5 Reasons To Upgrade Your Wastewater System Control Panel

Even though your system is still meeting your treatment goals of corporate sustainability and local POTW or federal discharge limits, there are some critical reasons why you should consider contacting MacDermid Envio about upgrading your control panels.

PLC – SLC 500, RSLogix 500, Micrologix 1100 & 1400

Your wastewater system may be at risk if you have an old control panel. What happens if your old control panel stops working and is no longer supported? A potential shutdown on production. After all, the purpose of your wastewater treatment system is to meet critical discharge limits. If you can’t, your company may have to halt production because of an old processor.

If you haven’t heard the news, Allen Bradley won’t be supporting older SLC series models or all-low demand categories. Some Micrologix lines already have obsolete tags on them. SLC 505 components, in particular, are getting more and more expensive or hard to find as Allen Bradley starts to phase it out. So, before you run into a technological nightmare with your wastewater treatment system, contact us for a consultation on whether or not you should upgrade your PLC.

HMI (graphic user interface) – Xycom, Wonderware software, Allen Bradley 200R, PanelView™

If the screen on your control panel uses Xycom, anything with Wonderware software or older PC (white box or Allen Bradley 200R), PanelView Standard, or PanelView Component, you need to contact us about upgrading your control panel.

Wonderware Corporation has gone through several mergers. As of March 2018, Wonderware is now a subsidiary of AVEVA, which merged with Schneider Electric Software. Because of that, it will be in your best interest to upgrade your control panel if you’re still using a graphic interface before the latest merger.

Systems with Allen Bradley RSView32 or any touchscreens on the MacDermid Envio E5 that are 10” should consider a replacement. These HMI’s are on the cusp of being phased out and unsupported.

2. New Wastewater Treatment Automation Options

Some of our customers are still manually controlling their treatment process. MacDermid Envio continues to take evolutionary steps towards designing systems needing less operator involvement. Our control panels now have better processors to handle efficient automation, timely system warnings and alarms, preventative maintenance reminders, as well as optional analytics packages to view historical trends.

These options can prove to be extremely valuable to your plant operators who may have to split their time between wastewater treatment and producing your product. No matter if you’re making engine components for airplanes, cars, or tractors or pork, milk, or beer for eating and drinking, automation can prove to be a huge time-saver for your plant.

We have seen some clients use way too many chemicals because their wastewater treatment process didn’t align with their production cycle. So, instead of taking a look at timing their chemical dosing, they just used more and more chemicals. By working with MacDermid Envio, automation can take out some of the guesswork, clear up misunderstandings, and reduce the risk of costly operator errors.

3. Improved User Interface

Over the past decade, we have constantly made updates to our control panels for smooth operation. What happens if your plant manager leaves your company? You want to have a wastewater control panel that is intuitive and easy to use. That way, your new plant manager or wastewater treatment operator only has to refer to a manual or contact us for answers to minor questions.

Here are screenshots from our latest control panel. 

4. Integrating New Processes

Let’s say your system was installed 20 years ago and you just added a new process. One thing you may not have considered is maintaining centralized controls. How do you? By updating your programming procedures. We have programmers, electricians, system designers, and engineers all in-house that work together to ensure control panels are appropriately programmed based on your specific needs. If you add a new step in your treatment process, we can make updates to the program whether we designed the system or not.

5. Secure Remote Monitoring

With MacDermid Envio TECHLink™, experts can log in to your system to help you troubleshoot issues that may arise. Not only is this more cost-effective. It also allows real-time, same-day support during our business hours. You don’t have to wait for one of our service techs to fly to your location and help you onsite. Of course, MacDermid Envio service techs don’t mind doing that, but many issues can be solved over the phone and with TECHLink.

Reduce Costs & Risk with a New Wastewater Treatment Control Panel

There are significant costs that can arise from failing to upgrade your control panels. Costs including:

• Plant shutdowns
• Unnecessary chemical usage
• Operator error
• Inefficient and ineffective processes

No one wants to be the one to tell their boss that they have to shut down a plant because of old technology or operator error with their wastewater treatment. So, let’s work together to make sure you never have to have that conversation.

MacDermid Envio E-Controllers

MacDermid Envio has multiple e-controllers for our customers to choose from based on their needs. However, our E10 controller offers the best value. It has an Allen Bradley PLC with an Allen Bradley software-based 15” touch screen. The Windows-based PC HMI provides active graphics with a status bar to displayed critical information on every operating page. Not only does it have the processor and components needed for our most sophisticated automation programming, but it also comes with a wide array of visual alarms, extra security layers, and more flexibility with the graphic user interface (HMI).

All MacDermid Envio Control Panels are designed, built and programmed in house by our team of experts for each client system. By building the controls in-house, our Account Managers and Field Service teams can provide optimal and efficient long-term support.

Other Reasons to Upgrade

Shrink Footprint

One of the things we constantly hear during visits with our customers is space constraints. We have designed our modular systems to have small footprints and have done lots of custom work to provide options for customers using small spaces. Maybe your old system took up too much space in addition to not consistently meeting your wastewater treatment goals. If that’s the case, check out this 3D video of the MacDermid Envio Module 1500, which can handle flow rates in the range of 5-15 GPM. We also have similar continuous flow systems with a small footprint that can handle flow rates up to 250 GPM.

Increase capacity

Let’s face it. An increase in production is a good sign for your business. It typically means that your supply isn’t keeping up with demand. That’s a business 101 concept. However, growing brings pains. More production = more wastewater to treat. At MacDermid Envio, we work with our customers to choose the best option. The best option may not be to tear out your old system and start over from scratch. Maybe you need to add a new system to handle a new waste stream, get larger tanks and new pumps, or get a larger filter press. In any regard, we have done it time and time again. You need experts with 20-40 years of experience to evaluate your current treatment process and give you options: Complete overhaul vs. new systems, tanks, or other minor updates. Then from there, you can make an educated decision. In many cases, we’re only making some minor upgrades and updates here and there, and we’re happy to do that. We have a rep on staff whose sole responsibility is to handle MacDermid Envio and non-MacDermid Envio upgrades worldwide because we know that many customers don’t need a brand new wastewater system in their plant.

In need of a wastewater control panel evaluation?

If you think you’re at risk or have an opportunity to improve your wastewater treatment process, contact MacDermid Envio. We have skilled engineers, service techs, knowledgeable sales reps, programmers, electricians, chemists, and system designers working together to solve your wastewater treatment challenges so you can go back to doing what you do best and we get to do what we do best: industrial wastewater treatment.

Written by a MacDermid Envio Solutions Subject Matter Expert