Wireless Automation
Obvious Advantages
Being able to quickly and cost effectively obtain real-time data from anywhere in the field at any time is now essential for a wireless industrial automation system. Plants are now controlling and evaluating critical processes over wireless networks. The obvious advantage of wireless automation is the immediate savings that can be realized in installation and maintenance-wireless installation typically costs as much as 50 percent less than the wired alternative. Industrial wireless automation isn't just about data acquisition and process control; but it is also about ensuring effective solutions for workforce mobility, equipment monitoring, physical and cyber security, and personnel safety.
For many industrial sites new instrumented automation and monitoring projects have become increasingly difficult to justify in a challenging economy. Much of the return on investment (ROI) for control and instrumentation initiatives has long since been harvested, often making it difficult for projects employing new generation technologies to move forward.
Today's wireless automation networks hold the key to unlocking value in industrial facilities and for enabling a mobile and more efficient workforce. Companies can now utilize industrial wireless systems to optimize productivity and reliability, improve safety and security, and ensure regulatory compliance.
Increasingly, the adoption of industrial wireless automation technologies is changing the economics of operational investments. In some cases, deploying a wireless automation network versus a wired solution can cut instrumentation project costs in half. And in situations where speed-of-deployment and time-to-revenue are critical, wireless is by far the best alternative.
Valuable Applications to Apply Wireless Technology
A growing number of process industries recognize the value of wireless measurement and equipment monitoring, and the way it can serve more reliably in applications where wiring often brings not only added cost, but also high maintenance and unreliability. With a wireless automation approach, plant infrastructure investments reduce immediately, and the ROI can be significant. The appeal of wireless automation technologies for industrial monitoring and control is strong. You can reach equipment whose motion or remoteness makes hard wiring impractical. You can integrate systems in which physical layouts, overstuffed cable trays or expensive trenching mean that wired alternatives add up to more expense than communicating through the air. In general, you can add devices faster than is possible with wires.
An ultra-secure and ultra-reliable wireless network infrastructure supports all types of plant safety, reliability and efficiency requirements. These include:
Equipment health monitoring
preventing premature failure of rotating equipment by monitoring vibration
Alerting
indication when a safety shower is used or when employees enter unsafe environments
Inventory management
monitoring valve position, tank level and other measurements during product movement
Closed-loop measurement
with wireless communications occurring in one second or less , non-critical measurement and control can occur
Wireless SCADA
improve the speed of communication of remote field measurements and span transmission distances of several miles to supervisory control systems
Mobile operator
allowing process control to take place in the field with portable, wireless tablet computers, real-time field observations can be acted upon
Security monitoring
easily improve security with wireless monitoring of gates, motion detection and video surveillance
Environmental compliance
remotely monitor air and water discharge points to prevent excursions and ensure regulatory compliance
Video surveillance
establish perimeter security with remote video cameras
Example of Cost Savings
Industry studies have shown wireless automation technology delivers significant cost savings over the life of a project. Overall, the cost of a wireless solution can be 50% of the cost of a wired installation. In challenging economic times, these savings are an important bottom-line consideration. In addition to delivering significant labor and material cost reductions, deploying wireless automation networks can be done much faster and with lower project management overhead.Plus, wireless automation services minimize dependency on and coordination with subcontractors; change orders are easily and quickly accommodated at a low cost.
Additional User Benefits
End users implementing industrial wireless technology can expect the following benefits:
Today's wireless network applications and wireless sensors deliver powerful new capabilities enabling end users to improve plant performance. Wireless solutions not only provide advanced sensing, but also help users make decisions that positively impacting their overall business objectives.
The benefits of wireless technology go far beyond saving on installation and wiring costs. Wireless automation helps plant operators gather field data more easily, increase asset life through continuous monitoring, and improve the safety of their most important assets-their people.
Conclusion
The latest industrial wireless solutions allow end-users to install a single, high-performance, wireless network for monitoring applications with the flexibility to add more critical applications when and if they are ready. By extending the range and lowering the costs of plant and process network communications, wireless network technology offers a tremendous opportunity to realize significant improvements in overall efficiency.