigm, and sooner rather than later. Given the ever-increasing rate of develop-ment (and the increasing need to connect previously stranded assets), wireless technologies are on the cusp of fulfilling an entirely new range of industrial control applications.

Wired Control

Since its beginning, industrial control has mainly relied on tightly coupled linkages between the field devices and the control mechanisms. In earlier times this coupling was accomplished mechanically or pneumatically.

More recently, industry employed wires to convey electrical signals.

In fact, most control performed in manufacturing facilities today uses wires to convey signals to and from the field.

This generally involves a 4-20mA signal generated by a measurement device in the field to transmit a process state to the controller, followed by another 4-20mA signal generated by the controller to convey a desired response to a field actuator.

Control on the wire

Nearly 20 years ago, FOUNDATION fieldbus technology led the process industries into the concept of “control on the wire.” The concept leverages the higher processing power available in digital (rather than analog) field devices to execute control algorithms and increased speed of digital communications.

For example, a digital flow transmitter could execute a PID 14 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

uncertainty in communication associated with wireless process varia-bles.

The new algorithm has added signal conditioning to handle this longer sample time. The company donated the patent for the new algo-rithm to the FieldComm Group. This means that control can be implemented using wireless input signals and the technology can be li-censed from the same organization responsible for Foundation Fieldbus.

Changing the game

algorithm based on its own measurement and transmit a control signal to a valve on the same segment.

Despite tighter and more robust control and a more reliable setup, only a handful of end users (estimated at less than 5 percent) have capitalized on this aspect of the technology.

Why not wireless?

Wireless signals are generally not employed for control because the

Moving by leaps and bounds The foundations are set. Wireless standards are fairly well agreed upon, with committees working on convergence. This allows suppliers to focus development to a specific standard without the overhead of having to support multiple standards.

Energy harvesting currently allows wireless transmitters to use “free” energy from the surrounding environment to augment the power to the device.

Wireless technology will not only get better it will become easier to implement and use sample rates are too long and the signal reliability typically below expectations.

PID algorithms expect to sample the field signal at least four times per algorithm execution.

When the sample rates are increased on wireless devices, the battery life drops rapidly. This is exacerbated by the generally less-than-ideal reliability of wireless transmission itself. Although wireless mesh technology has improved greatly, applications must still be able to tolerate a loss of signal.

These devices convert vibration, solar, or thermal energy into electricity to power wireless devices in locations where line power is not available. In some cases, the wireless device works totally off the energy harvester and uses the battery only for backup.

Wireless control

A leading global automation supplier recently announced that it had de-veloped an augmented PID algorithm to handle the longer sample rates and

As with many new developments for the industrial world, efforts to extend battery life continue to be propelled by advances initially developed for the consumer market.

These advances will enable faster wireless communication between field devices without concern for battery life and associated maintenance.

When coupled with increasingly efficient energy harvesting, battery life may cease to be an issue in the near future.

When considering the amount of development dollars being invested in wireless versus wired technologies, end users should expect wireless to quickly become faster, more reliable, more fault tolerant, and more energy efficient.

WirelessHART currently claims 99.9 percent end-to-end reliability.

Suppliers that support the ISA 100 wireless standard also report increasing reliability. ARC Advisory Group believes that wireless technology will not only get better, it will become easier to implement and use.

Is control in the wireless mesh realiseable? ARC believes that the answer is “yes.” Although wireless communication reliability is still somewhat questionable, the building blocks are in place to alleviate these concerns.

[Mark Sen Gupta (msengupta@ arcweb.com) is Senior Consultant, ARC Advisory Group.] www.arcweb.com

PA0215_000_CON

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1

2015-01-09T15:20:17+11:00

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industrial. electrical. automation.

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BEHIND THE SCENES

In a collaborative effort, Rockwell Automation and the AGL Loy Yang engineering team developed a new drive solution, founded on the Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 7000 medium voltage AC drive.

Mine drives long-term success An innovative drive solution founded on the PowerFlex 7000 medium voltage helps streamline AGL Loy Yang’s mine conveyor system upgrade.

I

N AUSTRALIA, coal-fired power generation is established as a valuable power source, providing vast quantities of inexpensive and reliable electricity. It accounts for approximately 75 per cent of the country’s annual electricity production.

Keeping Australia’s coal-fired power generation infrastructure online – from the coal mine through to the generating plant and distribution grid – goes some

16 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

way to ensuring the nation’s industrial wheels remain turning.

As in all production processes, stoppages, breakdowns and unscheduled downtime can be crippling to the power generating process. Such outages can have a devastating effect, impacting both the energy producer’s and end-users’ bottom lines in a matter of minutes.

An energy industry stakeholder leading the way in providing industry with an uninterrupted supply of electricity is Victoria’s largest energy producer is AGL Loy Yang. Located within the heart of the Latrobe Valley, 165 kilometres east of Melbourne, AGL Loy Yang provides reliable and efficient energy for industry and consumers right across south-eastern Australia.

