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«
Make everything
as simple as possible,
but not simpler»
110
Products:
Recommendations for field levels
Lean automation who benefits?
Even before «lean automation» was defined as a con-
cept, operators and owners strived for greater auto-
mation with less need for qualified personnel. Having
originally served as a cost-cutting measure, lean will
in the foreseeable future become the deciding for
remaining competitive. How does this relate to field
automation devices?
The more complex the technology of an automated
system, the more qualified personnel are necessary
for installation and operation. Now that there are
fewer personnel available for demographic reasons,
costs and operating risks are increasing. An automa-
tion system based on lean principles puts operators
and users at the centre. Meeting their requirements as
fully as possible is the guiding principle for the design
of automation. Such a system is safe to plan, easy to
install, open to improvements and can be maintained
by in-house staff during servicing.
But the optimal solution is only possible if there is
healthy competition among providers. The prerequi-
site for this is open and flexible automation systems,
which can be adapted to suit the needs of the stake-
holders and their environment. The «one-stop» ap-
proach, for example as part of «Totally Integrated»,
entails complete dependence on a single supplier.
An absence of competition impedes innovation and
drives costs up. Saia® PCD-Systems are the alternative.
Saia
®
PCD
field levels
Integration of diverse technologies –
the prerequisite for lean automation
Lean automation requires flexible and easy integration of I/O modules in automation
stations. Fieldbus systems together with sensors and actuators with analogue or binary
signals are the key link to the process.
Author: Oliver Greune
A myriad of technologies as a prerequisite
Albert Einstein's famous saying «Make everything as
simple as possible but not simpler» is so universal,
and it also applied to automation systems. Below we
want to share a few aspects from our field, and take
a look at the physical processes involved in automa-
tion systems, and the field level.
Sensors and actuators in buildings are often difficult
to access. Therefore it is good if these components
do not have to be changed during the life
cycle.
Care and caution are
needed when select-
ing technology. Cau-
tion means installing
only components with
integrated I/O modules
for analogue or digital sig-
nals. This is absolutely vital
for sensors and actuators for
critical, liquid or pressurized
substances. All the appropri-
ate I/O modules for the usual
passive and active signals in in-
dustrial automation are available
for Saia® PCD-Systems.
Depending on the application, a compact Saia® PCD3
or modular system such as a Saia® PCD2.M5540 can
be chosen, which is expandable to up to 1024 hard-
ware data points.
Farsightedness applies to all applications in which
components are used with communication interfac-
es. External components should only be connected
using recognized fieldbus standards such as Profi-
bus, M-Bus, BACnet, LonWorks, KNX/EIB, or at least
those with a similar status, such as Modbus. In ex-
ceptional cases, vendor-specific protocols are used.
The prerequisite is that the bus systemmust be open
and have a good market reputation, such as the
Belimo MP-Bus.
Projected age distribution of
the population in the Federal
Republic of Germany in 1950
compared to 2050:
In a 10-year period there is
one employee for every two
retirees.
However: Lean facilities offer
more automation with fewer
personnel.
Albert Einstein
,
Physicist
(14.3.1879–18.4.1955)
Source: Federal Statistical Office Germany
Men
Men
Woman
Woman
Age structure 1950
Germany
Age structure 2050
Germany
thousand
thousand
thousand
thousand
en13110
