The connected factory is an opportunity for manufacturers to optimize energy performance in real time. However, it is important to have ergonomic and easy-to-use tools to make it a reality.
A counter-example comes immediately to mind: the energy consumption spreadsheet maintained for years by a member of the workshop. From our exchanges with industrialists, here are some problems faced with this type of tool:
- Manual readings for several hours every month on a notebook from meters scattered around the plant;
- Input errors in the document because the exact index is sometimes difficult to remember on the way from the meter to the notebook;
- Omission of the figures after the decimal point because one day someone forgot to write them down;
not always precise units: m3, kW, MWh?
- Boxes and tabs modified, deleted or completed according to the evolution of the file;
- Errors #DIV/0! that end up sabotaging the ratios and graphs;
- A history finally limited to the last 2 years due to the ravages of a virus on the input computer, or because of a hard disk crash that made 10 years of gas statements disappear;
- Duplicate files between different users that require a very tedious search in the columns and rows to know which one is up to date;
- Difficulties to compare months of 30 or 32 days because January 1st was a holiday and the meter reading was done the day after;
- Files that are increasingly large and take longer and longer to open and browse;
- Etc.
Does this example speak to you or remind you of your current situation? How about switching to a web and mobile software that solves all these problems for you?