As part of the company’s ongoing commitment to

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BEHIND THE SCENES

Breakdowns and unscheduled downtime can be crippling to the power generating process producing reliable cost efficient energy, AGL Loy Yang has embarked on an upgrade of its four-level open-cut coal mine facility, Loy Yang Mine. The upgrade includes the redesign and progressive changeover of the mine’s existing coal transfer conveyor drive systems.

To obtain a drive solution capable of withstanding the rugged mine environment while delivering premium around-the-clock performance, AGL Loy Yang enlisted the engineering experience of Rockwell Automation.

Coal to kilowatts

With an annual output of approximately 30 million tonnes of brown coal and four million cubic metres of overburden (soil that overlays the coal seams), AGL Loy Yang Mine is the largest coal-producing mine in the southern hemisphere. The mining process and the transportation of the coal from the bottom of the mine to the power stations is largely automated and features a range of 2sophisticated and PA0 1 5 _ 0 0 mining 0 _ TR O materials 1 handling 2 0 1 5 - 0The 1 -PowerCage 2 3 T 1 0 modules : 0 6 : on 3 0the + rectifier 1 1 : 0 and 0 inverter allow easy access to main power components for quick technologies. replacement.

WHAT’S YOUR PROBLEM?

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FEBRUARY 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 17

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BEHIND THE SCENES

Huge electric-powered bucket-wheel dredgers, 50 metres high and 190 metres long, patrol the open-cut mine ‘benches’, each excavating up to 4,000 tonnes of coal per hour on average. The bucket wheel of each dredger feeds on-board dredger conveyors, which in turn deposit the coal onto main transfer conveyor systems on each level of the mine.

Each transfer conveyor system comprises multiple separate conveyors, each with a belt-width of two metres and a travel speed of 5.2 metres/second (19 km/h). With a combined length in excess of 25km, the mine’s conveying system transfers the freshly mined coal from the mine floor to the surface. The transfer conveyor systems transfer the coal to a raw coal bunker, which has an 80,000-tonne capacity.

The coal is then transported directly from the bunker (also by conveyor) to two separate power stations located at the ‘mouth’ of the mine. These are AGL Loy Yang’s 2,210MW power station and GDF Suez’s Loy Yang B 1,000MW power station.

Continuous conveying

Providing a steady flow of coal feedstock to the coal bunker is essential to keeping the power generation process online and producing cost-effective electricity.

As the coal bunker only has enough capacity to fuel 20 hours of power generation, the conveying system is under pressure to perform.

The legacy transfer conveyor drive systems at Loy Yang Mine were based on water-cooled eddy-current coupling (ECC) technology. When first installed many

AGL Loy Yang focused on implementing the drive technology in a gradual manner to enable integration with the existing drive systems years ago, the ECCs were the ideal drive solution for providing high torque over a wide speed range – perfect for hauling enormous quantities of coal from the bottom of the mine to the surface.

However, it had become clear to the AGL Loy Yang Mine engineering team that the legacy drive systems were struggling to move the coal as efficiently as they believed was now possible. Furthermore, the existing Eddy Current Coupling drive systems were becoming increasingly difficult to maintain and the control systems unreliable.

“The ECCs are an older method of conveyor control and as the mine continued to grow we needed additional power so it was clear that we needed to move towards a more modern system,” said Robert Collins, electrical superintendent at AGL Loy Yang Mine.

“The need to keep up with increased power demand provided AGL Loy Yang with the opportunity to implement a drive solution incorporating the latest technology that would work effectively in the mine’s rugged environment,” said Collins.

With the large number of conveyors on-site, AGL Loy Yang focused on implementing the drive technology in a gradual manner to enable integration with the existing drive systems and control architecture.

Contained and cooled

In a collaborative effort, Rockwell Automation and the AGL Loy Yang engineering team developed a new drive solution, founded on the Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 7000 medium voltage (MV) AC drive.

Featuring ‘Direct-to-Drive’ technology – a technology that helps eliminate the need for isolation transformers on applications with either new or existing motors – the Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 7000 MV AC drive provides space-efficient speed and torque control across a range of demanding drive applications.

The mine engineering team came up with an idea to equip each conveyor with a fully self-contained, cooled and removable drive package that could be easily installed or uninstalled on any of the mine’s conveyors.

This provides AGL Loy Yang with a level of portability that improves production flexibility.

According to Rockwell Automation engineering team leader, John Dunn, the compact nature of the PowerFlex 7000 drive simplified the development of the portable drive packages.

“The transformerless configuration of the PowerFlex 7000 meant we were able to help minimise the footprint of the drive package,” he says. “The main electrical feature is the load sharing between different

The fully selfcontained packaged MV Conveyor drives, are installed on many of the mine’s conveyors.

18 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

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1

2 0 1 5 - 0 1 - 1 4 T1 4 : 3

BEHIND THE SCENES

Helping to put you in Control

N480D PID Controller

It is a low-cost instrument which can be easily installed and operated. It accepts T/C & Pt100 (RTD) inputs. It features 1 SPST relay out, 1 pulse output & 1 SPDT relay output. Optionally can be supplied with a linear 4 to 20 mA output. 24 VDC powered.

