Use case video

Avoid bottlenecks to increase production efficiency

Team TrendMiner

Industrial Analytics

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This video presents a case study on how TrendMiner's industrial analytics can be used to identify and resolve production inefficiencies.

A polymer production plant experienced a significant bottleneck in its conveyor system.
This issue primarily occurred during the dilution phase when producing a specific grade of polymer.
The bottleneck led to an unacceptable rise in pressure in about 90% of the production runs for that grade.
As a result, the plant had to frequently halt production of this specific grade, switch to another, and then switch back, causing significant downtime and inefficiency.

Data Visualization: The user loaded historical production data into TrendMiner, plotting the conveyor pressure and the product grade being produced over time. This immediately showed a sawtooth pattern in the conveyor pressure, indicating repeated pressure buildups and necessary shutdowns.
Root Cause Investigation: To find the cause, the analyst compared a "good" production period (with no pressure issues) to a "bad" one.
- By overlaying the data from both periods, they analyzed various parameters.
- Initial analysis showed that factors like feed flow were not the root cause.
- Further investigation revealed that the pressure in an upstream reactor experienced a slight dip just before the conveyor pressure started to rise.
The Discovery: This pressure dip in the upstream reactor was identified as the root cause. The dip was causing an overload of small rubber particles to enter the conveyor system, creating a physical blockage and leading to the pressure increase.

Solution: By identifying the pressure dip in the upstream reactor as the trigger, the plant could stabilize the pressure control for that unit. This prevented the formation of the small particles that were causing the bottleneck.
Benefits:
- The company can now run multiple consecutive production runs of the problematic grade without interruption.
- This allows them to produce to market demand more effectively, avoiding overhead and costs associated with constant grade switching.
Result: The solution led to a 16% efficiency gain, resulting in over €100,000 in savings per year.

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Operational Performance Management

Asset Performance Management

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This video presents a case study on how TrendMiner's industrial analytics can be used to identify and resolve production inefficiencies.

A polymer production plant experienced a significant bottleneck in its conveyor system.
This issue primarily occurred during the dilution phase when producing a specific grade of polymer.
The bottleneck led to an unacceptable rise in pressure in about 90% of the production runs for that grade.
As a result, the plant had to frequently halt production of this specific grade, switch to another, and then switch back, causing significant downtime and inefficiency.

Data Visualization: The user loaded historical production data into TrendMiner, plotting the conveyor pressure and the product grade being produced over time. This immediately showed a sawtooth pattern in the conveyor pressure, indicating repeated pressure buildups and necessary shutdowns.
Root Cause Investigation: To find the cause, the analyst compared a "good" production period (with no pressure issues) to a "bad" one.
- By overlaying the data from both periods, they analyzed various parameters.
- Initial analysis showed that factors like feed flow were not the root cause.
- Further investigation revealed that the pressure in an upstream reactor experienced a slight dip just before the conveyor pressure started to rise.
The Discovery: This pressure dip in the upstream reactor was identified as the root cause. The dip was causing an overload of small rubber particles to enter the conveyor system, creating a physical blockage and leading to the pressure increase.

Solution: By identifying the pressure dip in the upstream reactor as the trigger, the plant could stabilize the pressure control for that unit. This prevented the formation of the small particles that were causing the bottleneck.
Benefits:
- The company can now run multiple consecutive production runs of the problematic grade without interruption.
- This allows them to produce to market demand more effectively, avoiding overhead and costs associated with constant grade switching.
Result: The solution led to a 16% efficiency gain, resulting in over €100,000 in savings per year.

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