Manufacturers constantly look out for solutions that can help them keep their operational costs low. These solutions improve efficiency, increasing their profitability. It is a simple concept. There is nothing new and unique about it. Our client wanted to achieve the same - higher efficiency at reduced costs. Here is where we, the team at Netcon, came into the picture.

Who Is This Manufacturer?

They are a small manufacturer of polypropylene polymer products located in Tamil Nadu, India. They have been producing plastic polymer products for the last 20 years. And they have made a name for themselves in the local region.

Their Challenge Was Simple.

They wanted increased efficiency and lowered operational costs, which almost all manufacturers want. We came aboard and examined their facility thoroughly. And one of the major factors of reduced efficiency was the energy consumption of their infrastructure.

There was no system to measure energy consumption by various machines and devices. Hence, they were unable to monitor and manage it. As a result, their machines were wasting energy, increasing their electricity bills and overall costs. No manufacturer wants this. It is a nightmare.

They also wanted to reduce their downtime and enable predictive maintenance. Here is how we went about designing a solution for them.

Do you face similar challenges? Contact us to discover how we can help.

IoT-Based Energy Monitoring System - A Solution Fit to Overcome the Challenge

The first step was identifying the machines and relevant electric panel spots where we could fit the smart energy meters. Before we dive into that, let us tell you briefly about smart energy meters.

How Do Smart Energy Meters Work?

Simply speaking, smart energy meters are energy meters with a bunch of other functionality - real-time data, insights, load profiling, anomaly detection, efficiency, etc. They have flexible connectivity and connect to several systems, depending on the application, via wired or wireless means.

Where Did We Place the Smart Meters?

Different kinds of machines are in place in a polypropylene polymer manufacturing facility. For example, extruders take the raw polypropylene and forcefully push it through a die to create shapes or sheets. They are high-power machines and some of the most expensive ones on the factory floor. They needed their smart meter.

4color mixer, blender, and printer are another set of machinery that mix the ink for printing. It uses significant power. We gave it an individual smart meter.

Loom arranges the polymers and creates the polymer fabric. It then makes it into bags, sacks, carpets, and so on. It can be expensive and demands a smart meter.

Likewise, we set up separate smart meters for calendaring machines, compressors, laminating machines, cooling systems, and so on.

In total, we set up 28 smart meters for different systems.

With smart meters in place, we moved on to the next step.

Setting up the Network for the Smart Meters and the Data Collection System to Communicate

For the smart meters to communicate with the application and send relevant data, we set up a LoRaWAN network within the facility. We also set up the server to host the application and update the data in real-time. After configuring the meters with the network and the application, we tested it thoroughly for reliability and accuracy.

Once we were satisfied with the results, it was good to go.

Data Collection Using IoT and a Cutting-Edge Application to Visualize It

We have the meters that will communicate with the essential data. So, to store that data and have real-time visibility over it, we designed a data collection system with an advanced application.

The meters would transmit the data to the system via the network we have set up. The application would then store the data, show real-time updates of every individual meter, and generate usable insights from that information. The application identifies peak power consumption, patterns, most power-intensive windows, and so on and presents it in a glanceable way.

How This Solution Overcame the Challenge

With all the relevant data visible at a glance, officials at this manufacturing facility have a better understanding of where most of their power is being used and where it is leaking. This data helps them minimize the leakage.

The application also throws alerts when a machine behaves abnormally, high power consumption, sudden increase in load, anomaly, etc. It enables proactive responses to sudden energy spikes, potentially indicating equipment malfunctions. This way, the chances of a catastrophe are significantly reduced.

Alerts and notifications, with detailed reports of each machine, also enable predictive maintenance. The maintenance team at the facility immediately checks and services the abnormally behaving machines, reducing downtime and operational costs for them.

But the most significant benefit has to be increased efficiency and reduced operational cost. Their power bills have never been lower. Overall, what we implemented has helped them increase its bottom line and improve its sustainability efforts.

As and when we get new updates from them, we will keep updating this article. Subscribe to our mailing list to receive updates whenever we post.

Want to know how your facility can benefit from MES? Get in touch with us, and we will help you see how!