SKU: CET-051 Price: $139 ea + GST

Wireless Thermometer

A wireless simple solution to remotely monitor temperature for refrigerator/freezer with high/low alarm configuration.

Can receive up to 8 sensors.

It comes with 2 transmitters and a receiver with LCD display. Battery powered, receiver requires 2 x AA and transmitter requires 6 x AAA. SKU: UTS-005 Price: $85 ea + GST

SSR Duty Cycle Controller

Mini current or voltage to PWM converter. PWM frequency is configured via DIP switches on the PCB and the duty cycle is controlled via analog input.

Also features 5 VDC output. 8 to 30 VDC powered.

SKU: KTA-069 Price: $59.95 ea + GST

4.3" TFT LCD HMI

Bucket-wheel dredgers feed on-board dredger conveyors, which in turn deposit the coal onto main transfer conveyor systems on each level of the mine. drives on each conveyor. We developed a partitioned stainless steel IP65-rated enclosure, equipped with an air-conditioned cooling system, to house each of the 6.6kV PowerFlex drives.”

The ‘minimal component count’ was also a feature of the PowerFlex drive solution, with fewer parts eliminating the number of things that could go wrong.

Seamless integration

Nine drive packages have been supplied to the Loy Yang Mine site to date. One of the main challenges throughout the upgrade has been integrating Rockwell Automation drive technology with the mine’s existing drive technology and control architecture. The first PowerFlex 7000 drive packages interfaced with a PLC5 systems package in the neighbouring switchroom.

ControlLogix is, in turn, linked to the mine’s supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system, via the mine’s existing communications network. Each drive package is equipped with an AllenBradley electronic operator interface (EOI) located on the front panel of the drive enclosure.

“The drives can be interrogated via these EOIs or through the mine’s SCADA system,” says Dunn.

“The locally mounted EOIs make it easier for site personnel to access drive diagnostics without opening the dust-proof enclosures and exposing the drives to the elements.”

The Rockwell Automation and AGL Loy Yang engineering team developed a strategy that allowed the new drive packages to seamlessly synchronise with the existing ECC drives.

“Our long standing relationship with Rockwell Automation means integrating new drives at the mine

Our ongoing working relationship means that the drives have become very seamless to integrate has become a relatively straightforward project to complete. We have a lot of experience using the drives now, making it a fairly easy, run of the mill upgrade that doesn’t take too long,” said Collins.

Working relationship

According to Dunn, “There were key benefits to the level of integration and flexibility achieved at the mine from being involved in this project from its inception and design phase, through to supply and installation.”

However, with upgrades at Loy Yang Mine continuing, there is much work ahead. The AGL Loy Yang team is planning to progressively replace other ECC drives across the mine. “When the first project with Rockwell Automation happened it was very significant for the mine, but our ongoing working relationship means that the drives have become very seamless to integrate,” says Collins.

AGL Loy Yang is currently in the process of constructing a new conveyor using PowerFlex drives inside a new switch room. Additionally, the engineering team is designing a new downhill conveyor based on the Rockwell Automation drive solution that will be used for backfilling the mine.

Rockwell Automation 03 9757 1111 www.rockwellautomation.com.au

Bright, high resolution (480 × 272) touchscreen HMI with 3 serial ports and USB programming port. 24 VDC powered.

SKU: COI-010 Price: $439.00 ea + GST

CO², R.H & Temp. Transmitter CO�, temperature & humidity (up to 99.9%) Transmitter with RS-485 (Ascii and Modbus RTU protocol) and 4 to 20 mA outputs. The unit is enclosed in an IP65 rated housing. 12 to 24 VDC powered.

SKU: STS-001 Price: $649 ea + GST

Weather Station Gateway

The GWY-141 Gateway allows the easy connection of a PLC/ RTU/SCADA system to a Davis Instruments Weather station by converting between Davis’ WeatherLink serial protocol and Modbus RTU. 8 to 28 VDC powered.

SKU: GWY-141 Price:$159 ea + GST

Single Output PSU

Universal AC input, powerfactor correcting, single output enclosed switching power supply with short circuit, overload and over voltage protection. 320 W, 24 VDC output. Dimension: 215 × 115 × 50 mm SKU:PSM-026 Price: $114.00 + GST

For OEM/Wholesale prices Contact Ocean Controls Ph: (03) 9782 5882 oceancontrols.com.au

FEBRUARY 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 19

PA0215_020

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IN FOCUS

Precision gears enable gas extraction Demand for oil and gas is pushing exploration and extraction deeper and further. Steve Kirk looks at the technological challenges and how high precision gearing is being increasingly used to drill deeper.

L

YING in the western Pacific Ocean, south of Japan and north of New Guinea, is an archipelago known as the Mariana Islands. An unassuming collection of underwater volcanic peaks spanning a width of only 69 km, it harbours the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the world’s oceans.

Reaching a maximum known depth of 10,911m it culminates in a small slot shaped valley known as Challenger Deep; named after the exploration vessel that discovered it some fifty years previously. At this depth, the pressure of the water column above is equivalent to 15,750psi, a thousand times greater than at sea level. The temperature ranges from one to four degrees Celsius and only microbial life forms thrive.

