Currently offered for high pressure mixing heads and pumps for Cannon dosing machines
Caronno Pertusella, (Varese), Italy, October 19, 2022
Cannon Afros, a company of Cannon Group, which specializes in mixing equipment and dosing systems for polyurethanes (PU) and urethane elastomers, has developed and introduced OptiWise, a proprietary predictive maintenance system implementing industry 4.0 and Internet of Things (IoT) functions for the optimal operation of mixing heads and pumps, facilitating the best performance of foaming machines.
Predictive maintenance is a method that leverages condition-monitoring tools and techniques to determine the performance of a piece, or pieces of equipment while operating and contributing to a manufacturing process. An essential component necessary to implementing predictive maintenance is data collection which, when processed over time, helps differentiate what is normal and what could lead to a malfunction. The collected information is used to set up a machine learning algorithm that can detect anomalies, classify the faults, and thereby predict the condition of in-service equipment, or part of, to estimate when intervention is necessary.
“Cannon Afros is dedicated to continuous innovation and had already begun equipping PU foaming machines with data logging systems well before adding Industry 4.0 and IoT functions in 2017 when we launched the project focusing on predictive maintenance. Mixing heads and pumps are the most critical pieces of equipment for PU foaming machines and their failure can abruptly bring the production process to a halt, with costly results. The aims of OptiWise are to accurately detect and pinpoint potentially serious problems before indicators appear, so that maintenance can be scheduled just at the right time.”
Stefano Andreolli, Automotive Sales Manager at Cannon Afros
In 2019, Cannon began developing its “Talking Head” – a patented high pressure mixing head reconfigured to accommodate more than a dozen of sensors to monitor status and performance during its life cycle. More recently, in 2021, Cannon pulled together a team of technicians, including data analysts, to probe and monitor the mixing heads and pumps’ critical parameters using continuous and periodic measurements, remotely via the cloud. With numerous machines connected to the cloud the learning model is continuously fine-tuned due to the voluminous data stream which renders the predictive maintenance algorithm wiser.
All of Cannon’s authorized customers can access OptiWise anytime, anywhere with an array of devices and via a simple dashboard can monitor how the dosing machine or machines are performing in real-time alerting them of any trending anomaly.
To learn more, visit the Cannon Group at K2022, Düsseldorf, Germany (Oct. 19-26), in Hall 13 Booth B87.
About Cannon Afros
Cannon Afros, a company of the Cannon Group founded in the early 1960s, is the world’s leading supplier of dosing systems, mixing equipment and processing technologies for polyurethanes and multi-component resins. Today Cannon Afros offers an extensive range of processing technologies for molding, pouring, injection, spraying, pultrusion and manufacturing abilities dedicated to a comprehensive range of resins such as polyurethanes, silicones, elastomers, epoxy resins, phenolic foams, and bi-component adhesives. Cannon Afros design, manufactures and sells a vast range of equipment from single mixing heads and stand-alone units to complex turnkey and customizable production plants to serve the following main industrial applications: automotive interiors and exteriors, appliances and refrigerator insulation, rigid insulation for the cold chain industry and refrigerated transportation, building and construction insulation, sanitary ware, piping insulation for oil heating and district heating, technical components and medical equipment, flexible padding and seats for furniture and automotive industries, sealing and gluing for lighting and electrical enclosures, direct infusion and pultrusion for wind blades, and encapsulation and potting for electrical and electronic components.
About Cannon Group
Founded in 1962, Cannon Group comprises 30 companies, with a global presence in more than 40 countries and is recognized as a markt leader in technologies, processing and molds for polyurethanes and urethane elastomers for the plastics and composites industries. The Group designs and manufactures high- and low-pressure dosing machines and mixing equipment, for continuous slab and discontinuous molded polyurethane foams. Dedication to continuous innovation now positions Cannon Group as a driving force offering the design, manufacture, servicing, and maintenance of equipment also in other key technology areas including: Energy – industrial boilers for standard and special applications, comprising steam boilers, hot water heaters, heat recovery boilers, and thermal oil heaters, with in-house engineering and fabrication services; Water & Wastewater Treatment – deareators, condensate treatment and recovery, effluent treatment plants, sanitary water treatment and sewage treatment, injection water treatment, demineralization, produced water; and Automation, where Cannon Group offers process digitization and condition monitoring, connect-IT and emissions monitoring. Cannon Group is committed to reducing the ecological footprint of all the Group’s technologies and industrial processes offered to the market through energy efficiency, resource consumption reduction and emissions reduction. Cannon Group delivered net sales of €230 million in 2021. To learn more, visit www.cannon.com
Media Contact
Alberta Stella
Head of Corporate Marketing Communications
+39 347 63 76 787
astella@cannon.com
Cannon Afros introduces OptiWise – an IoT-based proprietary predictive maintenance system. Cannon’s patented “Talking Head” is designed to host more than a dozen sensors for real-time monitoring and predictive analysis detecting the status and exposing anomalies or critical issues to operators to perform corrective adjustments or maintenance.
Photo: Cannon Group
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