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| The intelligent production pallet Pave IT  In close cooperation, PERI and R & W have developed a technology for quality control in the concrete block industry. For this new technology, PERI Pave production pallets are uniquely identifiable through integrated RFID chips, which means production data and quality characteristics of the concrete products manufactured can therefore be specifically assigned to the respective pallet. The combination with a database allows continuous tracking of all information to take place so that long-term quality management is possible. The Lemminkainen Group in Tampere, Finland, recently already equipped a second production facility with the PERI Pave IT technology.The production pallet is the only element that passes through every station of the manufacturing facility – from the concrete block machine to the packaging unit. PERI took advantage of this to develop a system for quality control at the concrete block plant. In collaboration with R & W Industry Automation – a company that has been involved for many years with systems for height measurement and control systems in the concrete block industry – a technology was developed for ensuring a transparent and thorough quality management process. Basis of the technology is an RFID chip in the production pallet which allows the pallet to be clearly identified as it makes its way through the manufacturing process. As the production pallets and therefore the concrete products being carried can now be provided with information such as the production date or other quality features, this means that continuous quality monitoring is possible. The technology thus allows a complete flow of information from the wet to the dry side along with quick detection of quality differences. At the same time, cycle times and service intervals of the production pallets can be documented. At the Lemminkainen concrete block plant, all quality-related data was previously recorded manually. As a result, the plant management very often received the documentation after some considerable delay – frequently only after the products had already been delivered. In order to speed up the process as well as being able to intervene earlier whereby ensuring the number of complaints is reduced, a traceable quality monitoring system should be integrated into the production. During bauma 2010, the Lemminkainen management became aware of the new PERI Pave IT technology which was presented there for the first time. After some discussion and testing at the plant, the first system was installed in Orimattila – north of Helsinki – in 2011, complete with production pallets and required equipment as well as systemrelated software. Recently, PERI equipped a further manufacturing facility of the company in Tampere with the new system. For the application of the technology, PERI Pave production pallets are equipped with an RFID chip. For new pallets, this is done directly during manufacture whilst the RFID chips can also be easily retrofitted into existing pallets. Installation of the compact chips then follows the same principle as when repairing damaged pallets: a small circular-shaped recess is formed on the surface by means of a router; after inserting the RFID chip, the opening is resealed with a PERI Pave platelet. The RFID chips are positioned in the middle of the production pallet so that the direction of movement during the production cycle is of no importance. In addition, the use of the RFID technology is not affected when the pallets are turned over. Thus, the "intelligent production pallet" can be clearly identified. Together with a database that stores quality-related data and also the respective RFID chip identification, each information can therefore be clearly related to the production pallet. The combination with a quality measurement system – for example, measuring the height of the paving block – allows continuous quality management to be carried out as all relevant data is available and traceable at any time for each and every layer of blocks right through to the packaging process. For reading out the information, a read head is required. The reading system necessitates furthermore an evaluation unit, which is connected to the PLC data via Profibus. As soon as a production pallet which has been fitted with an RFID chip passes this point, the number of the chip is read. After this, the PLC can enter the pallet-related data into the database or retrieve information from the database. The data evaluation software has been developed by R & W Industrial Automation. In Tampere, an SHV500 block height measuring system was integrated into the production cycle which allows non-contact measurement of the products by means of laser distance measurement sensors. In addition, two reading systems were integrated into the production cycle – the minimum requirements for continuous quality monitoring. One reading system is located on the wet side, in the area behind the block height measuring system, the other on the dry side behind the lowerator. write your comments about the article :: © 2012 Construction News :: home page |