Although not many life forms survive down here, it’s humbling to think that the oil extracted from thousands of wellheads in similarly deep abysses the world over, sustains the majority of human life on the surface above.

However, having exhausted reserves in many subsea oil fields, the pressure is now building on extraction companies to drill deeper and for longer, to obtain every last drop of the black gold. Existing equipment is not always rated for operation in the extreme temperatures, M M 0 4 pressures 1 4 _ 0 and 0 0 associated _ I ND logistics of deep sea extraction.

to-volume and torque-to-weight relationship. When used downhole, the annular design of the gear allows optimal use of the available space with the addition of a hollow shaft.

Precision actuation

High-precision gear for the oil and gas industry.

This is creating technological challenges all the way from the top to Global oil consumption the bottom of the supply chain. From for 2014 will average 92.7 topside platforms to subsea structures and all the way further downhole to the million barrels per day directional drill bit, original equipment according to a recent report manufacturers (OEMs) face the challenge of developing equipment that by the IEA can withstand the harsh environment.

Having encountered these challenges over developing at :Harmonic Drive, we’re 1 the 2 0 last 1 4forty - 0years 3 - in 1 3 T 1 2 : 3 3 : actuators 1 4 + 1 1 0 0 our precision gearing systems and currently experiencing a growing demand from the oil and gas sectors, as well as our more traditional aerospace and machine tools industries, as they move away from traditional hydraulic actuation systems towards electromechanical actuation systems.

Gearing based electrical actuation is more economical, ecological, We ooffer We ffee cost effective solutions for your automation ff controllable and more reliable than technology tech te chno noll needs Australia wide. traditional hydraulic actuation systems, At IIS&E S&EE we specialise in systems integration and S& which can develop oil leaks over time. auto au toma ma automation projects, big and small.

The need to frequently service hydraulic For mor more information phone us on 07 3856 2232. systems at depths of 6000m is neither economically feasible nor necessary with the advent of electromechanical systems.

INDUSTRIAL SOFTWARE & ELECTRONICS The high single stage ratio of Tel: (07) 3856 2232 Fax: (07) 3355 1012 E-mail: info@industrialsoftware.com.au Harmonic Drive gears results in a Web: www.industrialsoftware.com.au compact unit with a very high torque-

SCADA SYSTEMS PC & PLC PROGRAMMING

20 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

Starting topside, a single platform could be just one piece in a large extraction application spanning hundreds of kilometers. As these networks increasingly begin to operate further afield, adverse weather conditions, a lack of resources and signal issues can severely hamper communication between vessels.

The positional antenna systems that enable radio communication between the platform, vessels and onshore teams often suffer from inaccuracy due to gearing with backlash characteristics.

This problem can be solved using a Harmonic Drive servo actuator.

Its unique construction offers a combination of fixed Circular Spline, Flexible Spline and elliptical Wave Generator Bearing, high reduction ratios can be achieved in a single stage. This simultaneously eliminates backlash and increases accuracy, all in a servo motor driven compact unit complete with feedback sensor.

As we leave the choppy surface of the sea and dive deeper, subsea applications vary from remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) all the way up to permanent subsea structures spread over many kilometers.

Resembling Disney’s Wall-E character, ROVs are made to perform all types of underwater operation and maintenance. A typical task would be to open and close valves on an underwater valve manifold using a torque tool.

These ROVs rely on the pan and tilt action to operate the camera system.

As cameras begin to be increasingly used in conjunction with robotic arms and manipulators we are seeing a growing trend of replacing hydraulic actuators with electric actuators to take advantage of the increased accuracy and controllability.

Another area of innovation that

PA0215_021

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IN FOCUS

The annular design of the gear allows optimal use of the available space with the addition of a hollow shaft will be of great significance over the next few years is that of remotely operated permanent subsea structures.

Also known as Christmas trees, these structures are currently attached in-line with the oil wellhead and are responsible, amongst other things, for controlling the flow, temperature and pressure of the well. If remote electromechanical actuation becomes used widely, these Christmas trees could be operator controlled over Ethernet.

Whereas ROVs and antennas require accuracy, the challenge with valve actuation has always been reliability.

Traditionally, hydraulic valve actuation has suffered from seal corrosion due to thePprolonged high pressure A 0 2 1 exposure 5 _ 0 0 to 0 _ ER N and harsh saltwater. Subsequent leakage

of the units has resulted in component world of subsea oil fields. As the oil failure, requiring them to be replaced levels in shallow fields begin to diminish at high cost. The low part count of there is a drive to drill into deeper a Harmonic Drive component set reserves. The problem is that the deeper ultimately raises the mean time between oil is spread sporadically over vast failures (MTBF), resulting in a higher distances, often in horizontal pockets. return on investment (ROI) over the Using a continuous vertical wellbore product’s lifetime. is not feasible and so the concept of 1 2Finally, 0 1 5 drilling - 0 1 through - 2 0 T the 1 4seabed : 2 0 : 0 directional 5 + 1 1 : drilling 0 0 was developed. takes us downhole into the complex Rotary steerable systems (RSS)

“point-the-bit� technology uses Harmonic Drive component sets to vary the angle of inclination of the drill bit. This flexibility allows operators to achieve complex 3D well designs, connecting multiple marginal targets for high volume, efficient recovery. The high reduction ratio and annular design of the component makes it ideal for this application, with the inherent accuracy of the gear allowing tight control of wellbore placement and geo-steering.

