Electricity and Control June 2020

CONTROL SYSTEMS + AUTOMATION : PRODUCTS + SERVICES INDUSTRY 4.0 + IIOT : PRODUCTS + SERVICES

EPLAN services online: webcasts, training and consulting Working at home is what many people are doing right now. To meet this shift, EPLAN is offering a number of online services, including webcasts that provide users with specific practical support. Remote consulting and meetings with its consultants via video conferencing is another service EPLAN is offering companies – augmented by helpful online sessions from the EPLAN technical teams. Around four hundred participants took part in the first three German webcasts on the topic ‘EPLAN and working at home’, indicating the demand for customer support. EPLAN is reacting positively to the changing market conditions by putting together a whole package of digital offerings, now being implemented. These include the webcasts, where users receive very practical support in their changed everyday working world. Topics such as remote access to EPLAN software, VPN connections to company networks, or cloned master data were covered in the one- hour webcasts. These are now available as video streams, accessible via the EPLAN website. Another webcast series on the topic ‘More efficient use of EPLAN Platform and new engineering methods’ is also on the agenda, covering topics such as automation in panel building and switchgear system engineering, PLM A new software solution for network management With the new Sinec software family, Siemens offers a range of functions in the field of network management. Sinec software meets the diverse requirements of modern industrial networks and helps users to overcome the challenges of digitalisation, such as the ever-growing number of network devices as well as the security and clarity of increasingly complex networks. Alongside the Sinec NMS Network Management System, two additional Sinec tools – Sinec INS and Sinec PNI – offer more options for comprehensive network management. The new Sinec INS (Infrastructure Network Services) is a software tool for central network services. It provides customers with a quick and easy overview of all network services via a unified user interface. The tool offers general network services, which specifically benefit operational technology (OT). Using Sinec INS, the OT can create an autonomous network – independent of IT services – and the network can, for example, be hosted in an OT data centre. This includes various servers such as DHCP (IP address management), Syslog (collection of events in the network), NTP (time management), Radius (authentication in the network) and TFTP (for firmware updates on network components). The new Sinec PNI (Primary Network Initialisation) commissioning tool enables the quick and easy initialisation of Scalance and Ruggedcom network components. Controllers/CPUs (central processing units)

integration, and macro technology in EPLAN Electric P8. EPLAN is offering these webcasts free of charge to give users the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the topics or to take a deeper dive into them. Until recently, onsite personal consultation has been the standard, especially for services such as training and consulting. EPLAN customers now take advantage of consulting services digitally via video conference. Remote consulting services can be used to take a closer look at a company´s processes and to be proactive in implementing optimisation that may be long overdue. Bernd Schewior, EPLAN Vice President Professional Services, says, “Our goal is to be available for EPLAN users at any time. Right now we’re offering online meetings and remote services where we are answering customers’ questions in real time. This service was added at the start of the year and has already become an integral part of our training programme to become an EPLAN Certified Engineer.”

Bernd Schewior, EPLAN Vice President Professional Services.

For more information contact Johan Reyneke at EPLAN. Mobile: +27 (0)83 925 2054 email: Reyneke.J@eplan.co.za visit: www.eplan.co.za

can also be initialised with this tool. This expansion of the Sinec family portfolio to include the Sinec PNI tool offers convenient basic initialisation and ensures the availability of network components. Both new tools are ideal additions to the efficient Sinec NMS. The new version V1.0 SP1 of Sinec NMS can also be used to manage security-related aspects in the network. This includes, for example, firewall and NAT (Network Address Translation) management with device- specific rules as well as the policy-based configuration of the network infrastructure and Syslog client. Firewall components can be configured conveniently and efficiently from a central point. For more information visit: www.siemens.com/sinec

The new Sinec software family offers a range of functions for efficient network management.

10 Electricity + Control JUNE 2020