Midroc Automation were responsible for connecting the systems involved to the overall process equipment. Midroc and the energy company Stockholm Exergi are long time users and have years of experience of ABB Ability™ System 800xA and in this project they choose to use the latest system version, 800xA 6.1.
The facility uses the latest I/O-technology from ABB, S800 I/O on Ethernet and and is thus one of the first facilities in Sweden to use this technology from ABB!
S800 on Ethernet, see below for more information.
S800 on Ethernet, a new I/O concept that works beyond expectations
We asked Mikael Tullgren, Lead-Engineer at Midroc, why they choose to use S800 I/O on Ethernet:
"At first I was very skeptical about using a technology that was new to me, even though I received positive feedback from industry colleagues who used Profinet. But I am actually very impressed with ABB's solution, it has worked really well."
For example, it is so simple to add I/O nodes, and it is only in the software that we need to do it, Mikael continues. After testing S800 I/O on Ethernet, I could probably imagine testing on Select I/O in the next step. I have now really begun to understand the benefits and the use of Select I/O now when working with the S800 I/O on Ethernet. – Imaging that with Select I/O it can be so easy to change places on I/O cards in the cabinets instead of having to switch everything, says Mikael Tullgren and you can hear that he is positively surprised.
Simple, flexible and saves time
In answer to our question if there are any additional benefits, Mikael answers:
"- Yes, it has been the flexibility to be able to take any ethernet cable and test the loop, and I can use my laptop with built-in ethernet port.
In general, it is difficult to suggest something to the customer that I have not tried before. With the knowledge I have now, I will definitely be the first to propose an I/O solution based on Profinet/ Ethernet in future projects”.
"Profinet/Ethernet is so much easier to deal with, and we were a little worried about the stability of the network at first but it has been incredibly stable despite the amount of I/O-nodes. No performance problems at all", Mikael concludes.
Bulk Data Manager 2.0 makes it easy to "bulk in" both hardware and software
We also talked to Thomas Andersson, automation engineer at Midroc about his experience with Bulk Data Manager 2.0 (BDM 2.0), the new bulk data tool for 800xA 6.1.
Thomas replies “I am pleasantly surprised! You need virtually no prior knowledge. If you know Excel, you can do this too. I could go "backwards" and set up some I/O, export and then see how it was designed and then set up the rest. Very fast and easy to understand.”
Thomas continues: - “This is great, I do not have to script myself! With the old BDM-tool you had to understand how to set up the templates, now there are ready-made templates and they worked very easy and smoothly. The tool was incredibly helpful for bulk in both hardware and software”.
After interviewing both engineers, we feel satisfied with a well performed joint project where the biggest benefit is that, by combining all the technical solutions in the project you can build a fully automated facility. For example, with the help of the optical identification, it will be possible to sort plastic out of household waste and separate it so that it goes to material recycling instead of incineration.
Technologists and skilled engineers have taken us one step closer to a circular economy. Brista will be a state-of-the-art facility, and with the latest technology you will recycle what you can and should and then convert the residual waste into heat and electricity. The new waste sorting facility in Brista is now in full operation and will contribute to increased sustainability by a reduction in resource use and less climate impact.
Want to know more about Midroc's and ABB's delivery?
Midroc, contact: Oscar Carlsson
ABB, contact: Jacob Händestam
Read more about the project:
Facts about S800 on Ethernet:
The advantage of connecting I/O via an Ethernet network is that you get higher performance (higher bandwidth) and can transfer data faster and in larger quantities. By using this new communication technology, you get increased flexibility together with ABB's newly developed xStream Engineering methodology. ABB's xStream Engineering makes it possible to connect different I/O cards to different controllers, which in turn makes it possible to reduce time for reconfigurations during commissioning. With traditional technology connections must be moved manually, with the xStream Engineering concept the switching is done via software instead, which saves both time and costs during commissioning.
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