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David
DeFusco
Phonetics, Inc.
By
protecting its facilities, inventory and other
physical assets, nearly any company in any industry,
even a private homeowner, can reap the benefits
of a remote monitoring system. Whether expressed
in real dollars or the less-tangible peace of
mind, remote monitoring systems help significantly
affect the bottom line.
While individual systems and inclusive features
vary by manufacturer, the basic cost advantages
can be broken down into three key areas: protecting
materials, equipment,and systems; reducing labor
costs and lowering infrastructure expenses.
Protecting
Materials, Equipment and Systems
The applications of remote monitoring systems
demand flexibility, whether to keep a watchful
eye on a home, monitor the ventilation system
for a poultry farm or control critical information
for a large industrial application. The need
for flexibility is why an increasing number
of features continue to be developed throughout
the industry.
Features like alarm notification with multiple
dial-out options, fax, e-mail, alphanumeric
paging and voice, can be the make or break benefit
for decision makers. Newly developed features
like wireless alarm notification, Web-enabled
software, and control programs also enhance
a system's performance.
One company that uses a remote monitoring system
to protect the equipment of others is Systems
Electrical Services Corp. A leading process-control
service provider in Denver, Colo., Systems Electrical
provides electronic monitoring services of critical
laboratory conditions for hospitals, universities
and pharmaceutical companies. To remotely monitor
its customers' demanding applications, Systems
Electrical turned to Sensaphone, a high-performance
monitoring and alarm-autodialing system designed
by Phonetics, Inc., of Aston, Penn.
The Sensaphone family of programmable remote-monitoring
solutions includes features such as autodialing
capabilities, Web-enabling software, wireless
communication, data 
logging and more. The unit is designed to remotely
monitor and report on conditions that include
indoor/outdoor temperatures, humidity, tank
levels, tank temperature, pressure, flow rates,
flooding, HVAC controllers, power failures;
and can be customized to measure other conditions.
Utilizing Sensaphone equipment, Systems Electrical
monitors a medical laboratory's liquid nitrogen
levels in several cryogenic freezers. In some
of the freezers, a sensor monitors the actual
level of the liquid; and in other freezers,
a sensor monitors differential pressure, which
is a direct result of the liquid level.
The system implementation has paid dividends.
"In this laboratory, someone had left the
freezer door open - just a crack - before leaving
on Friday," said Ralph Hopfenberg, president
of Systems Electrical Services. "This could
have been a major disaster, since no one would
have been back in the lab until Monday."
Detecting the change in temperature, Sensaphone,
with its autodialing technology, called up to
48 pre-programmed numbers to alert Systems Electrical's
facility operators and laboratory technicians
to the situation. The system used the laboratory's
ordinary phone lines to deliver personalized,
digital voice messages. Reaction time was swift.
"As soon as the temperature reached the
5° Fahrenheit alarm point, the system immediately
dialed out to the pre-programmed numbers; the
drugs being tested were saved. This one incident
saved that lab $20-30,000," Hopfenberg
estimates.
Reducing
Labor Costs
More and more companies are turning away from
high-maintenance monitoring systems that require
off-site visits to monitor critical functions
first-hand. Gone too is the need to hire employees
to manually monitor systems from a centralized
location on a 24-hour basis. Instead, remote
systems featuring control programming and wireless
autodialing capabilities help free valuable
manpower hours.
 Such
staffing issues were among the main reasons
that PAS Technologies of San Juan, Puerto Rico
recommended a Web-enabled remote monitoring
system to the Puerto Rico Water Company. Phonetics'
Sensaphone SCADA 3000 advanced remote monitoring
system replaced the water company's 70+ existing
remote terminal units (RTU). The SCADA 3000
features a 32-bit software program and critical
built-in amenities, including real-time screen
building, program editors, alarm functions and
a communications manager. It can automatically
build a Web page reporting on all critical functions
that can be viewed over the Internet at any
time from anywhere in the world. Before installing
the SCADA 3000 system, each of the water company's
RTUs was placed at highly visible distribution
tanks throughout the San Juan metropolitan area,
requiring frequent on-site inspections. Once
operable, the powerful new remote monitoring
system saved the water company thousands of
dollars in annual maintenance and manpower costs.
"The Sensaphone SCADA 3000 solved a number
of problems for us and the water company,"
said Alfredo Agelviz, general manager of PAS
Technologies, a SCADA 3000 distributor in Puerto
Rico. "First, the original RTUs came in
many different parts and were located in numerous
places; now, we're able to remotely monitor
different devices, all from one comprehensive
control unit, without the increased time and
expense of maintaining a central station. Second,
the installation of the Sensaphone SCADA system
was not complicated and did not require special
mounting. It was very compact and integrated
into only one package, so we were able to quickly
provide our customer with a reliable solution."
Lowering
Infrastructure Expenses
The introduction of wireless capabilities through
radio telemetry has altered the monitoring and
control industry forever. Wireless technology
frees users from the costly and disruptive installation
of an infrastructure system, particularly telephone
lines.
For example, a municipality may require intelligent
control and monitoring at multiple wells and
pumping stations within a radius of several
miles. The control logic at one location may
depend on level or flow conditions at facilities
several miles away. Using wireless radio telemetry
at each location and a host computer, the municipality
can centralize the control and monitoring process
to achieve the desired goals.
A telephone line connected to the host computer
provides alarm dial-out capability. In addition,
the host computer can be configured to produce
Web pages that display the status of each unit.
By simply checking a few Web pages, plant managers
can get current status of each location and
be assured that everything is operating correctly.
The combined effect is less infrastructure-related
costs.
Another example is the use of the SCADA 3000
by Architectural and Community Planning, Inc.,
of Ontario, Canada, which utilized the system
in its Eco-Nomad, a portable utilities infrastructure
that integrates water treatment, septic and
power systems.
This "infrastructure in a box" can
attach to any residential or industrial edifice,
an important feature for communities in hard-to-reach
locations. Within an 8 by 8 by 20 foot container,
it provides potable water storage and purification,
biological wastewater treatment, water and space
heating and electricity. Plus, it combines already
proven technologies, such as a co-generator,
which produces heat and power simultaneously.
The SCADA 3000 automatically logs and monitors
the tank level, temperature and flow rate for
the septic and potable water tanks of the Eco-Nomad,
as well as the outside temperature, biofilter
temperature, and engine run signal. In the event
of water overflow, power failure or fire, the
system issues a security alarm with dial-out
capabilities that immediately alerts emergency
personnel via phone, fax, pager and e-mail from
anywhere, at any time.
The SCADA 3000 system's flexibility, with its
16 universal inputs and eight relay outlets
and ability to expand up to 144 input/output
(I/O) points simply by adding expansion modules,
made it the only choice for Udo Staschik, president
of Architectural and Community Planning, Inc.
"What the Sensaphone SCADA 3000 really
offers is the peace of mind that comes from
being able to verify your facility's safety
and efficiency without having to move from your
office desk," Staschik explained.
Whatever the application, wherever you plan
to use it, keep in mind the value of a remote
monitoring system to your company's bottom line
and your peace of mind.
David
DeFusco is Engineering Manager for Phonetics,
Inc., Aston, Penn. David has been involved in
the design of monitoring and control systems
for more than 12 years.
Contact
David DeFusco with Phonetics at ddefusco@sensaphone.com
or www.sensaphone.com
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