Expanding your world with IPU and Senquip
The world is fast-paced. A million things to do. Sites everywhere, with multiple, expensive assets. Generators, lighting towers, fuel tanks. The cost of fuel, lead time for components and the need to preserve the bottom line means protecting them is more important than ever. IPU makes this easy with the Senquip ORB.
Ultimate generator visibility and reliability
You can’t have eyes and ears on every piece of equipment 24/7. Keeping sites manned round the clock is expensive, unproductive, and now – it’s unnecessary.
Without a doubt, remote monitoring and control has the highest return on investment for any diesel machinery owner. The freight industry realised this early on, investing heavily in vehicle tracking.
Although generators are valuable assets in their own right, we know that the primary motivator for monitoring a genset is the potential loss of productivity should it fail to work. Remote generator monitoring with the ORB provides virtual access to your generator fleet from anywhere in the world. You can be confident it’s ready for use, identify potential issues before they become expensive, and reduce the need for extensive site visits.
Generator killers
In the applications we’ve installed into, we have found the most common causes for generator failure are low battery state of charge, low fuel, or the generator wasn’t where it needed to be. Remote monitoring and the correct application of alerts eradicate these issues immediately.
More detailed information available through the ORB includes oil pressure, engine temperature, battery voltage, power output, potential mains failure, frequency, fuel levels, engine run time, engine fault codes and more. These parameters allow for a comprehensive review of the condition of your generator without needing to visit the site.
Access to parameters on more modern machines is typically available through a serial interface with MODBUS over RS232 and RS485, and J1939 over CAN being the most common. Some engine controllers mix their protocols, some are proprietary, and many don’t adhere to their own specifications. The ORBs have all these physical interfaces and can be customised with JavaScript to adhere to any machine protocol, so nothing is holding you back.
A fleet owner’s best friend
Fleet owners don’t have it easy. For some, maximum productivity is key. For others, backup power availability is critical.
Productivity is maximised by having the correct capacity on site and by minimising downtime due to servicing and maintenance. A remote monitoring solution needs to report the location of each unit, the current status, and the usage over time. The ORB makes this monitoring easy, even on older machines.
Availability is maximised by ensuring that the start battery is charged, the machine has fuel, and through a regular testing regime, all of which can be performed or monitored remotely with the ORB.
Ignition, vibration, and GPS movement are used to determine standing, idle, and operating hours with little to no connection to a machine. Hours are stored on the Senquip Portal, allowing for evidence-based billing and reporting. For more advanced users, engine hours, fuel level, fault codes and other engine parameters are collected from the engine CAN-bus allowing for accurate service intervals and preventative maintenance.
Don’t be left in the dark
Your lighting plant’s value is the work it enables – not the price you paid for it. Having a crew arrive and have no light because the plant has run out of fuel, can’t start because of a flat battery, has an engine fault, or is just missing, is expensive. Remote monitoring of your lighting plant fleet is a low-cost way to increase productivity by reducing downtime.
Off-highway plant rarely ships with integrated monitoring because there is little benefit for the OEM. In fact, having plant fail due to extended use with an engine fault, missed services, or other user-induced faults can result in a paid repair or new sale.
The ORB excels in monitoring off-highway plant because it can monitor almost any sensor, interface to any engine controller, and can be customised to fit the application with user-programmed JavaScript and edge processing.
Australian outback or the M6?
The Senquip ORBs hail from Australia, originally built for use in quarries. They are tried and tested across numerous applications globally, including marine, agriculture, emergency services, industrial, construction and mining.
A no compromise approach to design and the use of quality materials means that ORBs have been fitted up poles in rainstorms, on structures in chemically toxic environments, attached to machines covered in dust, and in the middle of nowhere exposed to the sun.
So, whether the ORB is installed in the middle of the Cornish countryside, the heart of London, or in roadworks on the side of the M6, there’s nothing it can’t handle.
Tackling fuel theft
We’ve all seen the headlines recently – diesel is a hot commodity, which means it’s more vulnerable to theft than ever. With IPU expertise and the ORB, you can get next-level protection for your fuel storage tanks.
The ORB can monitor diesel volumes and flow rates on your remotely located fuel storage tanks. It can increase efficiency by monitoring fuel usage and optimising storage capacity. You’ll be able to verify diesel delivery times and volumes. And, of course, you can be alerted when fuel is being drawn from tanks unexpectantly, giving you the opportunity to save your fuel.
Intrigued?
Thanks to our in-house software engineers, we can build custom solutions made for your application. This, along with our huge range of market-leading Enovation HMI displays and industrial Powercore controllers, gives you unbeatable visibility and control over your assets.
Visit www.ipu.co.uk/amps-senquip to learn more.