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Order Entry-Scheduling-Trimming , Winder-Wrapline , Warehouse management-Shipping/Gatehouse , High Performance PC Class System-Reliability-Unlimited Connectivity , User Friendly-Database Security , External Interfacing-Customer Support
Product Tracking and Production Management Systems (RTS & PTS), Raw Materials Management Systems (RMMS) and Quality Control Systems (QCS) are available from Proconex, a company specializing in paper mill automation systems. The basis of the pricing is that the application software is usable any number of times at one mill site. The desk top computers and their associated software cost are extra, but such costs are thoses of the standard market place for desk top computers. Standard desk top computers of a well known brand name (for example, HP) are required. Implementations under Windows 2000/XP are supported. Proconex provides a system that is modest in price and cost-effective. On-going support costs are low.
Commercial software products such as Crystal Reports and Excel are easily used in conjunction with the RTS data base. Thus each mill can maintain their own particular report designs and management information systems. New report forms can be developed by mill personnel. This flexibilty leads to improved utilization. Large and small mills alike can improve their competitive position with the use of computer based systems for production optimization, product quality control and inventory management. The RTS has the power to meet the demands of any size mill. The system can start small and grow, by adding hardware and software modules. With networking capability to support 100+ stations there is no practical limit to the size of the system and there is no compromise on response time. Integration into the mill is scheduled to ensure a smooth installation and start-up.
The Proconex Roll Tracking System provides the features to realize fast return on investment in every step of the production line, from order entry to shipping and invoicing of finished product. This product is well suited to existing mills, with a variety of associated automation equipment. Proconex has a unique expertise at foreign device interfacing and can integrate existing devices into a new system.
Features and benefits abound, including production planning with high efficiency machine runs, no redundant paperwork, and streamlined operation. Trim optimization with minimum losses such as machine slab-off and winder trim is an important part of the system. Other features include a quality control system data interface, laboratory test data entry, customer specifications, for enhanced quality control, no off-specifications-product shipped to customer, roll handling, which includes elimination of misidentified rolls, and accurate wrapping and labeling to customer specifications. Lastly, there is internal and external warehouse management, which provides verification of products either being shipped or loaded, and reporting, which facilitates management, and improves communications.
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Order entry is the first step in the roll tracking process. Customer orders, including detailed instructions and specifications, may be entered on-line or transmitted from a remote sales office. Incoming orders are merged with existing order files and are alerted to the production scheduler for editing. Instant order status may be accessed through any station as the order proceeds. The status and totals are availalbe roll by roll in real time, 24 hours per day.
The screen illustration above shows the results of a "Browse" thru the data base for orders with an order number beginning with "148.....". To examine the detail of any order, the line in the display is selected and the window closed.
The screen illustration above shows the detail in an order concerning the customer.
The screen illustration above shows the order item details. An order may have any number of items.
The screen illustration above shows a summary of an order with 3 items.
The screen illustration above shows a summary of an order that has been produced (by roll count).
The screen illustration above shows a summary of an order that has been produced (by weight).
The screen illustration above shows a summary of an order that has been produced and allocated to Zones in the Warehouse. Zones are logical or physical shipment quantities (a truck or a rail car).
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Production planning is easily accomplished with the Block Scheduling, Trim Scheduling and Trim Optimization scheduling modules. The planner allocates time on a paper machine and production schedules are then created by assigning orders. Production runs may be deleted, inserted, moved and modified at any time.
The screen illustration above shows a summary of the runs scheduled for a particular machine, in grade and time order. Open-Time and Shut-Down Time may be shown in the schedule.
The screen illustration above shows the detail of one particular run order item by order item.
The screen illustration above shows the detail of one order item assignment. It is possible to assign only a fraction of the total ordered weight.
The screen illustration above shows the detail of one particular set of unscheduled orders. The same orders are available displayed by required date.
The screen illustration above shows the detail of one particular set of scheduled patterns.
The screen illustration above shows the "Browse" for run details.
The screen illustration above shows the detail of one particular set of patterns to be printed for distribution on paper.
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Trim optimization can be obtained manually or automatically through integrated software. Optimum cutting patterns and reduced knife positioning are achieved resulting in minimum waste and faster slitter set-up.
The screen illustration above shows the detail of an optimization solution with only 2 sizes or rolls required. Two solution are presented, one for minimum waste and one for minimum sets.
The screen illustration above shows the constraints for an optimization solution. The constraints can be changed by the user and then the problem can be re-solved.
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The winder station may be interfaced to the paper machine and winder to capture real-time quality data from the paper machine control system and to position slitter knives. Rolls are produced and bar coded against orders and paper quality data can be logged against reels.
The screen illustration above shows a supplementary data panel that supports both automated entry (Length) and manual entry (Calendar#).
The screen illustration above shows the Pattern associated with a particular run for a winder.
The screen illustration above shows the rol by roll details for the current set. Roll Status and Reject Reason are entered via this screen when necessary.
The screen illustration above shows the list of rolls most recently produced by this winder and not yet wrapped.
The screen illustration above shows for each order item in a set, the warehouse and loading status of each Zone. With this information the Winder Operator can determine exactly when a run will be complete.
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Rolls are identified by scanning the barcode ticket and validated according to order specifications retrieved from the system files. A warehouse location is allocated and appropriate wrapper, bander, stencil and labels are supplied through the PLC. Modules are available for manual and fully automatic operation.
