Zero Obsolescence Goal: The Art of Industrial Retrofit
Discover how Alps Group addressed hardware obsolescence by retrofitting the entire automation system.
Context
After ten years of operation for its production furnace and nearly forty years for the automation system, Saint-Gobain ISOVER—Switzerland’s leading glass wool manufacturer based in Lucens—undertook a complete refurbishment of its installation. This furnace, a central and critical component of the production process, heats glass to approximately 1,200°C. Taking advantage of this exceptional shutdown, the client decided to modernize the electrical and automation systems to automate as many functions as possible and bring the supervision system up to current plant standards.
Furnace Automation Retrofit
The project involved identifying and labeling cables in existing control panels to prepare for the retrofit of electrical cabinets during the construction of the new furnace, performing I/O testing progressively as the furnace temperature increased, and conducting sequence testing over a weekend before production resumed.
This modernization made it possible to:
- Resolve hardware obsolescence issues
- Improve and standardize the installation
- Automate key operational functions
Achivements
Alps Group carried out a full retrofit of the installation, including nearly 400 I/O points, among them around 100 temperature sensors, as well as the control of approximately ten transformers managing the heating electrodes. To successfully deliver this project, the team performed:
- Engineering design and manufacturing of electrical panels, integrating Siemens equipment
- Reverse engineering of the existing program
- Programming and development of multiple PID control loops
- Implementation of a new Wonderware supervision system
- Restart of the installation within 5 weeks
Their excellent project anticipation ensured a successful delivery to our full satisfaction, despite very tight deadlines.