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achieving operational excellence: the digital
transformation journey of a chemical plant

customer background

For over 70 years, our globally renowned US-based customer has been a pioneer in providing chemical solutions to a wide range of industries including pulp and paper, packaging, leather, biofuels, and industrial water treatment. Operating in 90+ countries, they are dedicated to fostering innovation and technology-driven support for chemical solutions, enhancing productivity and sustainability on a global scale.  

customer need

The customer wanted to optimise their production process due to the short shelf-life of their perishable chemical products. They aimed to align production with demand, implementing a Just in Time (JIT) inventory system for their suppliers, necessitating seamless coordination across procurement, manufacturing, production, and distribution. Recognising the crucial need for enhanced interoperability and plant control, they sought a capable partner for comprehensive IT/OT integration and digital modernisation. This project involved plant transformation, device digitisation, establishing cloud connectivity, and improved reporting. Softdel’s two decades of enabling digital transformation across multiple sectors inspired the customer to approach us for this strategic partnership.

softdel’s solution

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  • Softdel evaluated the plant's current specifications and digital needs, creating a comprehensive blueprint for the digital transformation of the plant covering architectural considerations, software, and hardware components.
  • In the implementation phase, we established the necessary networking infrastructure, ensured seamless data aggregation, and enabled smooth transmission. We adopted MQTT for cloud connectivity, replacing the previous Ethernet-based connection between existing PLCs and gateways.
  • The solution was built on Microsoft Azure, facilitating secure two-way communication and centralised cloud control.
  • High-level design aspects included a microservices architecture, containerised protocol stack, cloud services, and adherence to the Haystack model.
  • We also designed an intuitive dashboard tailored for different stakeholders like line managers, plant managers, and sales managers, which included an analytics engine for in-depth real-time insights into energy consumption, equipment health statistics, forecasting, loop control, and production metrics.

standards and technology

Communication Protocol: Ethernet, MQTT, Bluetooth, Proprietary

Programming Language: C/C++, React, Node

Cloud Platform: Microsoft Azure Cloud

Cloud Framework: Telerik Kendo

Database: MongoDB and Cassandra

benefits

  • Enhanced operational flexibility: Bottlenecks, downtime, scalability issues, and supply chain challenges became history. Plant managers gained increased control, and the customer achieved plant-specific KPIs and reduced reactive maintenance by approximately 45%.
  • Time to market: Plant digitisation streamlined processes, optimised output, enhanced plant functionality, and ensured timely product delivery to end customers.
  • Precision in production management: The customer achieved precision in producing exactly the required quantity of perishable chemicals, drastically reducing chemical wastage.
  • Empowered decision-making: The digitally enabled plant, featuring IIoT-led predictive and preventive mechanisms, acquired the ability to capture a wealth of real-time data for actionable insights.

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