New generation energy monitoring for mine and metallurgical industries
January 2007Fieldbus & Industrial Networking
Information Security
The mining and metallurgical industries are some of the largest consumers of energy in the country. It thus stands to reason that understanding the consumption of energy in these large concerns has the potential to generate substantial savings to not only the industry but the power generation industry.
Omniflex has harnessed the power and pervasiveness of the worldwide web for the presentation and dissemination of data enabling large scale operations to collect and consolidate energy consumption data through the use of GSM enabled Remote Terminal Units which can interface with existing power meters installed at a multitude of local sites around the plant or mining operation.
Typical application for monitoring remotely distributed power meters
Omniflex has spent the majority of its 40 plus years' existence devoted to the design and development of industrial communications and alarming systems both heavily influenced by the mining industry. Hard lessons learnt have moulded Omniflex products in some of the toughest, most capable and solution-rich products for the harsh conditions imposed by the mining environment.
Mining communications must endure under:
* Harsh environment - physically, electrically.
* Network-unfriendly topologies.
* Cabling limitations.
* Long distances.
* Changing architecture.
* Cost vs affordability benefit limitations.
The Omniflex product offering takes the form of RTUs located in the field distributed as necessary amongst the assets that required monitoring. For example power, air, ventilation, environmental and safety equipment. The Teleterm M2 Series RTUs are available in many variants for network flexibility from Ethernet, Conet, Modbus, wireless forms with radio or GSM communications. This provides many solutions in data gathering to GSM data access points. Access to the monitored devices is via the worldwide web using a service called Data2Desktop provided by the Omniflex Data Center which is located within the GSM cellular communications cloud and accessible via the Internet. This allows many users access to data with simply the use of an Internet browser and no investment in special software. Widely distributed company assets can be viewed at a single web page by authorised users from any remote location.
Summary screen of Omniflex Data2Desktop service
The M2 Series RTUs have the following features:
* Choice of integrated GSM SMS, radio, Conet, Ethernet communications.
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