Control, process models and the layer above
From the interlocks that keep the furnace safe to the models that cut power-off time, supplied as one stack rather than three projects.
Automation is usually bought in slices. A vendor supplies Level 1 with the equipment, someone else adds Level 2 later, and the production system is a separate programme entirely. The seams show up as data that never quite reconciles.
We work across all three levels, so a heat model receives weighing data from equipment we designed, and the production system reads a plant whose control logic we wrote.
Inside the scope
Level 1: direct control
PLC, HMI and SCADA for EAF, LF, VD/VOD, CCM and material handling. Interlocking, sequencing and SIL-assessed safety logic; Siemens, Allen Bradley and ABB platforms.
Level 2: process models
EAF heat model, LF heating model to ±3 °C final temperature accuracy, CCM thermal model and scheduling. Energy optimization targets kWh/t by grade and scrap mix, which cuts power-off time and electrode wear.
Level 3: production management
MES and production management, with interfaces to existing ERP and plant historians.
Predictive maintenance
Furnace transformer diagnostics and harmonic analysis to catch failures before they become unplanned outages, plus drive and motor signal analysis.
Where we have done it
The Electrode Regulation System is digital closed-loop arc control that minimises power-on time and electrode consumption. OT network architecture over Profibus, Profinet, Modbus and OPC-UA, with industrial network segmentation and secure remote access. Alarm and event recording integrated with the production historian for maintenance and process analysis.
Is this the piece you are missing?
Send us the plant, the constraint and the timeline. You will get an engineer's answer, not a brochure.