News Comment Factory and warehouse networks: the way forward?


Chris Hay, solutions architect at Allied Telesis discusses the importance of resilient and reliable networks within factory and warehouse environments, hot assembly lines and where remote access is needed


The modern factory/warehouse is rapidly moving toward more automated processes with less manual intervention. The net- work in this part of the business has to cope with large amounts of diverse traffic from CNC machines and lathes that need to receive large packets of infor- mation directly from product designers in the design room to everything that is wireless. These can include automated fork lift trucks picking items from warehouse aisles; barcode readers to monitor and track components as they pass through assembly and build; IP surveil- lance cameras sending video to security control rooms; auto- mated weighbridges that send information about loads enter- ing/leaving the facilities and information passed between the factory/warehouse users and their colleagues in the adminis- trative function of the company.


Reliable and resilient The users and operators in this function of the business are being asked to enhance their skill set to include these technological advances and it is essential to ensure that production can con- tinue when IT support might be remote or during traditional closed hours. The challenge for the IT function is that unlike the corporate or enterprise environ- ment, the factory or warehouse communications cabinet is not located in a clean, air condi- tioned and dust-free environ- ment. It is essential to ensure that the factory or warehouse section of the network has to be both reliant and resilient in conditions that would normally be consid- ered as inaccessible or hostile to such essential equipment. Factory or warehouse space is always at a premium with the


system can inform the security staff that something unusual has occurred without the need to watch continual video evidence. Over the past 25 years Allied


majority of it being allocated to the primary function – and with the space allocation for the IT network and equipment likely to be minimal. No longer can the traditional corporate style of net- work be seen as suitable for fac- tory or warehouse environments. Where can you find a network that is capable of handling large volumes of voice, video and data traffic; resilient; able to cope with a hostile environment; is reliable so it can be installed in hard to reach areas or at high level because it will not need to be accessed very much – and has been proven to work in such environments?


Network switches which are fanless will not pull dust or dirt into the equipment so are more reliable. As such there is no need for a clean, air-conditioned com- munications room setting. They will survive in the hostile factory or warehouse environment. In a 24/7 factory and ware- house environment it is critically important to achieve high levels of uptime. Production line time is valuable and it is essential to ensure continuous operation without the need for a physical IT support presence.


The administrative function of the business will be working normal business hours and the IT


support function will probably move to remote working outside of these hours. The factory or warehouse network needs to be reliable and resilient at all times to ensure that the support team can always access all the vital services and equipment. Essentially, the factory/ware- house equipment might fail, but the network and access to it, must not. EPSRing (ultra-fast link restoral protocol), dual power supplies, easy to implement link aggregation including diverse link paths plus VCStacking tech- nology to guard against total switch failure can be added to provide the uptime required and guarantee a <50ms recovery time in the case of network failure.


Continuous operation The network is the channel through which the IT support staff gains access to any factory/ warehouse equipment that might fail – ensuring that continuous operation is always available. PoE (power other Ethernet) speakers, linking the factory/ warehouse tannoy system to the network makes linking IT to IP telephony system viable. A PoE IP CCTV system on the network, can offer analytics to assist loss prevention. The analytics from cameras connected to such a


Telesis has installed many fac- tory and warehouse networks across the world. In a UK ware- house the communications cabi- net was installed in the ceiling. The equipment was known to be reliable and would not require frequent attention; it enabled installation to be closer to the wireless access points to reduce cabling distances and resulted in fewer cabinets and lower costs. Furthermore, Allied Telesis con- structed EPSRings in a pet food factory that created resiliency across the entire site, powering access points for a variety of devices within this hostile and controlled environment. The network design is critical to efficient business practices across all types of organisations and it is impossible to design net- work solutions without consider- ing business processes, internally or externally. Allied Telesis has invested in the delivery of cloud- ready networks to ensure cus- tomers will always benefit from resiliency, scalability and easy management. We help customers meet complex IT requirements while offering investment protec- tion, cost efficiencies and the scalability to meet ever-changing business application demands whatever the environment. As growing use of ICT leads to increasing volumes of voice, video and data applications being sent across corporate net- works there are cases where the level of investment exceeds the network requirements.


Allied Telesis T: 0844 8007699 www.alliedtelesis.co.uk


Swappage scheme encourages UK manufacturers to use the latest robotic automation


A swappage scheme being introduced by ABB seeks to promote greater use of the latest robotic automation technology among UK manufacturers. Subject to the payload the Robot Swappage


Scheme enables operators to get up to £4000 off the purchase cost of a new ABB robot when they trade in an existing robot from any manufacturer installed 12 or more years ago. Open until 8 April


6


2014, the scheme is aimed particularly at SMEs which have a current working robot that may be nearing the end of its useful economical working life. “A large number of robots in use in the UK are now at the point where they are becoming increasingly more difficult and costly to maintain,” says Dean Phipps, ABB robotics’ service sales manager for the UK and Ireland. “Difficulties in obtaining spares for obsolete models,


the absence of warranties and finding technicians qualified to work on older models are just some of the problems that can add to the heartache, expense and inconvenience of using older robots when issues inevitably occur. In such cases, replacing the robot with a new model can be the most sensible option.


robots@gb.abb.com ref: Swappage NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2013 Factory Equipment


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