The Project: End-to-End Automation System Upgrades

A global parcel service reached out to E Tech Group after being tasked with increasing throughput capacity in one of their older hubs prior to the peak season for shipping. The turnkey project involved upgrades to 70% of the site’s control systems, along with expansion of the control room and package handling systems.

E Tech Group was responsible for every aspect of this building-wide automation upgrade, including:

• Engineering design
• Software design
• Procurement and installation of all electrical hardware
• Start-up and validation of the updated control systems

Once the new systems were implemented, integrated facility-wide and validated, our automation team provided ongoing support through the course of their peak period.

Challenges

• The project start date was delayed condensing the original schedule down from 9 months to 5 months
• The scope of work had to be planned sequentially because each upgrade was dependent on the previous one
• The mechanical upgrades had to be completed prior to control system completion, further limiting installation and start-up windows
• All installation and start-up work had to be completed during weekly downtime windows that started Saturday mornings and ended at 11:00 AM on Monday
• Both mechanical and electrical equipment deliveries were “just in time” and sometimes late, requiring a very agile installation and start-up team
• While the customer had very detailed specifications, many exceptions were allowed so that the new installations would match the existing operation.  This required more rigor during definition to review prior precedents set at the hub.

Solution

A dedicated E Tech Group project team was deployed to the site to complete definition through both audits and reviews. The project team produced a highly-detailed report with a list of exceptions to the customer’s specifications. These exceptions were submitted to the customer for approval prior to the start of the design.

Our automation engineers worked with the customer’s mechanical consultants to develop and then continuously refine plans to sequentially install the control system upgrades in scope blocks that could fit into short downtime windows. In several instances, multiple E Tech Group teams were deployed to the site simultaneously to work in different areas.

Our engineering design team also worked to standardize new electrical panel designs so they could easily be adjusted from one area to another with minimal notice, if required. The automation software was also standardized across the facility to make it more easily supportable during deployment and ongoing.

Once installation began, our engineers deployed full site management to the hub to oversee all deliveries and installation activities. E Tech Group’s site manager was also the single point of contact for the hub manager and the mechanical consultant, creating a seamless communication channel from the customer to the E Tech Group project team.

There were several challenges associated with the successful completion of this project, ranging from tightly-scheduled downtime to dealing with delayed equipment deliveries. Our engineers closely managed the project and evolved the highly-detailed schedule to accommodate the customer’s needs.

The Results: Exceeding the Client’s Automation Expectations

This turnkey systems upgrade required rigorous planning and constant communication, making thorough and collaborative project management essential. After completing this project on time and on budget despite all the obstacles, E Tech Group has been awarded several other projects with this customer at the same facility.

For manufacturers with multiple locations, finding an automation company you can rely on for projects across facilities is key to operational integrity and consistency in each plant. E Tech Group cultivates these symbiotic long-term relationships through a unique brand of project management, focused on close collaboration with the client and strategic control system design that allows the facility to improve, adapt and scale.