Based on process planning workflow to help you to save instrument maintenance costs

On August 19, 2021|The calibration

A single maintenance activities of work order to instrument the situation of the technical personnel is common.After completing the task, the technical personnel returns instrument room fill in documents and records as a result, and then assign the next task.Based on the maintenance plan, to assign multiple tasks and work orders to technicians.This method reduced the amount of time between instrument room, instrument maintenance cost can be reduced by 40% or more.

As the raw material price fluctuations, in all walks of life faces to meet the challenges of The Times and profit margins.In fact, all of cost control in the industry is one of several ways to streamline and efficient.

Cost control is one of the best ways to understand the process of waste.

From the perspective of instruments and meters, that means lots of fine-tuning, ensure the temperature and pressure just meet the high quality production and efficient use of input.

Calibration device can improve the optimization and quality - applies to other industry, chemical industry, nuclear power, pharmacy or pulp and paper.

Process manufacturing plants require hundreds, even thousands of advanced equipment continuously, accurate and reliable to perform numerous key operations.And these in turn require regular inspection, testing equipment, calibration and maintenance.

Hundreds of years of industry experience for the above has been approved by inspection, testing, calibration and maintenance records to discuss the details of value.This is not just the best practices of the industry, business and government often require very clear and detailed records, to ensure that customers get the full value, to protect citizens' health and safety.

However, the traditional test, calibration and archiving practice also USES labor intensive way, plus a talent shortage, after downsizing team sometimes choose to delay calibration on a regular basis.

New industry survey showed that the smaller the team can be executed with a lower overall cost reasonable equipment calibration and documented, increase productivity and reliability.

Often in the position of the equipment (calibration) or in the instrument workshop for calibration.

The vast majority of field instruments are consists of two parts: the basic element and transmitter.

The basic componentsIncluding flow tube, orifice plate, pressure sensors, such as pH, ORP wet chemical sensors and conductance sensor, all types of liquid level meter, temperature sensor and so on.The basic components通常生成信号——通常是电压、电流或电阻——与其测量的变量成比例，例如液位、流量、温度、压力或化学过程。基本元件连接至现场变送器的输入。
The transmitterIncluding pressure, temperature and flow equipment.They are the basic element of the generated signal processing, characterizing the first in a linear format, then apply engineering unit coefficient, finally to simulate (usually 4-20 mA dc) or digital format (usually some various types of fieldbus) sent.

Data to supportManufacturing field instruments, the basic element and transmitter (or actuator, if it is control valve) are the factory calibration, the calibration information with the devices.This part of the calibration data is usually lost.Equipment in use, the information input to the concentration of the calibration records should be a standard part of the job, not just for the sake of efficiency.Save the calibration data to ensure even team changes, knowledge information is retained in the factory.

Analog devices

Simulation equipment - often referred to as "4 to 20 mA loop equipment -" because they send "simulation" signal measured quantities (e.g., temperature) signal.They send with current is proportional to the magnitude of measured quantities (simulation), 4 mA current on behalf of the minimum value, 20 mA, represent the largest proportion values.

Although now many system has adopted digital way, in some respects but analog devices are still widely used in the field of manufacturing process.

Digital devices

Digital devices will be converted to a digital signal measured quantities.Using many different methods of digital coding in process industry, including Foundation Fieldbus, Profibus and HART.

A common view is fieldbus (number) field device does not require calibration.This view is wrong.Although Fieldbus signal (Foundation, Profibus Fieldbus or connection HART) provides diagnostic information, but does not provide equipment accuracy of relevant information, nor confirm equipment is accurate, precise reporting process.

Control valve

Control valve with actuator, the actuator calibration also needs to adjust the wear and tear, to seal the valve to prevent leakage and the effect of viscous effects.If these control valve has not yet started, on a regular basis is often required to be part of the test, to ensure the reliable work.

Licensing and paperwork

From licensed to document record and fill in the results, the administrative task will increase to meet the need of even field calibration cost and time.As Industrial Automation Networks FF (Fieldbus Foundation) before the user group chairman Ian Verhappen puts it: "in many cases, in order to obtain all the necessary paperwork (license, isolation, etc.) the time it takes usually longer than the work itself."

The calibration documentation challenges

To document a calibration means in the log write a date and time, reading before calibration, after reading other observation as well as the technical personnel adjustment.Not surprisingly, many factories still continue with handwritten way to archive the calibration.However, pen and paper records exist many defects.

First of all, will produce and the continuation of error.Written records of the data is often difficult to identify or insufficient information.For the use of computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) facilities, must consider to manually enter handwritten data required extra time, as well as the possible errors.

Changing work object

Maintain calibration plan is another challenge work object is changing.

The 1980 s saw the emergence of budget cuts and layoffs.Engineering, maintenance and operating personnel to sharply reduce, the new "lean manufacturing" management idea began to take root and continues today, especially in the developed countries.

Smaller teams instruction and on-the-job training for less time, equipment and special knowledge of the system, therefore, cannot successfully passed from individual institutions.As the older operators and engineers have retired, they also took equipment and system knowledge.

"Every day at four o 'clock in the afternoon, the knowledge of the factory the walking dictionary are out of the door, and sometimes some of them never come back", is located in the Midwest of the instruments and control of a large oil refinery, chief engineer said.

At the same time, many of the facilities on a field calibration still need two engineers, one transmitter and one is responsible for the control system.Debugging of FF Fieldbus Foundation), is expected to take two technicians to work at least two hours.

How to carry on the calibration and archive more efficiently?

Using the multi-function document calibrator

A new generation of "smaller" field calibration tools will be integrated with a variety of tools, the function is not limited to the basic test and measurement, also provide auxiliary analysis and archiving function, greatly enhance the productivity of the workers.

Multi-function calibrator "documented process" is a hand-held electronic test tools, with a variety of calibration procedures and functions at a suit, output, simulation and measurement of pressure, temperature and various kinds of electrical and electronic signals.

Advantages:

Engineers need to acquire and carry less to the scene of the tool.
Relative to different from each tool and equipment in the process of collecting data, a variety of similar equipment calibration process and data output
Automated steps replaced many manual calibration
Don't need the second engineer is responsible for recording the scene equipment state changes before and after adjustment
Each device calibration time shorter
Calculate the error of single equipment, rather than the error of the multiple tools together

Using the calibration plan

The biggest save point of use document calibrator is the device integrates the plan management tools.All calibration using a set of permission and written document greatly reduces the cost.

The asset management, calibration or computerized maintenance management system (CMMS)

Different from paper documents, document data calibrator is never hard to identify, ambiguous or incomplete information.The data can be directly downloaded to a variety of CMMS system, without copying or fill in.

Because documented process calibrator automatically record each field device adjustment before and after the state, a technician to operation, compared with the traditional manual single equipment calibration method, based on the plan document calibrator can save up to 50% of the time and cost.Change in other words, is also a lean team at a given time period can be completed more than two times of calibration.

In the traditional work required to operate a lean team will inevitably lead to failure.Calibration is not as expected.Don't ignore an imminent threat, studies how to carry on the practice of the existing more efficient is low.Implement calibration based on plans, paperless archive and CMMS data management, and can be executed more calibration, more consistent information will also be transmitted from individual to the whole team, and even the entire organization, productivity and quality will be greatly increased.

Compared with a calibration one instrument, according to the plan order calibration instrument to reduce the cost of each calibration.

In addition to save maintenance costs, legal costs and benefits due to an accident loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in savings may be over.Good calibration maintenance practices to help reduce the probability of the event.If disaster strikes, good calibration records can be plant in legal events as part of the defense evidence, again, in a very bad record will make unit adverse legal status.