Processing, August 2019

Furthermore the situation scales up when multiple process skids must interact with each other For instance a chemical production system may supply a chemical injection system or a filtering system might feed a reverse osmosis unit that feeds an ultraviolet system The SI may be responsible for the main automation system controlling each of these process skids and they may have programmed it to meet the design documents But the process engineers and owners operators must work with the SI to ensure the implementation matches the design and the design functions as intended with the process skids responding as specified Beyond the electrical OEM equipment and the process skids the SI may need to solve problems central to the automation design or control platform Automation OEM issues The SI must be adept when working with automation platform elements such as the control hardware software and field instrumentation Figure 5 Here are some common areas that commissioning and startup crews must inspect and verify Proper installation and wiring of instruments and devices good grounding signal isolation Configuration of instruments devices and OEM equipment Interface between each instrument and device and the automation system loop check Proper installation and wiring of automation system components Controller software installation HMI software installation Basic closed loop functionality Complete automation system functionality Sufficient operational personnel training Each of these areas calls for formal test procedures to make sure all team members follow a consistent methodology along with checkout forms to provide documented results The SI is typically responsible for certain control platform hardware software selection device and instrument selection control panel design and wiring design The electrical contractor is responsible for field wiring Various OEM vendors are responsible for their equipment skids and devices The process engineer is responsible for functional design the SI is responsible for the programming and everyone is responsible for training So if any one thing small or large fails to work as planned it may be difficult to identify the root cause The best run projects avoid assigning blame and instead employ a team based problem solving approach Establishing this type of positive culture for executing the work and resolving the inevitable challenges must be led by the owner and general contractor with the proper degree of autonomy granted to the SI Conclusion Process automation capital projects including many water wastewater projects involve many parts and players With so many interrelated elements it is easy to see how problems can persist into the commissioning and startup phase even with predesigned and prepackaged OEM equipment As the contractor most closely involved with the brain and nervous system of an automation project the SI is uniquely positioned to discover and help solve any problems when integrating multiple subsystems If the owner and general contractor empower this approach and facilitate early involvement of the SI common problems can be quickly and efficiently resolved to achieve startup success Alan Horikawa national service manager for Tesco Controls Inc has more than 40 years of involvement with a wide range of industrial control systems As a communications specialist he has developed hands on experience with all major instrumentation control and telemetry systems used in water and wastewater Horikawa led the teams commissioning one of the largest wastewater projects more than 500 sites in the southeastern U S Scott Okasaki Northern California field services manager has more than 13 years experience with Tesco Controls Inc in the modification startup and support of industrial control system projects for the water and wastewater industries He has led teams in the commissioning of Sacramento Regional County Sanitation Districts EchoWater Project a 2 billion upgrade to produce cleaner water for discharge back into the Sacramento River Tesco Controls Inc www tescocontrols com Visit processingmagazine com for more on systems integration MORE ONLINE Match the Right Pneumatic Conveying Technology to Your Process AUGUST 2019 www processingmagazine com 45 Schenck Process LLC 7901 NW 107th Terrace Kansas City MO 64153 816 891 9300 sales fcp@ schenckprocess com www schenckprocess com us Experience design and manufacturing know how are just a few reasons why customers choose Schenck Process pneumatic conveying systems Our ability to manage a wide range of projects and match the right system for your application is another critical piece we add to the success of your operation Additionally we continue to develop and offer energy saving systems that reduce your overall costs Call us today and see how we can design a system utilizing one of the following pneumatic conveying technologies to meet your process needs Dilute Phase Pressure Vacuum Batch Dense Phase Continuous Dense Phase Low 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