FEATURE ENERGY MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE


Simulating an efficient process


Mirko Baecker, Marketing Director (Tecnomatix) for Siemens PLM Software, discusses how the latest PLM and simulation tools are offering energy efficient production opportunities


E


nergy efficiency is a watch-word in almost every aspect of modern life,


but particularly in power hungry sectors such as manufacturing. Rising energy prices, increased


regulation around emissions, consumer demand for cheaper and 'greener' products and even power usage limitations are all factors that modern manufacturers must deal with. From the simplest items to complex


cars and consumer electronics, manufacturers are closely assessing their production, supply chains and even their product portfolios, often resulting in profound changes. When looking at large scale production,


even small optimisations can lead to significant energy savings, and therefore lower costs. But while it's often relatively straightforward to spot, implement and measure the impact of large changes, finding the smaller optimisation tweaks can be a difficult process. The sensitivity to the issue of energy


efficiency is increasing in the plant planning and control areas. As such, optimising energy efficiency in manufacturing facilities is becoming more and more important, especially for those companies with energy-intensive production processes. This is reinforced by increasing


legislation, which is becoming more stringent across many areas of manufacturing. There has already been talk of taxation based on environmental performance. The likely basis for this will be the carbon footprint of an organisation, and its manufacturing process plays a massive role in this.


THE ROLE OF SIMULATION Many industries have an extensive history of using simulation in support of test programs and also of enhancing simulation models. Manufacturers in particular spend enormous amounts of time and effort simulating manufacturing processes and build sequences as part of quality programs. However, this is not often extended into the realm of energy efficiency. But power


20 SUMMER 2014 | ENERGY MANAGEMENT


building itself, right through to individual machines that need consideration. When simulation is incorporated into


the planning phase, it can help ensure that manufacturers get the most out of the production behaviour, balancing production quality, speed, safety, cost and energy efficiency. For instance, running simulations with different lot sizes can result in energy savings – finding the quantity that can be produced with a minimum of costs inclusive of the energy consumption. Similarly, testing running, parallel


consumption simulation has the ability to locate and verify any number of changes - large and small - that can be made to optimise production and machine usage. Energy-oriented simulation can be used


in two ways, to optimise existing processes and tools or to improve the design for new sites or production lines. In the first instance, it provides a platform for testing power usage optimisation strategies without affecting the real system. For new installations it can be used as


an integral part of the planning and design phase to simulate different strategies and layouts for energy optimisation. Simply put, energy and environmental related simulation capabilities must be added to support and enhance usability and customer benefits in this important domain. Production plants are complex places


and when building a new one - or bringing a new production line on board - there are a host of aspects, from the


Figure 2:


Simulation of a filling machine


Figure 1:


Typical robotic cell senario including HMI, logical controllers, sensors and safety equipment


production lines that operate asynchronously can find ways to decrease the load peak difference. By analysing the shifts for running parallel production lines (incorporating factors like night and day electricity rates) savings of as much as 15 percent are achievable. It is clear that energy profiling and


simulation can help reduce the consumption of existing lines, but also when planning new ones. This was the driving force behind Siemens PLM Software developing an industry application enabling users to simulate, analyse, visualise and optimise energy consumption based on the accuracy of discrete-event simulation. Furthermore, by integrating energy-oriented simulation into its Tecnomatix Plant Simulation software, the simulation of the energy flow in complex manufacturing plants is now possible. This is particularly useful for complex


dynamic production environments with plenty of products, machines and other variables, and can result in overall energy savings of as much as 60 percent. When a manufacturer is able to look at


all elements of power consumption, from a high level considering total power load, right down to optimising the movements of individual robots, the overall impact can be massive. These companies can save costs, meet carbon emission targets and extend the life of their existing systems. This ensures that they can gain a competitive edge while meeting the expectations of “green-minded” customers.


Siemens PLM Software www.plm.automation.siemens.com 01276 413200


Enter 205 / ENERGYMANAGEMENT


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