Success Story
Process Optimization Through Clean Machine Data Collection
Helmholz components offers solutions for "Predictive Maintenance" and thus supports worldwide MES system at thyssenkrupp, specialist for drive components.
At the beginning of Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things (IoT) was the idea of intelligent machines and products that communicate with each other via an internet-based data infrastructure and thus manage and optimise themselves quasi independently. In the meantime, the expectations of digitalised production environments have naturally become much more concrete.
This is also shown by the example of the drive unit from thyssenkrupp, a group of companies within the thyssenkrupp Group with over 3,500 employees. The automotive supplier, which specialises in built drive components for combustion, hybrid and electric engines, makes a significant contribution to reducing emissions for sustainable mobility. The product portfolio ranges from assembled camshafts and variable valve train systems to rotor shafts as a core component of electric drives. The company's headquarters are located in Ilsenburg. The group of companies produces state-of-the-art drive train components at ten locations in Germany, Liechtenstein, Hungary, the USA, Brazil, Mexico and China.
New opportunities through digitalisation
Particularly in a group of companies of this size and orientation, advancing digitalisation holds enormous potential, which the project manager at the Ilsenburg site summarises as follows: "Data from the production plants provide the basis for optimising processes and maintenance models, keyword predictive maintenance. In addition, they enable a worldwide comparability of processes and machines in the plants and thus also create greater transparency and more meaningful key figures for management. And last but not least, cooperation between the plants becomes easier."
In order to be able to fully exploit these potentials in the future, thyssenkrupp's drive unit is currently implementing a new MES platform (Manufacturing Execution System). A central element of the solution is a software programmed in-house for machine data acquisition. The data is processed there so that it can then be further processed and used in a higher-level MES software. This model was developed and tested in the pilot plant in Ilsenburg: "We give the concept to the sites," is how the project manager explains the implementation strategy, "this is then rolled out as a standard for the plants worldwide and implemented on site".
These Helmholz Products are in use at Thyssenkrupp
Safe and simple integration of machine networks
In addition to many other complex challenges that such a project naturally poses, there was also a supposedly simple task to be solved: "In order to be able to use the data systematically, it must first be tapped from the machines in an orderly manner," is how an IT expert from the project team at thyssenkrupp, a specialist for drive components, describes the problem. Orderly in this context means: above all, without internal IP address conflicts within the production machine and automated, i.e. without the operational effort and potential sources of error that would result from manual collection.
At the same time, the corporate group - like many manufacturing companies - presents the picture of a historically grown automation infrastructure. The specific requirements of increasing digitalisation often come up against existing systems that are several years old. Components were therefore needed to integrate them into digital network and Industry 4.0 environments both securely and easily - with global availability and at a manageable investment. Those responsible finally found what they were looking for at Helmholz.
In addition, the team praised „the super support and the always quick feedback from Helmholz - even during the test phase“.
Fabian Slowakiewicz, Produktmanager, Helmholz GmbH & Co. KG
Network components from Helmholz
The first point of contact for their extensive market research was the Industrial NAT Gateway WALL IE from Helmholz. In bridge operating mode, it acts as a layer 2 switch. In contrast to normal switches, packet filtering is also possible in this operating mode. With the packet filter, access between the production network and the respective machine or line can be restricted. For example, it can be configured that only certain participants from the production network are allowed to exchange data with defined participants from the automation cell.
Otherwise, the data packet is rejected or discarded.
As an additional special feature, WALL IE can also be used in NAT operating mode. The machine network is regarded as a LAN (Local Area Network), the production or company network as a WAN (Wide Area Network).
WALL IE protects both networks by regulating exactly which subscriber may exchange data with which device. However, this aspect was of secondary importance for the decision, as the entire machine data collection is integrated into a comprehensive cybersecurity concept.
Practical experience and outlook
In the meantime, the first installations in the pilot plant in Ilsenburg have been running for over a year - and "completely smoothly", as the specialists who look after the systems sum up. Other WALLIE gateways from Helmholz are already in use in seven of the ten plants worldwide. These also work "trouble-free and reliably". In addition, the team praises "the super support and the always quick feedback from Helmholz, even during the test phase". And the project team is relieved to note that the worldwide delivery "has always been on time and on schedule".
Machines from all locations of the drive unit are now being successively equipped with Helmholz components. According to current planning, at least 600 WALLIEs will be needed for this. And these numbers may well increase, because: "The integration of PLCs will certainly remain a topic for some years to come - and with it the solutions from Helmholz.
