SpinMES

 Software for Data Control and Integration in Continuing Manufacturing Processes

SpinMES assists in the control of process data and how it ties in with the existing customer data handling systems. Sitting between the plant ERP and control systems (SCADA) in the Pyramid of Control

Once the process is controlled by SpinMES, the data is available to be processed and communicated to provide various reports and analysis, see below for some examples of this:

  • Real-time connection with the company’s ERP software to receive manufacturing orders, formulations, etc.
  • Ability to send results, status reports, raw material consumption etc. making it possible to do everything from calculating the value of assets to automatically updating stocks of raw material, semi-finished and manufactured goods.
  • Real-time connection to laboratory systems so that production and quality data can be stored in a single database.
  • Need for a reliable way of measuring production.
  • Need to relate quality and production data within the concept of traceability.
  • Possibility of providing process data over the Internet so that it can be consulted anywhere or used to centralise information from different production plants in company headquarters.

To achieve these objectives, it is necessary to have a real-time database and specific tools for:

  • Collecting all relevant data continuously or by event (bearing in mind that there are very many different types of plant systems).
  • Supply to all the users (Production and Corporate) the information recorded in the Database, ordered and filtered to suit
  • Uploading and downloading the required data from the ERP.
  • Uploading the pertinent data to the Internet using a web server.

The application has been designed in six modules:

SpinDB – The heart of the system. This is a database in real time that centralises and coordinates data from the ERP system as well as from PLC’s and control units.

Spin DataCollector – The basis for communication with control and supervisory systems. This permits bi-directional communication between a PLC and any type of database.

Spin ERPBridge – The basis of communication with corporate ERP systems. This works in a similar fashion to the Spin DataCollector, but it incorporates a stable link with SAP or Navision.

Spin DataManager – Makes it possible to generate all specific database applications. This is a tool for database management: data maintenance, specific operations, reports, data export and import, etc…

Spin WebBridge – This module allows real-time process data to be viewed in HTML.

Spin ReportingServices

 

SpinMES is a software application with the following characteristics:

  • Based on the latest .NET technology and client-server architecture.
  • Uses OPC and XML technologies.
  • Can be used with most of the control packages (SCADA) on the market, such as: InTouch, RsView, iFIX, WinCC, Citect etc. and also with DCS by Siemens, ABB, Honeywell, Yokogawa and others.
  • Communicates with the most popular controllers on the market: Rockwell, Siemens, Schneider, Honeywell, ABB, etc.

Several of the important functions of SpinMES systems, especially useful for quality and production departments, are related to accessing process logs:

  • Process variables
  • Alarms
  • Events
  • Operations

The fact that it is possible to link these log files with manufacturing batches and that the data is also available for a long period of time (sometimes for years) either for queries or for export to data analysis applications, means that these are very useful tools for process industry.

Very few products available on the market today have all these functions and those that do have, considerable technical and financial hurdles making them inaccessible to the majority of applications.

 

Example System Architecture