The screen illustration above shows how a bar code mis-read is remedied (manually).
The screen illustration above shows details of a particular peckage.
The screen illustration above shows the rolls approaching the wrapline. This list is updated in real time as each roll is wrapped.
The screen illustration above shows the last 10 rolls wrapped in sequential order. It can be used for rapid reprinting of a label.
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The warehouse module locates, manipulates and reports all stock in the warehouse eliminating the time consuming task of finding an order. Once identified, rolls are documented as being shipped and removed from the system. Truck-mounted radio frequency terminals are used to transfer and hot-load packages.
The screen illustration above shows a "Browse" of certain Zones or Shipments. Browsing is available by a large number of criterion.
The screen illustration above shows the list of rolls in a particular Zone.
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As the production chain ends, shipment information can be electronically transmitted to the customer and to the mill computer for invoicing. The gatehouse module records shipment traffic and checks for contract and load limit specifications.
The screen illustration above shows the cost detail of a particular Zone.
The screen illustration above shows instructions which are printed on the Bill of Lading.
The screen illustration above shows the details required for an order item in a zone. Many order items can be associated with 1 Zone.
The screen illustration above shows summary information for a Zone. order. It can be used for rapid reprinting of a label.
The screen illustration above shows the shipping details for a Zone.
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To meet the performance needs of the pulp and paper manufacturing environment and to maintain the cost advantage of using PC class hardware, the Proconex Roll Tracking System (RTS) uses as its engine dual Windows 2000 Servers, and multiple client PC's in a network-distributed facility designed for process control, factory automation, point of sale and other mission-critical applications. The Windows software architecture delivers the full performance of standard microcomputer hardware thus providing a high power and sufficient system that can rival or out-perform high-end systems. Distributed processing in clients and modularity features make the RTS independent of one central processor, while all the power of the system is available to the user through any Windows 2000, Windows NT or Windows 95 workstation in the network. The client PC's normally share many other office automation tasks such as word processing and spreadsheet calculations.
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The reliability factor required by the continuous operation of the mill is inherent to the software architecture of the RTS. Using distributed processing and fault-tolerant networking capabilities, the RTS provides automatic back up in case of hardware failure. Unlike the conventional computer redundancy solution, this approach to system uptime requires less hardware and therefore less investment and maintenance costs.
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Proconex's RTS offers complete connectivity from the back plane field peripherals and local area networks to the mill's business computer to the world's largest network, the Internet. The RTS' operating system network facility works with Ethernet, and supports several standard protocols including the popular TCP/IP. The Open Systems nature of the RTS makes it the ideal system for easy integration into the mill's information technology hierarchy.A segragated or dedicated network for roll tracking stations in the mill is recommended. The reason for this is that roll tracking functions run on a real time basis and are directly related to production equipment (that is, a high availability, reliable and secure facility is needed). There is no system of equal security to the dedicated system, except no system at all. A shut-down in the roll tracking system can stop the full production of a paper mill in a short time ( 1 or 2 hours) and the financial losses are astronomical compared to the cost of providing the segragated facility. There is a bridge between the segragated facility and the outside world (mill site and remote sites) to provide integration of the information.
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The RTS has been designed for ease of use by process operators. Operating procedures feature guided data entry and help functions in full color graphic video presentations, providing a simple user-oriented operator interface. All software modules are supported with similar operating techniques which facilitates a seamless use of any module by any operator. Optional language configurations allow switching of languages at any time.
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The RTS' unique combination of information management and on-line twin database structure ensures database security and integrity. Twin databases are stored in separate servers to offer the highest degree of data protection during multi-user updates and in the unlikely case of hardware failure. The data base is MS SQL 2000(minimum).
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Proconex's RTS can be readily interfaced to external devices and peripherals to form a fully integrated mill wide production automation system. Most common devices are: A Slitter Positioner, a Scale, a Mainframe or Minicomputer, a Sort Deck, a Label Printer, a Stenciller, a Wrapper, a UPS, a Roll Measurer, a Footage Counter, a Papermachine QCS, a Report Printer, a Radio Frequency Terminal, a Barcode Scanner, a PLC, and an Embarc. Proconex also provides custom-designed wrapline add-ons such as traversing mechanisms for bar code readers and ink jet markers.
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Operator training and engineering support during system start-up and commissioning are an integral part of every RTS project. Remote Internet-based access coupled with Proconex' System Manager Tools set permit 24-hour technical support and quick response to emergency service calls.
The Emergency Call program provides 24 hour telephone assistance to operating personnel. A designated Proconex employee can be contacted by pager at any time of the day. The employee will maintain expertise in the operation of the systems assigned, to enable ongoing operations or recovery from breakdowns. This person will have access to a modem, through which calls can be made to the system in question. The system operation can be manipulated remotely as needed.
A System Audit and Update service provides updates to application software and documentation. This program guarantees availablity of programming personnel to the user on a short-notice basis. Program changes are not included in this service, as it is assumed that a formal proposal and commercial authorization is required by both parties. Two scheduled site visits per year are made to audit the system as to accuracy and performance. System updates not attributable to user requests are made at this time. Such updates are the result of ongoing development work by Proconex. A formal report is issued following each visit. Additional site visits are scheduled at the request of the user.
Links to other product categories: Simulation Interfaces , SCADA Interfaces , Raw Materials Management , Pulp Tracking , Quality Control Systems