Schneider Electric and 4Sight have embarked on an exciting project at a prominent South African mining group that sees the partners implementing a value chain optimisation (VCO) solution, which includes AVEVA’s Production Management & Unified Supply Chain offering.
Charl Marais.
The project, which is earmarked for completion by November 2023, will replace the mine’s multi-layered and highly complex Excel-based supply chain environment with two components:
• AVEVA Unified Supply Chain, which plans up to two years into the future, optimising activities such as processing, logistics, inventories and product requirements and provision.
• AVEVA Production Management, which monitors current activities to track conformance to the optimised plans.
“Combined, the two components will allow the mine to plan for future demand, while making provision for activities that have not been completed, or that have deviated from initial planning. The implemented solution therefore becomes a dynamic, repeatable and predictive system that allows the customer to accurately manage its supply chain based on past and future information,” comments Charl Marais, OT Digital Transformation BU manager at 4Sight.
“With the project, we’re providing the mine with a VCO solution that will allow it to manage demand and supply accurately, ensuring that the right material is in the right place without incurring unnecessary expenditure,” says Dr Suven Ramsunder, digital transformation expert at Schneider Electric.
“As a practical example, due to fluctuating fuel costs, it might be more cost effective to use trucks at certain times to transport materials to the various ports, as opposed to trains and vice versa,” adds Marais.
Suven Ramsunder.
Information automated
The current Excel environment is highly complex and managed by a few individuals – a risk factor if one or more individuals are not available. By implementing the VCO solution, the mine will benefit from an automated system that is less reliant on human interaction. Furthermore, the automated system mitigates human error such as finger trouble, which can cause havoc in a manual environment, thus delivering reliable information across the various systems on the mine’s sites.
This does not imply that people are not essential, as Schneider Electric and 4Sight recognise that people are the lifeblood of an organisation. The aim of this solution is to enable the relevant personnel to be more efficient and effective in their duties, without the added stress of a complex system. A fully automated system also delivers answers in minutes and can be run frequently, unlike the current system, which delivers forecasting slower and less frequently.
Schneider Electric’s products are vendor neutral, which means the VCO solution will integrate with the mine’s current systems, driving down costs in replacing existing equipment and overcoming interoperability challenges. Ultimately, Schneider Electric and 4Sight aim to provide the mining group with an optimised supply chain to deliver on time, reliable and actionable information, save on costs, and enhance operations.
Why the human firewall is important in the age of phishing and AI
IT in Manufacturing
Cybersecurity has long been a game of cat and mouse, with attackers innovating just as quickly as defenders can adapt. The most vulnerable point in any organisation’s cyber defence is still the human being behind the screen.
Read more...Overcoming the bottling industry’s fragmented visibility Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Many bottling plants lack specific visibility into energy use, relying on aggregate data that obscures efficiency opportunities. Without accurate data, energy cannot be effectively managed.
Read more...Overcoming reactive maintenance Rockwell Automation
IT in Manufacturing
Dunlop Aircraft Tyres is leveraging technology from Rockwell Automation to optimise maintenance operations, affirming the significant role of digital tools in industrial maintenance management.
Read more...Africa’s AI ambitions face critical infrastructure questions Schneider Electric South Africa
News
As AI investment accelerates globally, Africa is increasingly being viewed as the industry’s next major growth frontier. The continent’s AI ambitions will ultimately depend on its ability to solve one critical challenge: infrastructure readiness.
Read more...Why grid modernisation will define the energy transition Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Africa has some of the world’s strongest renewable resources. Yet more than 600 million people still lack reliable access to electricity. The path forward requires execution.
Read more...How AI, digital twins, and predictive analytics are reshaping mining’s future Schneider Electric South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
For mining companies across sub-Saharan Africa, the competitive gap is becoming harder to close through conventional methods alone. One of the clearest areas of value is predictive and prescriptive maintenance. AI and advanced analytics now allow mines to move from reactive to predictive operations.
Read more...Pure-air switchgear technology powers Elgin Orchards Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Schneider Electric, together with Technoserve Medium Voltage, has implemented its RM AirSeT SF6-free medium voltage switchgear at Elgin Orchards, one of South Africa’s leading fruit producers.
Read more...Install and commissioning time cut by 50% thanks to digital twin insights Rockwell Automation
IT in Manufacturing
ECM Technologies, a world leader in the design and manufacture of innovative and modular low-pressure carburising industrial furnaces, has developed a solution that removes many of the installation and commissioning challenges relating to the development, testing and deployment of large-scale heat treatment plants.
Read more...Centralised control rooms where growth is elastic, not physical Schneider Electric South Africa
PLCs, DCSs & Controllers
Modernised control rooms feature distributed control system architecture consolidated into centralised compute environments. replacing traditional PCs with thin clients.
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, the publisher and its agents cannot be held responsible for any errors contained, or any loss incurred as a result. Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to alter or cut copy. Articles submitted are deemed to have been cleared for publication. Advertisements and company contact details are published as provided by the advertiser. Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or veracity of supplied material.
printer friendly version