Combined with azimuth, gamma ray and inclination measurements at only 1m from the drill bit, this ensures effective directional drilling and gives operators a better log of formation tendencies.

As fossil fuels continue to diminish and our reliance on them increases, it will become essential that new exploration technologies are able to cope with the scorching temperatures, the crushing pressures and the harsh environment of deep sea extraction.

Harmonic Drive graham.mackrell@harmonicdrive.co.uk

Select

Add Value

sales@erntec.net 1300 376 832

Customise

www.erntec.net FEBRUARY 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 21

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IN FOCUS

Future-proofed switchboards The iNTELECT G3 Switchboard System is a custom-modular switchboard system that has been the subject of ongoing continuous development for over 25 years.

A

S INDUSTRIAL and commercial building uses change more often – keeping pace Not many engineers have the with the rapid change in business needs and opportunity to compare the large business types occupying them – building owners and facility managers must focus on how best to number of different modular systems equip their asset to respond flexibly to future needs. and welded constructions One of the installations at the core of change is a building’s low voltage switchgear installation, which distributes, meters, measures and adjusts energy flow to the power needs of highly diverse functions. Such high Green Star environmental ratings. functions extend from lighting, heating, HVAC, Increasingly, such diverse needs are being met by lifts and standard building services, right through modular switchboards, which are designed to change to mission-critical functions - such as production with business needs and building uses. But there are automation, materials handling plant, processing plant, different schools of thought about whether modular data centres, telecommunications, retail accounting installations should be welded or bolted for optimum services, industrial and scientific processing and health durability and adaptability to change. andPemergency Good switchboard many A 0 2 1 5services. _ 0 0 0 _ Alow-voltage MP 1 2 0 1 5 - 0 1“Not - 2 1 T 0 engineers 9 : 5 9 and : 5 end 7 +users 1 1 have : 0 0the design is also critical to control of services that ensure opportunity to examine and compare the large number

of different modular systems and welded constructions that are available in the market today. To make this comparison harder, the technical differences between the different modular systems alone are profound,” says Terry Schweickle, Director of SMB Harwal, which is largest manufacturer of Australian-made LV switchboards in NSW. SMB produces the latest, third, generation of iNTELECT switchboards in Australia, extending an iNTELECT product line of which tens of thousands have been manufactured in Australia, giving reliable service in data centres, banks, schools, hospitals, power stations, shopping centres, mines and factories.

Different versions of the iNTELECT range have been sold in over 23 countries.

“As one of Australia’s largest LV switchboard manufacturers, we manufacture and assemble switchboards of both bolted modular construction and

connecting you to Flexible Automated control solutions From a single piece of equipment to complete control of your site Ampcontrol has solutions for: • • • •

Data networks Process control Instrumentation Communication

Visit ampcontrolgroup.com to find out more about our solutions

22 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

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Providing solutions in partnership with:

Recognized

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IN FOCUS

traditional welded construction,” says Schweickle. tasks being done “Occasionally we hear queries raised about the concurrently. rigidity and strength of bolted construction compared • There is a to welded construction. This is a fair question, and one misconception which we are well placed to address, because we build that extra both, and thus have no vested interest to build one rigidity is form of switchboard construction over another unless imparted to the there are genuine benefits to do so. switchboard “We also manufacture our own metalwork and construction conduct our own R&D on optimum outcomes, unlike if the sheet many other Australian switchboard manufacturers. metal joints This equips us to know if or when traditional welded are welded. construction provides any advantage in either design or This is not the cost, in which case we will use it. case. Structural The iNTELECT Modular Switchboard System uses strength is a combination of welded and bolted construction as derived from standard because in nearly all cases it is the best product the way the to suit the purpose. It is designed so that the number of formed sections welds is kept to a minimum for reasons that include: support each • Welded joints are not actually stronger than bolted other. joints. They can provide a seismic weak point as • As a design welds can crack over time due to vibration, whereas flexibility a bolted joint will not. We have seen older welded example, switchboards with this problem, and once the welds iNTELECT have cracked, then it is very difficult to remedy in a is designed switchboard that is in service. so that the • Bolted or screwed joints in the structure are made alterations can The iNTELECTG3 using torque controlled power tools that give be quickly made switchboard casing. repetitive quality control, with every connection being with minimum the same. The same level of repetitive quality control downtime. We live in an age where continuity is difficult to achieve with welded switchboards, as of electrical supply is of vital importance. For welding is different and subject to the skill of the example, it is possible to reconfigure a 630A MCCB person making the weld, even if that person is a compartment as 2 x 250A MCCBs in a two-hour highly skilled tradesman. shutdown window using our standard construction. If • It is difficult to ensure that welds are spaced in welded construction is used, the same change will take exactly the same place to ensure repetitive accuracy. longer than eight hours.

