MechChem Africa March-April 2023

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current measurement data, but it also tracks and trends historical data gathered from ongoing consumption. This is a powerful tool for optimising production and supply chains,” Viviers notes. He cites a recent success with a local chemical producing company that supplies a large mix of industrial chemicals to customers and plants across South Africa. “We have now installed our VEGA Inventory System coupled to the RADAR Level monitoring sensors on this supplier’s storage tanks. Now, any of their longstanding customers – if granted permis sion – are able to log into the system, check stock availability and schedule a delivery. And this is as easy as doing an online order at a supermarket,” he tells MechChem Africa . The ultimate goal, though, is to close the loop by having the system installed on both ends of the supplier chain. This would enable automatic reordering of stock to replenish any tank or silo on the customer’s end that is becoming depleted. Because usage is continuously tracked, the supplier is able to predict and plan ahead to meet future needs. Also, when the delivery arrives, the correct chemicals and quantities needed are deliv ered, minimising the costs of errors related to logistics and route planning. “It often happens that when a delivery ar rives at the customer site the receiving tank is not as empty as expected, for example. This means the tanker cannot discharge its full load and it must then carry any excess back to the supplier. This is costly and wasteful – and can be eliminated if suppliers and their customers both adopt this simple and very cost-effective VIS solution,” he says. In terms of installation, Viviers confirms that many suppliers and end users are already using level sensors such as the VEGAPULS 6X to monitor stock levels. “The VEGAPULS 6X is the ideal radar sen sor for continuous level measurement of liquids and bulk solids. It offers particular advantages for liquids in small tanks with tight mounting spaces. The sensor’s very good signal focusing also enables it to be used in vessels with internal structures such The VEGAPULS 6X is the ideal radar sensor for continuous level measurement of liquids and bulk solids.

The VEGA Inventory System enables chemicals to be automatically ordered, and tank deliveries to be scheduled for just-in-time delivery.

as stirrers and heating spirals,” notes Viviers. These are HART sensors that transmit measured values from up to 15 tanks/silos to a single VEGASCAN 693 controller. Data can then be sent to the company’s PLC, which is controlling production processes, and sepa rately, via a LAN or GSM ethernet connection, to the cloud-based server hosting the VIS software. “Generally speaking, as long as the level sensors being used are HART compliant, the only hardware required to implement the VEGA Inventory System is one VEGASCAN 693 controller for every 15 measuring points on the site,” he tells MechChem Africa . “A typical client environment might have many over 15 tanks spread across a 500 m plot of land. You can imagine how dif ficult it could be to measure all the tank level values manually and get them into a spread sheet. With this system, we can collect and up date values as frequently as every 15 minutes, which can be accommodated by a relatively slow broadband connection,” he adds. Wherever process control is involved, Viviers says engineers prefer to steer clear of ‘The Cloud’ for fear of the plant being hacked. But because the VEGASCAN 693 controller is purely collecting and visualising data, there is a low risk. “Even so, the first question I get asked when introducing our VIS is about cybersecurity”. “VEGA’s Cloud-based VIS Portal is very well protected. With respect to cyber secu rity, we are audited and certified to IDW DS 951 SOC2, which is the highest cyber security level a commercial sys tem can have. This ensures that all embedded sys

in information and data encryption for signals being sent via the Internet, are in place. Cyber security is always going to be important, but we are on top of it. We can confidently assure existing and potential customers that the VEGA Inventory System cannot be hacked,” Viviers assures. “Overseas, use of inventory management systems such as VIS is already the norm. Many people in South Africa are also seeing the beauty of the system. The installation cost is almost negligible and for the VIS software sys tem, VEGA has adopted a hosting approach so that it is seen as an operational expense. “Given the operational cost savings that will quickly accrue due to supply chain effi ciency and production optimisation savings, this hosting fee will also come to be seen as negligible. The system has a proven return on investment and adds real value through clear visualisation and simplified representation of inventory in real time, which allows stocks to be replenished reliably, efficiently and far more cost effectively,” Clint Viviers concludes. www.vega.com/en-za The VIS software can draw on current and historical measurement data to track trends gathered from ongoing consumption.

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