As the modern standards of global industrial control systems evolve, process plant operators continually grapple with the challenges posed by dated systems outliving their intended lifespans. Legacy automation systems, a mainstay in many industrial environments, often spark operational difficulties that could be significantly reduced or altogether eliminated through strategic control system upgrades.
The primary hurdles to maintaining these aging systems include a dwindling supply of replacement parts and vendor support, along with a narrowing pool of expert knowledge as experienced plant personnel transition into retirement. Despite these challenges, a staggering number of legacy systems persist in operation worldwide, contributing to an elevated risk of unexpected downtime and system failures, which in turn escalates maintenance costs and impedes overall plant efficiency and output.
Funded by a substantial $5 million grant from the CleanBC Industry Fund, PE Tech lead a successful transition project at a pulp mill in British Columbia that involved dismantling the dated Foxboro hardware and replacing it with the state-of-the-art Emerson DeltaV DCS. Retaining existing infrastructure where feasible, the pre-existing cables were repurposed, easily connecting to custom marshalling cabinets designed by PE Tech. The supervisory system backup controls underwent a comprehensive redesign, culminating in the migration of approximately one thousand I/O points across five key areas of the mill. By the project's conclusion, the plant had transitioned nearly 60% of its total I/O from the Foxboro systems, some of which had been operational since the late 1980s, to the advanced DeltaV system.
Crucially, the switchover was commissioned and implemented without any unplanned operational downtime. The transition is a testament to how seamless technological upgrades are possible when meticulously planned and implemented by a team of industry experts; allowing complicated, but necessary, advancements to be adopted without interruption to plant operations.
About PE Tech
Specializing in the pulp & paper and wood fibre industries, we offer a unique blend of technical expertise and environmental leadership. Our mission is to empower industrial operations with sustainable, efficient, and forward-thinking solutions.