Drives & Motion

In today's highly automated plants Motion Controls and Drives form a substantial part of the control and automation systems.
ies ’s Engineers can reference a large number of drive & motion applications including:
-Multi Axis Motion Control.
-Open & Closed Loop Vector Control.
-Closed Loop Servo Control.
-Electronic Gearboxes & Synchronisation.
-AC & DC Drives & Soft Starts.
-Intelligent MCCs & Networks.

Whether conveying, packing, stacking, lifting, rotating or positioning, on dry land or at sea, IES Lean Systems Ltd. can help.

Examples in Drives & Motion

Electric Winch

The system combines the complex electrical controls and safety interlocks required to deploy and retrieve an ROV. The application uses electric winches instead of the traditional hydraulic units and runs the motors in different modes throughout the operation. The winch drive systems are configured as master/slave and communicate via a fibre optic to maintain the correct torque and speed. Operators control the system by an on-deck pendant or alternatively from one of two on-board control rooms, with man/machine interface provided by screen and joystick control. Heave compensation keeps the ROV stationary in the vertical axis as the ship rolls up and down on the sea. Tension control ensures that the rope umbilical is always pulling with a pre-set tension so there’s no slack on the drum and conversely, that the rope is not over-stressed going out. Dwell control deploys it evenly in consecutive layers on the drum. 

Roofing Tile Manufacture 

We have implemented many projects in Roofing Tile Circuits both within the EU and around the World. The systems supplied include the control of mixing plant where the dry and liquid components for the particular grade of tile are brought together. The tiles are varied in accordance with specific recipes driven from the ies supervision system. In particular, the moisture control is critical as the moisture content of the sand varies considerably. The system supplied facilitates complete auto-mixing without operator intervention. IES Lean Systems Ltd. systems control the extrusion, moulding & cutting of the green material. The system moves the green tiles into the Racker then into the Kilns and on to the Stackers. The system then collates the baked tiles alletisation. The system integrates PLCs, drive systems, servo controls and multi axis control. The individual platforms are networked together and provide operator and management interfaces via ies ’s SCADA. IES Lean Systems Ltd. contracts were turn-key and as well as the control systems include the panels and electrical controls for the plants.

Steel Can Manufacture

In this project we were responsible for the complete upgrade of the control systems for a steel can manufacturing line. The scope included design and manufacture of a replacement control system for the Littell machine. The original controls on the Littell Scroll Sheeting line were obsolete and therefore spares were very difficult to find. The project involved replacing the original control system with a new one which has the same control philosophy but improved operator controls. The original MCC cubicle was replaced with a Form 2 ‘wardrobe style’ main control panel with power distribution system feeding DOL motor starters and variable speed drives. Within the new panel is central a PLC with digital and analogue I/O. Remote I/O was used to connect the various plant devices locally to the central PLC via a DeviceNet communications architecture. The original operator console was replaced with a new one containing a colour touch screen HMI unit & pushbutton / indicator lamps. Part of the original Classifier system consists of a separate PLC and operator controls, these were incorporated in the new PLC and replaced the operator mimic with additional screens on the new HMI. The variable speed drive motors and most of the plant devices were also replaced.
The controls covered the unrolling of the steel coils, the steel inspection, the Shear and the conveying and stacking operations.
On other projects ies have taken responsibility for can forming, washing, coating printing controls, drying and palletising.
ies ’s experience includes both food cans and aerosols and in the latter case also included controlling the flanging and dome forming.

Train Wash Control

 IES Lean Systems Ltd. have supplied many Train Wash Plant Control Systems, including Cab End Washers. This system utilised a Local Area Network communicating between intelligent modules enabling control to be distributed between the various functions of the plant. This approach reduced initial costs by eliminating large conventional control panels and simplified installation. It further reduces the cost of ownership by providing increased levels of data about plant operations along with diagnosing plant and system malfunctions. Under automatic control, track switches detect the train's approach and the processor unit controls the brush drives, detergent rinse and final rinse pumps. In End Washers the processor contains the cab profile information. Intelligence within the Master station enables the Control System to be interrogated remotely, reducing the need for specialist staff to visit site. Similarly the unit can alert staff by mobile phone or pager to malfunctions and potential problems.
The system can be integrated with other functions such as speed indication and sensing, AVI (automatic vehicle identification) and driver information systems. Power system management ensures the various parts of the plant can be isolated locally to facilitate maintenance in addition to isolating the plant as a whole.