SPANGLER Automation has developed a software system for the more efficient use of machine data for a supplier to the automotive industry. The company produces pressed parts for bodywork construction, in a plant in Hungary amongst other places. The aim was to balance out production figures which were in some cases widely divergent. “To this end, we programmed a software system in accordance with the customer’s requirements, which communicates with the SAP world,” reports the Head of Process Automation at SPANGLER, Thomas Zenk. “Our system receives an order from SAP, communicates the production data such as press strokes and times required for this on the individual machines and feeds the order distribution back to SAP.”

Through this cross-shift and cross-location data collection , Thomas Zenk and his team have made their work transparent and thus optimised the utilisation of the entire plant’s capacity. As soon as large discrepancies are visible and the system detects errors, the shift supervisor is informed immediately by e-mail or text message . If all the company’s sites are integrated, decisions on process optimisation can also be made at the headquarters on the basis of this data.

Targeted use of new findings
SPANGLER has implemented the requirements through VB.net programming with the visualisation on the respective machine, via 15 inch Phoenix touch panels.  The new development was created in close coordination with the customer. “On the basis of a specification sheet, we have shared views on all the additional functions that appear sensible and feasible in view of our experiences,” reports Thomas Zenk.  In this way, a system was created, “with which SPANGLER has made a decisive step towards automated production control and thus towards Industry 4.0″.

In the past year, the city of Frankfurt has added a treatment plant for sewage sand to one of its waste water treatment plants in the Niederrad district. SPANGLER Automation designed and installed the switchgears for this, as well as the lighting and monitoring system. The new plant was put into operation at the end of 2014.

The task of the treatment plant is to process the mass of the sewage sand provided and to put the purified sand back into the cycle of resources as a recycling mass. To this end, sand and other coarse substances or impurities are separated from one another in a variety of washing processes. The whole system is designed in two lines, which can be operated independently from one another.

Remote transmission by copper wire

The SPANGLER switchgears control the two lines for the delivery of the sewage sand, as well as the pump station, which transports around 70 m3 of wash water per hour for the plant. Two Siemens S7-315-2DP CPUs are used as automation hardware; visualisation takes place for each line via a 22 inch comfort panel TP 2200. A striking example of the high customer focus of SPANGLER is the connection to an existing control system: “A Phoenix SHDSL modem changes the frequency of the signals, allowing distances of up to 20 kilometres to be bridged via existing copper wires,” explains project manager Daniel Götz.

SPANGLER’s many years of experience with such requirements also stood it in good stead for the design and realisation of explosion-proof lighting. The explosion-proof light fittings ensure that it is not dark in the 90 squaremetres hall, even in the event of a gas alarm.

In a record period of seven months (May to December 2014), SPANGLER achieved the automation of a new biogas plant in Dessau – from detailed engineering to SPS programming, control system creation, production, complete installation and finally commissioning. In addition to the planning and project development of twelve switchgears, the scope of services included the construction of cable lines, as well as the laying of 22 kilometres of cables for measurement data and for power supply.

The core of the automation is the software that is customised for the production of biogas. For process monitoring, SPANGLER used the Siemens WinCC control system , which visualises the operation of the entire plant. A special detail: in addition to the conventional computer, the plant can also be controlled via WLAN with the help of a tablet PC.

Energy for 1,300 households

The biogas plant made by UTS processes around 60000 tonnes maize, grass silage, sugar beets and chicken litterper year. The produced methane is mainly fed into the natural gas grid (700 Nm³/h bio methane through gas water washers) and a smaller part is converted to electrical power and thermal energy on site (550 kW el via a block-type thermal power station).

The ambitious schedule has spurred the project team on to outstanding achievements. “Not least due to our dedication was our customer once again able to finish the project well within the ambitious schedule,” the Sales Manager at SPANGLER, Franz Achhammer, looks back at the project. He and the team were then all the more delighted to receive a letter from their client UTS: “this is a great success for the entire project team, including the subcontractors. Thank you for your tireless efforts.”

Whether it is the wishes of the customers or the welfare of the employees – people are always at the focus for Hannelore Spangler. The Managing Director of SPANGLER Automation has received a lot of recognition for, on this basis, successfully positioning the family company on the international stage, constantly opening up new market opportunities, and promoting new technologies: on 10th November 2014, Franz Josef Pschierer, Secretary of State in the Bavarian Ministry of Economics, awarded her the State Medal for Special Services to the Bavarian Economy.

The success story of SPANGLER Automation is irrevocably linked to the pronounced team spirit in the company and is based on the principle of collective strength: “We are a family company, and our employees are members of the company family.” Very much in the spirit of Hannelore Spangler, collective strength is followed by collective glory. In a ceremony, she thanked all the employees for what they had achieved and presented each of them with their own, freshly baked state medal made from gingerbread.

Since the start of March, the website of SPANGLER Automation has had a new design and new contents. The most important are: under the heading “Projects”, the company presents reports from every sector whose solutions and processes are typical of its approach. New content in the “Careers” section: the points “SPANGLER fitness programme” and “Location” have been supplemented by additional information and details for everyone who would like to visit SPANGLER or work there. And all the press releases, newsletters and other news are brought together under the heading “News”.

The graphic design of all this is such that even users of mobile devices have no need to compromise: the proportions are always the same, the image and text fields are always easily recognisable and legible on a smartphone. On the other hand, the following is preserved: the clear structure, the generous image formats and the clear text passages. Details under en.spangler-automation.de