“While we are replicating an old machine, we are also having to modernize it to current control and safety standards in an incredibly short time frame. The timeline is so compressed that we only have eight weeks to do what would normally take six months,” explained Earle Roberts, ceo, Foodmach.
In the midst of the pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that severe and mounting disruption to the global supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) – caused by rising demand, panic buying, hoarding and misuse – is putting lives at risk.
To address this, the WHO called on industry and governments to increase manufacturing by 40 percent to meet this rising global demand.
Manufacturers and OEMs around the world stepped up to meet this target. In Australia, the federal government tasked what was then, the only local mask manufacturer Med-Con, to increase production to help meet this demand. However, with only two of their three original 40-years old machines operational, they realized they would urgently need more mask-making machines to make this a reality
Across the globe in Montville, New Jersey, Catbridge Machinery responded to COVID-19 with a turnkey solution that meets immediate needs of material shortages. Currently the company is the only supplier of turnkey meltdown production lines based in North America.
Making materials for masks
Meltdown nonwoven material is a critical component of N95 facial masks, as well as filtration materials. Made from polypropylene, the high-performance material is designed to meet stringent filtration specifications.
“One of our areas of expertise is nonwoven converting, including meltblown production lines,” said Michael Pappas, president, Catbridge Machinery. “Our company quickly set to work to package a solution that could help address material shortages.”
To meet typical filtration material standards, the company packaged a solution with a web width of 1.6 meters. The turnkey production line features both mezzanine and plant-level equipment. It includes extrusion, the meltblown forming system, web handling equipment, all mechanical connections, a controls package and electrical panels.
The meltdown line runs on a Rockwell Automation control platform featuring AllenBradley GuardLogix safety controllers and AllenBradley Kinetix servo drives and motors. The system is integrated on an EtherNet/IP™ network.
“Typically, we have used graphic terminals for our machine HMI,” said Pappas. “But in this case, we chose AllenBradley VersaView industrial PCs and monitors.”
Rugged VersaView products provide more computing power at the source of the application – and more flexibility in what can be accessed and managed from a screen. In this case, the system runs FactoryTalk View Site Edition (SE) HMI software, which meets the demands of multiple stakeholders.
Operators can easily access display screens, alarms and system-wide diagnostics. And maintenance and engineering can quickly develop applications and easily maintain the system.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has been a roller coaster ride for many of us,” said Pappas. “N95 masks are still in short supply, but will become the norm? We simply don’t know. In these uncertain times, machine flexibility is as important as performance.”
Building life-saving mask-making machines
Aided by the Australian Government, Foodmach, an advanced engineering-to-order business based in Victoria, Australia – was given a 60-day deadline to engineer and build the first of seven life-saving mask machines for Med-Con. In order to meet urgent supply demands, Med-Con was targeting production of 60 million face masks by November 2020, with an ongoing annual capacity of 160 million masks.
Earle Roberts, CEO Foodmach, onsite at the plant
Foodmach were able to take the original machine mechanics and modernize them to include the latest control and automation technology from Rockwell Automation. The Allen-Bradley Compact GuardLogix controller is at the heart of the machine, controlling the mask production process.
The Kinetix 5500 Servo Drives integrate seamlessly into the Logix platform for easy configurability, system integration and safety. Together the PLC and servo drives are key to controlling movement within the machine and keeping the accuracy of the machine’s start and stop functions.
These machines are designed to build the highest quality surgical masks with four layers laminated together for superior protection. The Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 525 drives with safe torque-off controls the lamination process while operators can monitor production through the machine’s PanelView graphic terminals.
“We were seeking to build the first machine in eight weeks, but we were able to deliver it ahead of schedule in seven weeks. A key part of that was having suppliers such as Rockwell Automation that hold available stocks of parts in Australia and can also expedite getting components in from overseas if required,” said Earle Roberts.
Australia’s mask manufacturing capacity is secured thanks to the innovative work of an exceptional team of engineers, designers and technicians. These smart machines provide the capacity to increase mask production significantly, helping protect frontline workers and their patients in the fight to stem COVID-19.
Digitalization improves visibility
In addition to addressing supply chain issues from machine and material shortages, another key focus for industry is operation efficiency. Digital transformation provides improved connectivity and visibility, ultimately improving performance and efficiency.
Ecolab is a global leader in water, hygiene and infection-prevention solutions and services. With 130 plants around the globe, Ecolab helps to advance food safety, maintain clean and safe environments, and optimize water and energy usage at nearly 3 million customer sites around the world. However, until recently, those plants lacked coordination and consistency from one to another. As a result, each plant essentially acted as an individual entity.
Now, Ecolab’s global network of plants is on a five-year roadmap to greater connectivity so they can perform better and more consistently, and ultimately better serve customers.
Matt Boudjouk, control and automation program lead at Ecolab was hired to lead the company’s digital transformation.
“My job really is not only to improve the control schemes but also be a conduit of knowledge and share knowledge between the plants,” Boudjouk said. “We’re obviously a good-size company, and if we’re not talking to each other we’re not taking advantage of it.”
The team developed a four-step strategy for digitally transforming Ecolab plants. First is the data-gathering step. This involves putting the right instruments and collecting the right data, all on Ethernet infrastructure. Documentation is key in this stage to make sure data can be identified and analyzed at later stages.
The next step is visibility whereby plants start monitoring operations and dashboards giving operators real-time insights into how their lines are performing. The third step is business optimization. This involves integrating the plant floor with enterprise systems to provide visibility and communications across the plants and the supply chain.
The fourth and final step is digital transformation through the use of analytics, digital twins and artificial intelligence. This can help answer key questions like why some plants perform better than others.
Already today, some plants are at the optimization stage. Standardization efforts combined with greater global visibility have helped the company save 25-30 percent on process design. Getting a better handle on inventory and days-on-hand has also been a big opportunity for improvement.
Ecolab has worked with its vendors to establish training programs, including on-site training labs at some plants, to allow employees to interact with and learn new technologies.
It really boils down to communication and the buy-in of everybody,” Boudjouk said. “If you have the engagement and everyone feels like they have a say, they’re more apt to be engaged and really work together to get that project right. Because they know it makes their life easier.”
