Blog - Post List

  • Manufacturing Asset Health Prioritization and Notification

    Jim Cahill
    View the Plantweb Optics mobile application and demonstration by downloading from the App Store or Google Play Manufacturing processes create a huge stream of data during the production process as well as with the assets involved in this process. Effective asset management for reliable operations requires getting the early warning signals among this vast sea of data to right person or people for action. At the recent…

  • Fostering Collaborative Maintenance Practices

    Jim Cahill
    Tools that advance collaborative efforts among co-workers, especially for maintenance teams in manufacturing operations, help increase reliable and efficient operations. Here’s an under 3-minute YouTube video example, Managing Device Configurations with AMS Trex , demonstrated by Emerson’s Stephen West . In it, he shows how the AMS Trex Device Communicator helps maintenance teams efficiently manage the configurations…

  • Fostering Collaborative Maintenance Practices

    Jim Cahill
    Tools that advance collaborative efforts among co-workers, especially for maintenance teams in manufacturing operations, help increase reliable and efficient operations. Here’s an under 3-minute YouTube video example, Managing Device Configurations with AMS Trex , demonstrated by Emerson’s Stephen West . In it, he shows how the AMS Trex Device Communicator helps maintenance teams efficiently manage the configurations…

  • Designing for High Performance Reliability during Project Phase

    Jim Cahill
    Manufacturing capital projects have followed a similar path for many decades. The project team designs, executes and commissions the project, provides training for the operations staff, and hands it over to them to run. What is often lacking in this approach is the opportunity to design work practices at the design phase to improve overall reliability over the life of the manufacturing process. In a Plant Services…

  • Designing for High Performance Reliability during Project Phase

    Jim Cahill
    Manufacturing capital projects have followed a similar path for many decades. The project team designs, executes and commissions the project, provides training for the operations staff, and hands it over to them to run. What is often lacking in this approach is the opportunity to design work practices at the design phase to improve overall reliability over the life of the manufacturing process. In a Plant Services…

  • Designing for High Performance Reliability during Project Phase

    Jim Cahill
    Manufacturing capital projects have followed a similar path for many decades. The project team designs, executes and commissions the project, provides training for the operations staff, and hands it over to them to run. What is often lacking in this approach is the opportunity to design work practices at the design phase to improve overall reliability over the life of the manufacturing process. In a Plant Services…

  • Three Steps to Prescriptive Maintenance

    Jim Cahill
    Process manufacturers and producers practice many forms of maintenance as part of their efforts toward more reliable operations. These include reactive, preventive, predictive and most recently thanks the advancements in the Industrial Internet of Things technologies—prescriptive maintenance. In a Plant Engineering article, The path to prescriptive maintenance: Three steps to drive reliability while preparing for IIoT…

  • Three Steps to Prescriptive Maintenance

    Jim Cahill
    Process manufacturers and producers practice many forms of maintenance as part of their efforts toward more reliable operations. These include reactive, preventive, predictive and most recently thanks the advancements in the Industrial Internet of Things technologies—prescriptive maintenance. In a Plant Engineering article, The path to prescriptive maintenance: Three steps to drive reliability while preparing for IIoT…

  • Three Steps to Prescriptive Maintenance

    Jim Cahill
    Process manufacturers and producers practice many forms of maintenance as part of their efforts toward more reliable operations. These include reactive, preventive, predictive and most recently thanks the advancements in the Industrial Internet of Things technologies—prescriptive maintenance. In a Plant Engineering article, The path to prescriptive maintenance: Three steps to drive reliability while preparing for IIoT…

  • Simple Apps and Wireless Sensors for Effective Monitoring

    Jim Cahill
    Effective monitoring requires good measurement, effective analytics to help understand the measurement, and clear guidance for action to resolve the issue. For manufacturing and production facilities already instrumented for process control, adding measurements can be difficult due to existing wiring infrastructure. In an Automation.com article, Apps Simplify Wireless Monitoring , Emerson’s Brian Joe describes how…

  • Simple Apps and Wireless Sensors for Effective Monitoring

    Jim Cahill
    Effective monitoring requires good measurement, effective analytics to help understand the measurement, and clear guidance for action to resolve the issue. For manufacturing and production facilities already instrumented for process control, adding measurements can be difficult due to existing wiring infrastructure. In an Automation.com article, Apps Simplify Wireless Monitoring , Emerson’s Brian Joe describes how…

  • Simplifying and Improving Accuracy of Smart Instrumentation Data Management

    Jim Cahill
    One of the promises in taking a human-centered design (HCD) approach to product development is to simplify the user experience. Better yet, when done well, entire tasks can be eliminated. That translates into greater productivity to get things done more quickly. I mention this because Emerson’s Nicholas Meyer shared an innovation with me in smart device handheld communicators. The latest release of the AMS Trex Device…

  • Simplifying and Improving Accuracy of Smart Instrumentation Data Management

    Jim Cahill
    One of the promises in taking a human-centered design (HCD) approach to product development is to simplify the user experience. Better yet, when done well, entire tasks can be eliminated. That translates into greater productivity to get things done more quickly. I mention this because Emerson’s Nicholas Meyer shared an innovation with me in smart device handheld communicators. The latest release of the AMS Trex Device…