This too is up to the discretion of the person doing This is because the shelves, mounting pans and the welding. This makes it very difficult to ensure brackets all have to be removed using angle grinders verification of the final construction with the type to break the welds. The merit in the decision to use tested prototypes, especially where arcing fault designs such as the modular iNTELECT may be seen P A 0 2 1 5is _ 0 0 0 _ I CHEM 1 2 0 1 5within - 0 1five - years 2 7 Tof1delivery, 0 : 0 2as:the 3 use 5 +of1 the 1 :building 0 0 containment a consideration.

• Welded construction extends the manufacturing time, changes over time and changes need to be made. as it adds another process to the manufacture of the Designs such as the iNTELECT G3 have the switchboard. It also prevents some of the assembly structural strength to be lifted from either the base or

via eyebolts in the roof.

It is a requirement of IEC-61439.1 and AS/ NZS-3439.1 that all metal parts of the switchboard are securely bonded to the earth bar. The multiple bolted and screwed connections used to interconnect the metalwork give multiple earth paths to achieve earthing. Because all bolted joints are the same and machine-tightened, the joints all earthed joints can be relied upon to be the same.

This cannot always be said of welded connections, because the number of welds, their position and the degree of weld penetration, are at the complete discretion of the welder.

There is broad discussion in the engineering community about bolted V welded fabrication. This discussion is by no means confined to switchboard manufacture. It ranges over a broad range of The iNTELECTG3 mission-critical technology, busbar system. ranging from welded v bolted construction of giant water tanks through to plant and pipelines encountered in the oil, gas, energy and minerals processing industries, where secure, evenly torque joints are vital to the safety of surface and sub-surface infrastructure.

“Often in these diverse technologies and fabrications there is no one answer for every application. Users have to determine what is best for their particular application,” notes Schweickle. “In the case of switchboards, we recommend a visit to your manufacturers’ plants, armed with a list of questions.”

SMB Harwal Electric 02 9420 7777 www.smbharwal.com.au

Essential process safety training from IChemE HAZOP Study for Team Leaders & Team Members

Layer of Protection Analysis

24-26 February, Brisbane www.icheme.org/hazopbris

15-16 June, Melbourne www.icheme.org/lopamel

Fundamentals of Process Safety

18-19 June, Adelaide www.icheme.org/lopaadelaide

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Process Safety Awareness

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To register and to find out how these courses can be run in-house, email austcourses@icheme.org or call 03 9642 4494

FEBRUARY 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 23

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2015-01-29T13:32:17+11:00

SPOTLIGHT

Smart wireless gateway Emerson Process Management has introduced the compact Smart Wireless Gateway 1410D for wireless network applications where gateway installation locations are limited, in difficult safe areas that must connect to distant wireless application networks. Wireless Gateway installations can be difficult when antenna distances are limited and there are few safe locations. The 1410D Gateway uses the Smart Wireless 781 Field Link to enable flexible remote antenna location up to 200 meters, and the separate possibility of connection to hazardous areas with intrinsic safety protection. A smaller size and DIN-Rail mount capability makes the Gateway 1410D suitable for limited cabinet space requirements. The built-in layered security functions ensure that the network stays protected at all times. Additional devices can be added quickly and easily without the need to configure the communication paths. The Gateway 1410D manages the wireless network automatically and delivers greater than 99.9% data reliability. The Smart Wireless Gateway 1410D has 100 device capacity and an optional redundancy feature. The Gateway 1410D connects to legacy host systems and provides Modbus RTU/TCP, OPC, and EtherNet/IP connectivity.

7best of the

PACE showcase of the best engineering technology releases of the month.

Emerson Process Management 03 9721 0200 www.emersonprocess.com

Compact safety light curtains Schmersal’s SLC440COM Series Safety Light Curtains and SLG440COM Series Safety Light Grids are an economical, compact solution offering high protection for the user. They incorporate visible status signalling in a rugged housing. The profile length corresponds to the protective field height to allow for optimal installation with the application – a space saving of approximately 50mm over a standard light curtain. Operating status can be seen from a distance. The end cap of the receiver unit is moulded from a semitransparent plastic that is illuminated by LED. It shows green for correct operation and red when the protected field has been interrupted or flashing red to indicate fault conditions. Like Schmersal’s other Type 4 safety light curtains, the SLC440COM series features a one-piece extruded, reinforced housing in a 28mm x 33mm rectangular profile. This housing profile has proven to be less susceptible to mechanical damage and misalignment from torsion or bending.

Safety light curtains SLC440COM are used for the protection of hazardous areas, and are available with resolutions of 14mm, 30 mm or 35mm and protection field heights between 330 and 1770 mm, also available as safety light grids (SLG440COM) with 2, 3, or 4 beams for perimeter guarding. Both series are suited for use in safety circuits up to CAT 4 (AS 4024), PLe (EN 13849) or SIL3 (IEC 61508).

