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| Tailor-made solutions with standard industrial computers | | Standard-IPC Consistently Automated | Machine manufacturers have to face high pressure of costs and at the same time make themselves distinguishable from competitors. Therefore they need automation solutions which are tailored exactly to their applications. An industrial PC must therefore enable not only an individual hardware equipment but also a customized front design right up to turnkey installed and tested complete system with a function guarantee and low maintenance effort.
Printed mass documents such as statements of account, insurance policies and phone bills but also plastic cards with personalized letters must be processed reliably, quickly and economically and sent to the right addresses. To ensure this, Böwe Systec AG, with its headquarters in Augsburg, develops and produces solutions for high-performance enveloping systems and card dispatch systems as well as software for greater efficiency, transparency and safety in the printing and dispatch center. For this the company requires a very flexible, globally equipped system supplier with robust industrial PC platforms who also implements the corporate design specifications. The IPC Customization Center implements tailor-made systems based on the proven Simatic industrial PC and also offers individual maintenance and logistics services. The used PCs serve as control computers and data collectors for processing and archiving the machine and document data such as receipts for input and output of all processing stations of the machine (Mail Piece Tracking). An integrated time stamp provides continuous proof to the customer that the envelopes have been processed.
From high standard ...
Böwe Systec has been using the industrially compatible standard PCs of the Simatic PC family for many years due to its high quality and reliability. These are resistant to vibration and shock in operation which may occur for example when a forklift truck sets down a heavy pallet with paper directly next to the machine. The PC is also protected by a special dust filter against fine paper dust produced when cutting or folding. Increased fan speeds or temperatures in the housing, caused by a dirty dust filter, are detected by integrated diagnostic and monitoring functions early on and reported. These system messages can be sent to the service personnel by e-mail or SMS using the diagnostic and message Simatic PC DiagMonitor. In this way the Simatic PCs achieve a high system availability, effectively avoid potential failure risks and minimize downtimes. But despite the many configuration and ordering possibilities of the standard PCs, not all customer requirements can be covered 100 percent. For example the desire for a control computer in Böwe Systec design or a rating plate which is also accessible in the installed state.
... to individual solution
The long partnership with Siemens and the positive experience in the fields of development and purchasing prompted the machine manufacturer to also cooperate with Siemens in the area of customized industrial PC solutions. A special front layout for the control computer has been jointly designed and implemented in 19-inch rack PC format in a first step. The advantage of this special solution which perfectly matches the Böwe Systec design of the machine is the integration of the rating plate and a Böwe Systec customer reference number in the front door of the control computer. This makes information about the hardware configuration or the software version (Image) easily accessible and quickly available in the installed state.
Böwe Systec therefore gets an immediately usable computer with a high performance enabling up to 22,000 envelopes per hour to be processed. The permanent machine monitoring and immediate visualization of faults ensure a trouble-free process. The availability of spare parts for the Simatic PC for at least three years also ensures a long life cycle of the automation solution without adaptations to the application being necessary. For OEMs who market their machines according to the owner model, this is an important lever in the cost spiral.
A Customized-Industrial-PC in an enveloping system is considered the optimum solution today with regard to the price-performance ratio. Thanks to the tailor-made PC equipment which only contains what the solution really needs, Böwe Systec can sell its systems to customers at competitive prices. The customer orientation and the extensive system know-how of the Customization Center guarantee the user an individual, optimized solution based on proven standard industrial PCs.
Simatic PC Customization Center for tailor-made solutions
The IPC-Customization Center adapts the standard hardware exactly to the customers' individual needs. From simple changes in design such as customized company logos or color design of the housing to changes in configuration of the PC such as the installation of specified hardware or optimization of the computer configuration. Modifications of the RAM structure, the hard disk capacity and installations of Flash Disk or additional modules such as network cards etc. can also be made. The system availability of the industrial PC can also be further increased by integration of RAID systems or uninterruptible power supplies. But adaptations of the driver operating systems or individual image fillings are also implemented.
With the aid of additional services such as certifications, system tests or worldwide support, the trouble-free operation in the machine/system is ensured and the user is given round the clock support. In addition, a tempestation (temporary emanation and spurious transmission) ensures the secure processing of highly sensitive data, e.g. from development and research areas. And finally, the proper and long-term delivery to the customer is guaranteed by individual logistic services, e.g. availability guarantees for hardware and software and requirement-based packing and delivery. |  |
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