I never go anywhere without my smartphone.
My name is Cathrin and I’m 29 years old. I work in the Business Development department and I do everything – and I mean everything – with my smartphone.
My smartphone is my constant companion and it knows absolutely everything about me. Together we tackle the challenges each new day brings. Does that sound familiar to you? You glance through your messages in the morning, then when you arrive at the office there’s a constant stream of appointments and deadlines to be kept. Then it’s off to the airport: you’re in a hurry to check into your hotel because the next customer is already waiting. Back to your room in the evening – you need time to prepare for the rest of the week. Wherever I go, my smartphone goes too.
I just can’t imagine how people ever got through the day before smartphones were invented. How on earth did they manage to coordinate all their appointments manually or stay up to date with their social contacts? I know they did, but I can’t think how. What was their secret?
It’s a fact: without my smartphone I’d be “lost in information”. My smartphone is a buddy that structures all important information; it shares it with me at exactly the time I need it and reminds me of all the things I’m supposed to remember. Why don’t you leverage this structured and timely simplification in your plant’s everyday routine?
That’s right, you understood me correctly. Do you succeed in getting on top of the chaos and the information overload that prevail in your plant? Do you know a way to improve quality tracking and break down your information silos? If so, it’s probably very complicated and time consuming. Just imagine having precisely the information you need right now at your fingertips on your mobile device. Doesn’t that sound like a great idea? We have the solution you’ve been waiting for: Mobile Solutions. We give you the right information in the right place at the right time, locally and tailored to your individual requirements.
Shall I tell you how it works? The magic word here is “Mobile Solutions”. It’s no longer a mere pipe dream – it’s already a reality today. Allow me to explain.
The ability to access the right information in the right place at the right time is crucial in the process industry. You need this information to utilize a process plant’s resources more efficiently, optimize your production processes, protect the environment and in the long term also relieve the burden on every single one of your staff.
The control room is typically the hub where all information comes together in a process plant or possibly – if one exists – the local operator station in the field, though unfortunately that isn’t mobile. Thanks to Mobile Solutions, you can now retrieve information anywhere in the process plant whenever it happens to be required. All you need to do this is a tablet.
I’d like to give you a few examples to show you how Mobile Solutions can simplify your plant’s daily routine:
Process data on a tablet
This is how it works: you access information simply by holding your tablet against the information source. The tablet identifies the source by scanning a so-called “tag”.
The dashboard provides you with a quick overview of the current situation. By clicking on a particular item, you have access to process information, alarm values or any notes that have been added for a specific day or a specific device.
[ot-caption title=”Mobile Solutions” url=”https://www.yokogawa.com/eu/blog/chemical-pharma/app/uploads/2016/10/Abb_4.jpg”]
Device settings & calibration
It’s now much easier to calibrate a device or change the settings. A technician and a tablet are enough. The technician takes the tablet with him whenever he goes out into the field. He can then read off the actual values at each device and use the tablet to compare them with the automation system. Any deviations or nonconformances can be entered and corrected directly on the tablet.
[ot-caption title=”Using the tablet in the field” url=”https://www.yokogawa.com/eu/blog/chemical-pharma/app/uploads/2016/10/Abb_3a.jpg”]
Paperless checklists and forms
Until now, the paperless office has been no more than a myth. Using tablet solutions electronic forms can in future be filled in easily, and quality documentation or reports created in only a few minutes. The information entered in these documents is instantly available in the IT systems, where it can be (electronically) processed, forwarded to the relevant persons, and archived – all completely without paper.
Alarm tracing in real time
Mobile devices allow alerts to be displayed in real time. For instance, the control system can provide notification if a threshold is set to a higher value. In other words, the tablet acts as an “early warning system” for the technician in the field.
Information from your document management system (DMS)
You are carrying out work in the field and need to consult the manual and a wiring diagram for a particular component. You can access this information directly on the tablet or search for relevant documents – without having to leaf through stacks of files or hunt around in storage cabinets.
[ot-caption title=”Typical documents” url=”https://www.yokogawa.com/eu/blog/chemical-pharma/app/uploads/2016/10/Abb_3b.jpg”]
Legally required plant inspections
Process values are obviously available in the control room at any time. Nevertheless, you are required by law to carry out regular inspections of certain parts of the plant. Without Mobile Solutions, documenting the current situation in your plant can be very tedious. On the other hand, by resorting to a tablet you can document any deviations or anomalies by taking a photo or making a video, and if you wish you can also add a note.
[ot-caption title=”Work in field” url=”https://www.yokogawa.com/eu/blog/chemical-pharma/app/uploads/2016/10/Abb_5.jpg”]
Problem reports required during daily inspections
Problem reports need to be received by the intended recipients in good time, to enable any problems to be dealt with promptly. With traditional shift logs this information must first be entered, then read, and finally evaluated. The workflow generally takes place in defined cycles, which are unfortunately often disrupted by queries. To make a report easier to understand, you can take a photo using the tablet or make a video, so that any colleagues charged with solving the problem are always clearly “in the picture”. You can also share vital details with them by adding notes.
[ot-caption title=”Service note with photo” url=”https://www.yokogawa.com/eu/blog/chemical-pharma/app/uploads/2016/10/Abb_6_Service-Notiz.png”]
[ot-caption title=”The technician has easy access to process values during the inspection round.” url=”https://www.yokogawa.com/eu/blog/chemical-pharma/app/uploads/2016/10/Abb_8_Remote.png”]
Offline import from non-connected devices
You can even use Mobile Solutions for devices which are not connected in your control system. You can retrieve or monitor information on these devices with the help of the tablet, and you can also maintain them. The devices concerned can be manually entered in Mobile Solutions by the operator in a few simple steps. Furthermore, Mobile Solutions provide various options for mapping this kind of device information: number, text, counter, date / time.
I hope these examples will have given you a small foretaste of all the things Mobile Solutions let you monitor in your plant. If you have any other ideas you’d like to share with me, please don’t hesitate.
Have our Mobile Solutions succeeded in attracting your interest? If so, please write a comment to me or pay me a visit at the NAMUR Annual General Meeting. Thanks to my smartphone, it’s a date I’ll definitely remember. I look forward to meeting you there.