Control Logic 07 3623 1212 www.control-logic.com.au 24 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

Variable area flowmeter KROHNE’s H250 variable area flowmeter features modular design that allows it to be adapted to the needs of any application. Incorporating the M40 indicator, the new flowmeters are suitable for the flow measurement of liquids, gases and saturated vapour in the process industry. Unlike traditional variable area flow meters, the H250 M40 is available for use in both horizontal and fall pipes as well as in the standard installation upright in rising mains. These flowmeters are designed to be either intrinsically safe or supplied in an explosion-proof casing, meeting the compliance requirements of different regional explosion protection strategies with just one device. The sturdy design of the flowmeter also ensures high resistance to pressure, temperature and media, with the H250’s ability to withstand extreme application and environmental conditions ensuring high reliability for the customer at an affordable price. The H250 flowmeters can be upgraded with one or two limit switches (NAMUR, Transistor or Reed), a 4...20mA signal output with HART, a graphical LCD with totalizer and pulse output or a digital, bus-powered communication interface according to FOUNDATION Fieldbus or PROFIBUS PA standard onsite without process interruptions.

KROHNE Australia 02 9426 1700 krohne@krohne.com.au

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2015-01-29T14:29:46+11:00

Email your product news to editor@pacetoday.com.au

Moisture analyser for stored natural gas

Embedded Ethernet switches Belden has launched two new managed Hirschmann Embedded Ethernet Switches (EES). The EESX20 and EESX30 switches allow automation devices to be quickly and reliably equipped with Gigabit switch technology.

With this option, equipment manufacturers can now offer their customers additional network functions in order to gain a competitive edge. The EESX20 and EESX30 switches are compact components that can be mounted on the main circuit board of automation devices with an Ethernet interface. In addition, by eliminating the need to worry about challenging switch technology, both development processes and time-tomarket are significantly reduced, allowing manufacturers to concentrate on core capabilities. The EESX20 and EESX30 switches offer a range of performance features, including: Eight Fast Ethernet ports (EESX20) and two additional Gigabit uplinks (EESX30), which enable automation devices to connect reliably to the network even with high data volume.

Belden 1800 500 775 australia.sales@belden.com

Temperature transmitter with IO-Link The temperature transmitter from ifm efector is the first transmitter with display and IO-Link for food applications. The bright, 4-digit display provides optimum readability with additional fast response time of T05/09 = 1 / 3 s. The sensor is also available in various probe lengths from 30...150 mm. The integrated clamp and G1/2” process adapters allow quick and easy installation. The transmitters of the TD series are supplied with a preset measuring range. No complex configuration is required. For special applications the temperature range can be conveniently scaled via IO-Link 1.1. Additionally, the temperature transmitters are charact rised by a compact and hygienic design with integrated adapters as well as a display for local temperature indication. Protected to IP 69K standards and featuring a fully welded high-grade stainless steel housing, the transmitters are designed to operate in particularly harsh applications. ifm efector 1300 365 088 sales.au@ifm.com

Michell’s OptiPEAK TDL600 moisture analyser’s fast response and non-contact spectroscopic measurement principle ensures that gas storage companies are able to not only meet demand quickly but also satisfy the contractual standards for moisture content when stored natural gas is withdrawn and injected to the pipeline network. In order to ensure an uninterrupted supply to consumers, quantities of gas are usually stored underground. The water dew-point temperature or moisture content of the stored gas is measured during the filling and usage cycles. As the gas is needed quickly to meet consumer demands, a fastresponding, reliable hygrometer is vital to be on-hand when gas needs to be taken from storage. Michell’s OptiPEAK TDL600 features a non-contact tuneable diode laser technology. None of the sensing components are subjected to the gas stream and are protected from the aggressive compounds and harmful contamination that would cause failure in other analysers. The OptiPEAK TDL600 also offers a measurement accuracy of 1ppmV to support the rapid ramp-up in gas supply from the storage facility into the network. It can respond to changes in moisture content in 2 to 3 seconds, allowing fast action to be taken to ensure the continued supply.

AMS Instrumentation & Calibration 03 9017 8225 www.ams-ic.com.au

Flexible POD mounting accelerometer Bestech Australia has introduced the Endevco Model 46AXX POD general purpose accelerometer designed for versatility in mounting configuration. The POD accelerometer sensor assemblies are available in five sensitivities and are threaded for easy installation in any of the POD mounts. The POD mounts are available in five configurations – hex mount, cube mount, triax mount, tri-hex mount, and cube adhesive mount. The POD accelerometer sensor assemblies from Bestech may be mixed and matched in any of the POD mounts. The POD sensor assembly and mounting bases have lock wire holes to prevent the POD accelerometer from loosening during vibration for extra safety. The hex and cube mounts are for traditional single axis measurements. The triaxial mount allows the user to select the same or different sensitivities on each orthogonal axis. For users that do not know the correct accelerometer sensitivity for the test, the tri-hex mount is ideal. The tri-hex mount allows the user to thread three different POD accelerometer sensor assemblies in a single mount. This product is compliant to the European Union’s Low Voltage Directive, 2006/95/EC and EMC Directive 2004/108/EC and is eligible to bear the CE Mark.

