The Swiss firm Thommen deals in many different chemicals on a large scale. These substances cover a broad spectrum, from liquids like acids, lyes and solvents, to an array of different solid materials. Collection and disposal of hazardous wastes is also on Thommen's long list of products and services.
Around 45 trucks are constantly on the move to serve the needs of customers and make deliveries on time. It is obvious that it is vital to be able to know the status of any part of the process when necessary. To solve this problem, Thommen looked to Vega measurement technology. In the more than 90 storage tanks at the Thommen complex, some of which contain highly flammable materials, Vega ultrasonic and radar sensors were implemented for reliable, noncontact level measurement. The sensors pass their measurement data on to VEGALOG, the central processing and evaluation module. This enables the directing of a smooth flow of goods - centralised collection of level and quantity data. However, to gain an optimum overall view, a further step was necessary.
That step was the presentation of all measurement data on a single monitor with the VISUAL VEGA software. This software can display the measurement data in a number of different ways: as a bar chart, as numbers or as a value-time graph. Separate presentation is possible, but groups of materials can also be integrated and displayed. The colour, font style and size of the diagrams can be modified to suit individual needs and local circumstances. Photographs of installations or one's own graphics can also be incorporated into the monitor presentation.
Practical application has shown that not all measurement data need be viewed at once (although that is possible with VISUAL VEGA, if the monitor is large enough), but usually only predefined areas. For this reason, selected data areas can be saved as a screen layout. This enables an employee who is, for example, responsible for lyes to call up his own customised layout that displays only the data that concern him.
A further highlight of VISUAL VEGA is, beside the single workstation version (single user), a multiple workstation version (multiple user) is available. In addition to the master PC, any requested number of client PCs can be networked to make all level measurement data accessible to the entire firm. Every client can be configured in such a way that it displays the data exactly like the master, or be programmed (independent of the master) to make use of the many available display options. In order to prevent all employees from having access to all program options, different user levels can be created. And, of course, access to the various user levels can be restricted through the use of passwords.
By introducing the VISUAL VEGA software, the people at Thommen had made provision for an optimum overall view of the internal workings of the firm, and could have stopped there. But they didn't - they went a step further. They felt that if this level monitoring system works so well for them, why would it not work for their customers? Could they not keep track of levels in their customers' storage tanks, and know automatically when they need to re-supply them?
In answering those questions, VISUAL VEGA again proved to be a good choice, since a direct cable connection from the VISUAL VEGA computer to the data evaluation centre or to the sensors is not required. The public telephone network can be used equally well for this purpose.
A number of customers who were complaisant to this kind of cooperation were quickly found. If they were not already in use, VEGA level measurement sensors were installed at those customers' facilities and were connected to the telephone network by means of standard modems. The VISUAL VEGA computer at Thommen was also equipped with a modem that enabled connection to the telephone network. At predefined intervals, VISUAL VEGA automatically dials up all sensors of Thommen customers, one after the other, and reads out their level values. The presentation of this remote data at Thommen is as simple, clear and reliable as if it were level measurement data from within the company itself.
Both Thommen and its customers benefit from the advantages of remote monitoring. Customers do not have to look after their material stocks, because Thommen gave them an assurance that it would always keep them supplied. Thommen can now provide goods and services to its customers with a far greater degree of efficiency. Delivery vehicles can be optimally routed according to customer needs, since Thommen always has everything in view - even the levels of customers chemical reserves, lying hundreds of kilometres apart.
Vega Instruments SA
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