Integrating energy data with a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) is the ideal way for paper manufacturers to bring transparency to consumption right down to the production process level. SAP Gold Partner T.CON knows the industry for 25 years and integrates IRES data to generate a detailed consumption profile for scheduled orders. This opens up a range of possibilities for improvements. Which ones are they?
By Christian Jung, Sales Account Executive at T.CON
In the dynamic landscape of the paper industry, where innovation meets tradition, the quest for sustainable practices has become more crucial than ever. As managers at the forefront of energy-intensive paper production, the imperative to embrace effective energy management cannot be overstated. Beyond its environmental implications, the strategic implementation of robust energy management systems holds the key to optimizing operational costs, enhancing resource efficiency, and ensuring long-term competitiveness. But how to cope with the energy-intensiveness and achieve sustainable and cost-effective production method?
In this article, we delve into the pivotal role of energy data in the paper industry, introducing measures that help to not fall and instead create transparency in this and other production-related regards with state-of-the art software solutions.
A survey of 2000 companies conducted by the International Energy Agency recently found that 97 percent of manufacturing companies are planning to invest or have already invested in energy efficiency measures. Indeed, 89% are planning to increase their investments in energy efficiency over the next five years. To maximize payback on such investments, it is usually most efficient to focus on production. While energy management has been defined by the VDI 5600 standard as one of the core tasks of an MES since 2016, and on paper almost all products support energy management as per ISO 50001, this often means nothing more than a way for the user to manually enter energy meter readings into a form field. Meanwhile, a number of software vendors have established themselves on the market with dedicated energy management systems that operate independently from an MES.
Enriching the EMS with MES data
An energy management system (EMS) measures consumption continuously and offers analysis options. Most enterprises already have numerous meters and sensors in place, and are running various enterprise systems – for example, they might have a BDE, MDE, or MES and an ERP system – all of which can provide relevant data for energy management. MES software can also provide functions for logging, processing and visualizing data, thereby complementing the strengths of an EMS. Even if all the MES supports are manual entry of meter readings, these can still be useful for exploring how energy management data correlates to production data. Depending on the user, the number and type of loads logged may differ. Some companies might log the consumption of each individual production machine directly, while others only have a single meter for a whole group of machines. However, by integrating the MES and energy management system, it is possible in virtually any setup to determine historical energy consumption over a specified period, broken down to specific production orders or produced material.
Order-specific energy data in MES CAT 7.0
T.CON’s MES CAT, used particularly in the paper and film production industries, makes use of data broken down by wafer or reel. With the latest release the MES CAT 7.0, this data is combined with energy cost information provided by the ERP system. That way, companies know exactly what is being consumed where; the links between different factors are made transparent (such as resource utilization, processes, production volumes and temperature). Additional parameters can then be incorporated into the analyses, so that energy consumption can be broken down at order level, rather than just treated as a cost factor. This information can in turn be used as the basis for a continuous improvement process (CIP).
Automated data capture
If energy data is to be exploited in real time, the MES must support automated data capture from energy-consuming devices, for example via an OPC router or by means of bidirectional data exchange with other IT systems. An all-in-one system for energy data capture proves its strengths when it comes to logging data from energy-consuming devices of different ages and fitted with different technology. All the various data can be transferred to the MES and thus included in the analyses and optimisations. The next stage involves linking in additional systems and databases. Most energy data management systems are very well suited for displaying historical information about consumption across the enterprise. An important question is: How can the energy data now be used to help ongoing production?
Integrating IRES data
This is where Intelligent Resource Efficiency Solution (IRES) data comes in, with Intense AG’s system integrating energy data to the MES. IRES is a system for logging and managing energy data and processing it together with relevant parameters in close to real time. To do this, data from different systems is combined. Data from orders and machine data from the MES is integrated with virtual profiles for machines and energy-intensive processes, all stored in the IRES evaluation platform. These profiles are developed specifically for each enterprise. So, for example, IRES can interact with T.CON’s software to define reference orders based on energy-efficient orders for producing a particular type of paper or film. When production is underway for new orders, the current energy consumption is compared with the reference orders stored in IRES. It is then possible to calculate what the consumption profile will look like, based on historical consumption data and the planned production volume.
Live load monitoring
The data model can also be enriched with further information, such as the weight of raw materials used or the weight of the manufactured products. Using this information, the company can generate normalised energy performance data, for instance ‘kW/h electricity consumption per kg of finished product’ or ‘cubic meters of steam per meter of finished product’. This energy performance data is essential for ISO 50001-compliant reporting. However, it is often challenging to generate without built-in system support.
Monitoring and alarms
At the same time, the enterprises benefit from a monitoring and alarm system: measurements from current energy usage and visualizations displayed on the shop floor can be used for comparisons against targets and progress monitoring of the company’s energy-saving projects. The system doesn't have to stop at displaying information about time- and machine-specific energy consumption; it can also provide order-specific and material-specific information. When the system is enriched with this kind of detail, virtual profiles and reference orders are used for comparing current energy consumption with normalized historical usage data. Visualization could be for example by means of a red/amber/green display. It’s also possible use the same principles to visualize consumption of other resources, such as water or gas, on dashboards in the production environment. The dashboards can be displayed on various devices – mobile devices, workstations, big screens, etc., including in the vicinity of the relevant machines and systems.
Green light
The IEA has calculated that investments in this kind of system pay off rapidly: The energy efficiency measures implemented since the turn of the century saved some US $680 billion in the year 2022 alone – about 15 percent of all energy costs in that year. Globally, industry improved its energy efficiency in 2022 by two percent over the preceding year. However, that is not enough to ensure green manufacturing in the long term. To achieve the goal of net zero emissions by 2050, the IEA has determined that efficiency improvements of around four percent per year are needed. Tools like the red/amber/green visualization can help industry reach this goal while still remaining profitable.
MES: Benefits beyond energy management
We learned that Manufacturing Executions Systems can contribute to keeping an eye on energy data. But there is much more to it. A huge benefit for paper producers is that an MES makes it possible to manage, monitor and control production in real time. As a production control system or manufacturing management system, it serves as a link between the planning and production levels and thus establishes the connection to the ERP system as well as to the machines and plants. This creates transparency. Each production step can be related to a value-added step - it becomes clear where production is profitable and where money is being wasted.
You gain new insights into the cost structure and can calculate material costs more accurately. Another positive side effect using a sophisticated MES: By integrating CO2 data from material master data and recognized databases, you strengthen transparency along your supply chain. Going green with more precise cost communication & presentation of your ecological footprint bring along a big benefit. Especially in consideration of decarbonization targets for the future in the EU and elsewhere, this is an unavoidable must.
GET IN TOUCH