Bestech Australia 03 9540 5100 www.bestech.com.au FEBRUARY 2015 www.pacetoday.com.au 25

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2015-01-29T09:59:56+11:00

THE LAST WORD

CAREERS

Women in engineering Engineering remains one of the most imbalanced professions in Australia, writes Lisa Whitehead.

D

ESPITE offering excellent career prospects, engineering remains one of the most imbalanced professions in Australia when it comes to the gender mix, with women only making up 9.6 percent of the total number of engineers nationally.

But in a time when the disparity in wages between men and women working in similar roles remains an issue across a variety of professions, engineering offers attractive salaries above the national average, regardless of gender.

So why do so few women see it as a viable career option?

In my experience, one of the key reasons is that the industry at large suffers from a perception issue. Because it is a male dominated profession, engineering is sometimes perceived as being inaccessible to women. This impacts the number of women choosing subjects at school and uni, those that would provide a gateway for them into the profession.

As one of the country’s largest employers of engineers, Honeywell is determined to address this issue and dispel the notion that engineering is a male preserve, through various initiatives including the Engineering Summer School, organised in partnership with Engineers Australia.

The program is designed to provide insight into the diverse range of career options available to both sexes in the engineering profession, so students can then choose the most appropriate subjects and courses that will help them achieve their desired role in the profession.

With lectures and demonstrations at a number of Sydney universities, as well as industry site visits throughout the week, students gain exposure to various engineering disciplines, helping them to make more informed decisions about a future in the industry.

Most students know that discussing options with their teachers and parents is an important part of career planning, as their advice can often play a determining

26 www.pacetoday.com.au FEBRUARY 2015

role. As an addition to this, giving students the chance to interact with both industry and academia can help to inspire the next generation of engineers.

But while encouraging students to study these courses is important, what are companies also doing to ensure women have a place within their workforce?

For Honeywell, strong female representation within our engineering team, and company as a whole, is very important to us. That’s why we created the Women’s Information Network

Trung, one of our Sydney based engineers.

Anh studied mechatronic engineering at the University of Sydney and joined Honeywell in 2009, the year after she graduated, where she continues to work as an engineer in our product development division.

While there were only five girls in Anh’s intake of 40 students, most of them were around the top of their class, which illustrates the value of attracting more talented women to the industry.

The key to Anh successfully

What are companies doing to ensure women have a place within their workforce?

(WIN) at Honeywell, which serves as a catalyst to provide encouragement, empowerment and professional development to all of our female employees.

As head of our WIN team for Australia and New Zealand, part of my remit is to provide career support to our female engineers. This includes ensuring they are aware of, and have full access to the same opportunities for career development as their male counterparts.

A shining example of how a nurturing and supportive environment benefits our female engineers is Anh

graduating as an engineer is that she never at any stage considered her gender as an obstacle, and certainly had no intention of letting it get in the way of studying something that she was interested in.

Anh’s role at Honeywell offers a great deal of variety. As well as working in the product development team, she also works in software development, managing technical projects, collaborating with fellow Honeywell engineers and engineers from other companies, and writing product specifications and product manuals.

Anh and her other female engineering colleagues are a positive example of the work Honeywell has done so far, but we and the industry at large have a long way to go.

A recent Australian study analysed year 12 participation in science and maths classes, finding that despite there being 38,000 more year 12 students in 2012 than in 1992 (an increase of 16 percent), the proportion of those students choosing chemistry, physics, biology and advanced mathematics has decreased dramatically over the same period.

The Australian National Engineering Taskforce (ANET) says this has led to a drastic shortfall in the amount of suitable graduates being produced annually in Australia, numbering around 6000, when the industry requires a graduate intake of around twice that figure every year. The enrolment rate for women in engineering degree courses in Australia has remained consistently low since the early 1990s, hovering around the 14 percent mark.

While the benefits of joining the engineering industry are apparent for women (and men for that matter) – industry demand outstripping supply, higher wages, increased job security, etc., there are also considerable benefits for the industry in having more women involved in it.

Women engineers can bring different perspectives to the profession, enabling project teams to more readily come up with creative solutions that better address society’s needs as a whole, as well as the particular needs of women. After all, women comprise over 50 percent of Australia’s population!

By bringing more female engineers on board, companies can instantly gain a better understanding of their customers’ needs and compete more effectively in the marketplace. That is something that we are always striving for, as should the industry as a whole.

[Lisa Whitehead, Women’s Information Network, Honeywell.] www.honeywellprocess.com

PACE_Awards_FP_V2

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2015-01-08T15:24:24+11:00

Nominations are now open for the 2015 12th Annual PACE Zenith Awards, to be held in Sydney.

A total of 12 awards will be up for grabs on the night, highlighting innovation and excellence in engineering and technological projects.

All finalists will receive free publicity in PACE magazine and two free tickets to the gala dinner where the winners will be announced.

Categories for the 2015 PACE Zenith Awards include: • • • • • •

Manufacturing Best fieldbus implementation Food and beverage Lifetime achievement Machine builder Mining and minerals processing

• • • • • •

Oil and gas Power and energy management Water and wastewater Young achiever Project of the year Transport, power and infrastructure

For more information visit www.paceawards.com.au

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