CONTROL | INDUSTRY 4.0 PHOTO: MAGUIRE PRODUCTS
Right: The removable touchscreen interface
available with the Maguire 4088 controller, which offers faster processing and increased data buffering
should add value and not complicate a process or create a new point of failure.”
Blender control
Riverdale Global via the internet or a cellular network. The GlobalTracker software on the Riverdale Global servers tracks material usage and records job-specific data. This capability extends to all production lines, whether in a single facility or at multiple plants. In turn, the customer can access GlobalTracker information using a desktop, tablet, or smart phone to obtain information on orders, search their order history by order or by produc- tion job, see their current colour match status, submit new colour matches, and document production runs for compliance with job specifica- tions or regulatory requirements. The official market introduction for the technol- ogy is set for NPE 2018, but the company has completed some test installations with a few clients. Riverdale Global President Paul Maguire says the data tracking and analysis has provided insight that allowed better control and consistency of the colour going into the process. “Collecting the right
Right: Piovan’s Quantum batch blenders integrate with its Industry 4.0 compliant
Winfactory 4.0 supervision system
data and analysing it correctly will quickly bring to light where a process is varying. Ultimately, we are working to provide our customers the most economical and sustain- able way to colour plastics through our Computerised Colour solu- tions. GlobalTracker is one of the tools to make this happen,” says Maguire, who sees a trend towards customers expecting such features as a norm. “Young- er generations, in particular, assume all of the data is accessible in one way or another. I have also found that customers are willing to use these features when they see the actual value in them. Technology, when done right,
34 COMPOUNDING WORLD | May 2018
Blending and dosing equipment for plastics compound and masterbatch production already generally operates under tight control to be able to accurately dose low levels of additives, and in some cases is operating in closed-loop control with the extruder. To function within Industry 4.0, however, blender controls also need to be able to communicate easily with upstream and down- stream equipment. The latest controller from Maguire Products – the Maguire 4088 - operates at seven times the speed of the previous-generation 1212 unit and provides eight times the memory and 45 times the resolution in the load cells used to weigh batch ingredients, says Frank Kavanagh, The company’s Vice-President of Sales and Marketing. “The increased memory makes possible more storage for data logs and the ability to handle larger communication buffers. The faster processor and the higher memory are capable of handling the high traffic demands of an industrial Ethernet network,” he says. “These enhancements increase the volume,
speed, and reliability of data transfer. Valuable information on the makeup and consumption of the raw materials being metered into the extrusion process can be readily shared with third-party devices,” he says. “Currently we communicate data over the Internet using Modbus TCP and our own MLAN TCP Protocol. We have also partnered with three OPC Server developers to provide all of our data to third-party devices via the OPC UA.” Italy’s Piovan is among the leaders in applying Industry 4.0 principles in plastics manufacturing. Its latest Quantum series of gravimetric batch blenders
supports connection into the com-
pany’s Winfactory 4.0 OPC-UA compliant smart factory supervision
software or its latest materials handling control and monitoring system, FACS 4.0. Both solutions are designed to help plastics processors “transition from a traditional factory setup to one in which computers and automation provide compre- hensive control and monitor- ing”, the company says. Winfactory 4.0 is a fully
www.compoundingworld.com
PHOTO: PIOVAN
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