Integrating Leading Remote Monitoring Solutions for Optimised Operations

May 28, 2024

CSE Uniserve is building a safer, more productive world through the integration of intelligent remote monitoring solutions. CSE Uniserve’s specialist integrators, engineers and project managers work rapidly to build better processes in environments that require reliable and deliberate connections, to ensure minimal disruption and dependable performance.

The challenges of escalating maintenance costs, risks associated with accessing transformers and appointing staff with the right skillsets to undertake scheduled site maintenance in a saturated job market have made remote inspection solutions more of a “must have” rather than a “nice to have” business capability.

In partnership with SWI, CSE Uniserve provides world-leading solutions for monitoring and management of critical assets as well as the associated design, implementation and support services.

Industrial IoT Monitoring Platform

Whilst there are many SCADA based solutions on offer, the Systems With Intelligence™ (SWI) Industrial IoT Monitoring Platform provides a window into asset health. Whatever the device may be, the SWI platform integrates leading, industry-standard tools that collectively deliver the operational insights necessary for the success of a progressive business. A true differentiator in the market, SWI delivers a flexible, secure, self-managed, cloud-based analytics platform that can integrate thermal and visual inspection modules, such as the IM500.  By utilising the SM500 sensor module at remote sites, customers can also integrate a wide variety of third-party sensor modules for monitoring and collecting asset health data via Modbus on those sites.

Key Solution Benefits

• Mitigate the risk of unplanned or catastrophic failures/outages
• Manage critical and/or ageing assets
• Monitoring of remote sites with real-time alerts
• Plant lifecycle cost optimisation through condition-based maintenance
• Essential site access only in high-risk site locations
• Reduction of both CAPEX and OPEX expenditure
• Easily configured

The implementation of the IM500 industrial IoT module delivers remote monitoring solutions through thermal and visual inspection capabilities with an interface to other sensors providing safety, environmental and quality monitoring signals. The signals detect anomalies and securely transmit these signals to the Monitoring Platform to provide automatic warnings. When integrated with the dedicated cloud Monitoring Platform, the IM500 is the perfect tool for preventive and predictive maintenance.

Features- IM500

• Dual thermal and visual camera
• Secure cellular connection to IoT Cloud
• I/O connections enable external sensors
• Low power consumption
• Optional connection to SCADA/GIS and asset management applications

Touchless inspections deliver return on investment.

A utility customer was performing thorough periodic substation inspections that included the enclosed connections on the low-voltage side of the transformer. To do the inspection, the transformer had to be powered down and temporary alternate power trucked in. The enclosure is accessed through a bolted hatch to enable the technician to visually inspect the connections, however, the connections could not be thermally inspected with no current flowing through the connection points. Due to the time and expense required, the inspections were performed on an infrequent basis, opening the possibility of missing problems that could lead to more expensive failures and outages.

The IM500 solution allowed the customer to perform Touchless Inspections, with 24/7 monitoring on sites and equipment that would otherwise be difficult and costly to inspect. Utilising the onboard thermal and visual images and built-in wireless communications, the customers received temperature readings on live systems to detect overheating bushings, cables, joints and insulators – even in enclosed and confined spaces.

The SWI dashboard provided the customer with a comprehensive view of the data, graphs of the temperature points, along with visual and thermal images. Alarms were set in the dashboard so operators were alerted instantly if temperatures exceeded the pre-set thresholds ultimately improving utility safety and reliability while reducing operating costs. The data and alarms could be sent to SCADA or a historian system through the SWI ISG500 Sensor Gateway, allowing the customer to trend the data and use it in a condition-based maintenance program.

From electrical system protection and automation to asset management and communication systems, CSE Uniserve supports power transmission and distribution utilities to maximise the performance of their assets.

Our specialist electrical engineers deliver reliable remote monitoring solutions that provide real-time determinations of asset status and environmental stresses influencing plants. CSE Uniserve supports utilities to achieve dependable and safe operation of their power system plant.