  • Remote Pump Monitoring

    Jim Cahill
    Given the costs associated with wired plant instrumentation and wiring infrastructure, most plants have just enough sensors and final control elements to perform basic control and safety system functions. While enough for control and process safety, it is often not enough for reliability, energy efficiency, and uptime. The Industrial Internet of Things , and more specifically, wireless sensors, open the opportunity…

  • Remote Pump Monitoring

    Jim Cahill
    Given the costs associated with wired plant instrumentation and wiring infrastructure, most plants have just enough sensors and final control elements to perform basic control and safety system functions. While enough for control and process safety, it is often not enough for reliability, energy efficiency, and uptime. Tom Bass The Industrial Internet of Things , and more specifically, wireless sensors, open the opportunity…

  • Organizational Readiness for Top Quartile Reliability Performance

    Jim Cahill
    As the technology and work practices have progressed, so has reliability practices from reactive to preventive to predictive maintenance (PdM). In a Plant Engineering article, The path to prescriptive maintenance , Emerson’s Will Goetz describes prescriptive maintenance: …where analytics can show that a piece of equipment is headed for trouble and can prescribe prioritized, pre-determined, expert-driven mitigation…

  • Organizational Readiness for Top Quartile Reliability Performance

    Jim Cahill
    As the technology and work practices have progressed, so has reliability practices from reactive to preventive to predictive maintenance (PdM). In a Plant Engineering article, The path to prescriptive maintenance , Emerson’s Will Goetz describes prescriptive maintenance: …where analytics can show that a piece of equipment is headed for trouble and can prescribe prioritized, pre-determined, expert-driven mitigation…

  • Shot Putting and Ruggedness Testing

    Jim Cahill
    Let’s end the week with a short video showing the durability of a smart field device communicator. In this 1:47 YouTube video, AMS Trex Durability Tests , the AMS Trex device communicator is given some abuse to demonstrate its ruggedness. Emerson’s Nicholas Meyer and Stephen Mozia team up to see if the AMS Trex unit can handle being tossed down a set of stairs and still perform (spoiler alert—it does). Stephen represented…

  • Shot Putting and Ruggedness Testing

    Jim Cahill
    Let’s end the week with a short video showing the durability of a smart field device communicator. In this 1:47 YouTube video, AMS Trex Durability Tests , the AMS Trex device communicator is given some abuse to demonstrate its ruggedness. Emerson’s Nicholas Meyer and Stephen Mozia team up to see if the AMS Trex unit can handle being tossed down a set of stairs and still perform (spoiler alert—it does). Stephen represented…

  • Plant Reliability and the Industrial Internet of Things

    Jim Cahill
    Tools and methodologies to improve plant reliability have existed for many years. Examples include criticality analysis , reliability-centered maintenance analysis (RCMA) , failure modes, effects, and diagnostic analysis (FMEDA) and root cause failure analysis (RCFA) to name a few. In a Plant Services article, Seize the IIoT in just 3 steps , Emerson’s Bruce Hawkins and Scott Bruni describe how process manufacturers…

  • Plant Reliability and the Industrial Internet of Things

    Jim Cahill
    Tools and methodologies to improve plant reliability have existed for many years. Examples include criticality analysis , reliability-centered maintenance analysis (RCMA) , failure modes, effects, and diagnostic analysis (FMEDA) and root cause failure analysis (RCFA) to name a few. In a Plant Services article, Seize the IIoT in just 3 steps , Emerson’s Bruce Hawkins and independent consultant Scott Bruni describe…

  • Increasing Maintenance Efficiency with Handheld Instrumentation Communicators

    Jim Cahill
    Those with smart instrumentation know that installation, configuration and maintenance activities often require the plant technicians to carry multiple tools such as external power supplies or loop simulators in addition to the handheld instrumentation communicator device. Properly functioning instrumentation helps the operations staff and automation system control strategies manage the process more safely, reliably and…

  • Increasing Maintenance Efficiency with Handheld Instrumentation Communicators

    Jim Cahill
    Those with smart instrumentation know that installation, configuration and maintenance activities often require the plant technicians to carry multiple tools such as external power supplies or loop simulators in addition to the handheld instrumentation communicator device. Properly functioning instrumentation helps the operations staff and automation system control strategies manage the process more safely, reliably and…

  • Overcoming Obstacles in Reducing Unplanned Downtime

    Jim Cahill
    Unplanned downtime remains the top issue for most process manufacturers and producers. At the ARC Industry Forum, ARC’s Craig Resnick led a panel, Strategies to Reduce Downtime and Increase Plant KPIs . Emerson’s Will Goetz participated in the panel to discuss the importance of comprehensive reliability program planning and execution. Here was the session description: This session will discuss manufacturers’ biggest…

  • Overcoming Obstacles in Reducing Unplanned Downtime

    Jim Cahill
    Unplanned downtime remains the top issue for most process manufacturers and producers. At the ARC Industry Forum, ARC’s Craig Resnick led a panel, Strategies to Reduce Downtime and Increase Plant KPIs . Emerson’s Will Goetz participated in the panel to discuss the importance of comprehensive reliability program planning and execution. Here was the session description: This session will discuss manufacturers’ biggest…

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