It was two-and-a-half years ago that Honeywell Process Solutions first unveiled its Experion Orion Console at its users group meetings in Phoenix—its tech execs pulling the covers off their latest innovations in a Star Trek skit that gave customers a glimpse at the control room of the future. Since then, Honeywell has been working with a variety of industries on operator console projects—in chemical plants, refineries, mines and other production sites—but the automation supplier has just announced the first installation of the Orion Console at a major facility.
ICL Brasil will use the Orion Console, along with Honeywell’s Universal I/O, to modernize its large chemical facility in Cajati, near São Paulo, Brazil. The upgrades are meant to increase production, improve efficiency and improve the effectiveness of the plant operators.
“For this upgrade, we needed technology that would help us boost our competitiveness and improve our leading position as the premier manufacturer of phosphoric acid,” said Arnaldo Dias Jr., industrial manager for ICL Brasil. “Honeywell’s technology will enable us to do that.”
The Experion Orion Console, built on Honeywell’s Experion Process Knowledge System (PKS) control platform, brings together several technologies—large, ultrahigh-definition screens; improved ergonomics; and improved display formats—to increase situational awareness, reduce operator fatigue, increase operator mobility, and enable operators to react more quickly to changing conditions.
“Experion Orion truly changes the concept of plant operations by transforming the process operators into profit operators,” said Francisco Casulli, HPS business leader for Brazil. “These operators not only understand how the plant works, but how to make it run more efficiently and profitably.”
The console’s large display provides clear operations status readings for faster and more informed management. Operators can customize displays to prioritize the data needed for a given process or operation. Touchscreen displays help operators quickly and accurately respond to changing conditions. Additionally, the console features adjustable sitting and standing operating positions to reduce fatigue.
The console was developed using the Honeywell User Experience, a new approach to the design and development of new products focused on making them easier to use, more intuitive, more efficient, and more productive.
Honeywell’s Universal I/O technology will speed project schedules, reduce production downtime, and help plant personnel more efficiently manage operations by reducing the stock of spare parts. The modules enable operators to quickly and remotely configure channels as digital or analog. This allows the system to become operational as soon as the points are set, and eliminates the need to re-open panels to replace cards or adjust wiring even if there are changes later in the project. The technology also allows plants to reduce the number of spares needed, which is important for such a large project as the ICL Brasil upgrade.
