This has been a very exciting and busy week for Now Engineering Solutions. Matt Cortese, sales representative for Connection Technology Center, came here to Spain to take part to the Mobius exhibition in Barcelona. To benefit from this occasion, we arranged some meetings with some of our most valuable customers, ABB in Madrid, Coxabengoa, Lantania and Iwac in Seville.
It is always a pleasure to meet the members of work teams with whom we engage and communicate on daily basis – be it the first time we meet or a pleasant reunion after a long time. All our activities are based on the principle of building relationships with our customers as well as our suppliers, and this way work flows easier and more efficiently.
The presence of Matt was vital, to present C.T.C. products and new developments, answer any technical questions and listen to specific needs in order to propose suitable and competitive solutions. I believe it was an excellent opportunity to deepen the knowledge of C.T.C.’s products and brand, and to strengthen trust in them.
While in Madrid, we also visited CUMAT where we tested both an ABB and a Phoenix Contact PLC that acquires a global vibration signal in 4–20 mA and then converts it to Modbus to send it to a DCS or a control system: we tested how the sensor works by exciting it with known vibrations: we simulated vibrations, installed a C.T.C. LP sensor that communicated with the PLC and transmitted the results via Modbus TCP/IP to verify that the PLC was functioning properly.
During the meetings, many important technical issues were raised, and this was a great opportunity to solve doubts, confront different points of views and discuss them on the basis of specific experience on site.
For instance, one of the initial concerns raised by our clients relates to the correct installation of the sensors and, consequently, their proper functioning and accuracy in measuring. As we all know, these are highly sophisticated and sensitive cables and sensors, and it is essential to ensure their correct installation in order not to compromise the accuracy of the data collected.
One of our customers’ big concern was: “What if the components are sent to the plant and there they do not work or have any flaw?” Well, we strongly stressed the quality and reliability of CTC hardware: it is very unlikely, if not impossible, for any product to come with any flaw. Before shipping, CTC takes the time to perform the rigorous array of tests that every product must go through before it may be qualified for shipment to a customer. This includes the standard calibration certification, bias voltage verification, and a helium soak leak test to ensure that the sensor is hermetically sealed. Every CTC product is thoughtfully designed or assembled in the USA for superior durability, reliability, and maximum performance.
Of course, one must ensure that every component is assembled on site properly: to this purpose, Now Engineering Solutions offer assistance and support – both remote and onsite – to the correct assembly and installation of the hardware and ensure the accurate and smooth data collection, as well as performing pre-shipment testing and drafting user manuals.
What we would like to stress is that when you trust CTC with your critical machine monitoring needs, you’ll receive the unmatched peace of mind that comes with knowing every CTC product has been tested to meet the harshest demands.
Another point that emerged from the meetings is our concern about the presence, within the same vibration monitoring system, of hardware from different brands and suppliers.
Our experience—particularly in collaboration with Cox at the Taweelah desalination plant—has shown us that when spare parts are needed, their availability becomes particularly difficult if they come from different suppliers and were delivered at different times.
The most appropriate solution is to use components from a single supplier in order to ensure that peace of mind, both in terms of quality and in terms of the availability and traceability of spare parts or future upgrades.
While at Cox, Lantania and Iwac, we showed a wide range of possible solutions to apply to desalination plants, in particular our customers were impressed by the V2N 2 SOCKET MIL-STYLE, SEAL-TIGHT VITON™ BOOT CONNECTOR WITH NYLON INSERT: this is particularly suitable for desalination plants as it is impossible for any residue of sand, salt, liquid or any kind to enter the component and thus compromise the collection of data or its performance.
We also noticed our customers’ concerns and reserves about the wi-fi components – released by CTC last February. They were mainly worried about the accuracy of the readings. We advised that – as for desalination plants – a wired system is to be preferred. However, the C.T.C. Connect Line of wireless condition monitoring solutions offers you the industry’s highest quality hardware with unmatched sensor line-of-sight range and battery life. You have the chance to save time, money, and protect vibration analysts from dangerous environments with CTC wireless ecosystem that empowers you to take your readings any time, anywhere.
It is also important to stress that the components are open to any software, CTC just provides the sensors, you are free to use it with any software of your choice.
Last, but not least, another issue that was raised: the final customer not always knows what the most efficient solution is and what the system actually needs, and throughout our experience we have seen plants purchasing parts and components which were not really needed: Now Engineering Solutions is fully available to guide customers to find the most suitable solutions without wasting money unnecessarily but saving costs.
In conclusion, I would like to reiterate the services offered by Now Engineering Solutions: consulting and assessment of the most suitable and necessary hardware for the vibration monitoring system in question; procurement of hardware components; execution of pre-F.A.T. and F.A.T.; preparation of user and maintenance manuals; and after-sales support, both remotely and on site.
A big thank you and a warm hug to all the lovely people we met at ABB, Cumat, Lantania, Cox, Iwac, to all those who took the time to arrange a meeting and who were so kind to attend it, I would like to mention the organisers Javier Prieto at ABB, José Berzas Garcia for Cumat, Julian Jimenez y Adrian Teresa Serrano for Phoenix Contact, Macarena Tejero at Lantania, Jose Maria Balseiro for Cox and Antonio Villegas for Iwac.
And of course a big thank you to Matt Cortese and C.T.C. for their outstanding support!