ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS
CONTROLLING OBSOLESCENCE
J MARTANS
HOW TO MANAGE OBSOLESCENCE
IN INDUSTRIAL CONTROL PANELS
Over the past 50 years, a growing number
of industrial businesses have adopted
computer-based automation systems.
However, many of these systems are
now nearing their official end-of-life and
becoming obsolete, leaving engineers with
the challenge of managing obsolescence
effectively. Here, Maria Torrisi, business
development manager at industrial
automation expert JMartans Automation,
explains how industrial plant managers can
manage obsolescence in control panels.
The control panel is the backbone of the
modern industrial plant. Whether a business
is at the forefront of the Fourth Industrial
Revolution or focussed more on day-to-
day production, automation is pivotal for
modern industrial companies.
While these systems present plant
managers with a wealth of benefits in the
form of efficiency savings and improved
effectiveness, their importance is beginning
to pose a unique challenge for industrial
businesses. Today, many plants still use the
control panels installed several decades
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ago, which means they are now verging on
obsolescence.
Although businesses can partner with
specialists to supply obsolete industrial
components, a growing number of plant
managers are realising that modernising
systems is more beneficial and less risky
in the long-term. However, this is rarely an
easy task, as the control system is often
responsible for controlling an important
process that can significantly harm
productivity if stopped.
For example, it might be that a control
system is responsible for managing a
conveyor in a dairy production plant. Since
dairy is a sensitive food item that must
be handled carefully and promptly with
full traceability, even a momentary pause
in production can mean an entire line of
product must be disposed of to ensure
safety standards.
So, how do you manage obsolescence in
a critical control system? From JMartans’
experience as a systems integrator in Malta,
we’ve found that the best approach is
to complete an upgrade or replacement
project in phases. By doing this, plants can
minimise operational disruption.
This could mean replacing the front end of a
control system first, such as by modernising
a SCADA system and ensuring it works with
the obsolete components and equipment,
before upgrading those individual obsolete
parts. A systems integrator taking this
phased approach can then avoid causing
costly, unwanted downtime and ensure
systems remain operational.
The reason why many industrial businesses
continue using legacy equipment purchased
decades ago is often due to the risk of
planned downtime affecting performance.
By working with an experienced automation
systems integrator like JMartans, plant
managers can get the best of both worlds:
an effective, modern control panel without
lost production.
www.jmartans.com/