PLCs for furnace control
May 2008
PLCs, DCSs & Controllers
CHI Control Component’s programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and human machine interfaces (HMIs) are being used in furnace control panels manufactured by Leonard Light Industries for a gold mine in south-east Asia.
Leonard Light Industries are the manufacturers of KEEGOR branded products for fire assay and gold plant furnaces, machinery and requisites. The company supplies a large proportion of the equipment and consumables used in local assay laboratory and smelt-house applications.
Additionally they have equipment operating in Australia, Canada, South America and the United States. Leanord Light technical manager, Bruce Hansmeyer, says, “CHI has been a key supplier to us for many years. The CHI team is very approachable, if we have a problem we can talk to them”. Hansmeyer states that the CHI products have provided them with a platform that has allowed them to provide their customers with increased functionality by utilising PLC and touch screen technology. System faults and trips are logged and stored in memory, which is useful for warranty claims as the system can be interrogated for the details of a particular problem.
The introduction of CHI Control Component’s range of DL06 PLCs and C-more HMI’s has resulted in simplified panel wiring as well as increased safety. The internal interlocking is not easily bypassed ensuring that the process cannot be tampered with. Hansmeyer states that an added benefit is that the intellectual property is protected, as it is all programmed into the PLC by their engineers. Jaysen Loock, Systems Engineer at Leonard Light, enthuses that solid state technology allows them to manage the heating elements in the furnace chamber. Loock states that as silicon carbide elements age their electrical resistance increases and therefore they deliver less power when connected to a fixed supply voltage. The system is now programmed to automatically monitor and increase average voltage based on measured resistance, thereby providing constant power output. Traditionally, 16 step transformers or thyristor control was used to accomplish this – both very expensive options. “Control via PLC is accurate and far more cost effective as the system is programmed to continuously search for the optimum position using pre-programmed algorithms,” says Loock.
CHI Control Component’s range of products is readily available throughout sub-Saharan Africa via a well developed distribution network. The companies 24/7 service centres are manned by highly experienced service engineers capable of supplying technical and product support.
For more information contact Rob Hare, CHI Control Components, +27 (0)11 824 7400, [email protected], www.chicontrol.co.za
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