The small but powerful semiconductors in our smartphones and other devices can take several weeks and hundreds of steps to manufacture. During production, cleaning solvents play a crucial role in maintaining a high level of purity in these small and delicate microelectronics.
DuPont’s small-batch production facility in Hayward, California, makes semiconductor cleaning solvents in dozens of varieties. Unfortunately, the batch control systems used in the plant started showing their age in recent years.
The systems no longer were supported. They also were creating production issues, such as pop-up alerts that frustrated operators and alarms that were difficult to manage. More importantly, a customer audit found the systems lacked recipe-based automation that could help improve quality control in the production process.
The plant faced a choice: replace the legacy batch control systems, or stay with the status quo and lose thousands of dollars in monthly business. The plant moved forward with the upgrade. In doing so, it not only improved quality control but also helped raise plant throughput to create new monthly sales.
Limitations of Existing Systems
Most of the legacy control systems at the Hayward plant were manually operated. Only the bulk addition of material from a storage tank to a blend tank was automated.
Operators manually added all other materials using a drum-pumping station and solids-conveying station. Operators also set the timing for the materials to blend and circulate through filters, and took product samples. Once the desired product was achieved, operators manually sent it to the filling systems in the packaging area. Here, workers dispensed product into packages that ranged from 1- and 5-gallon containers to 200-gallon totes.
