Faster, more accurate production is achieved through automation, but one automated solution doesn’t fit all. EPIC provides custom industrial automation services for a variety of plant applications across all major technology platforms and most industries. Our proven approach to automation design and implementation has helped us create lasting competitive advantage for our clients over the last 20 years.
Our goal with any automation project is to deliver superior results for you while helping you prove the long-term ROI of your investment. We are an un-biased automation integration with no formal supplier partnerships, which allows us to deliver you the best solution every time. Common applications we work with, include:
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Plant Engineering & Automation Services
Line Optimization & Re-calibration
Maximizing throughput on your production lines requires expert help in matching feed rates and speeds of individual pieces of equipment to adjacent machines. Our engineers can help you optimize thee flow of products and materials from one piece of equipment to the next, creating the proper accumulation at each point along the line based on upstream and downstream equipment speeds. We can also perform OEE, uptime and mean-time before failure (MBTE) for further line insights as needed.
Automated Quality Inspection Systems
Does your facility need to improve product quality or reduce product cost? EPIC industrial machine vision systems provides solutions to improve your manufacturing objectives. An EPIC vision solution maximizes inspection capabilities, delivering superior pass/fail rates and efficiencies over out-of-the-box solutions. From custom packaging inspections to process feedback applications, our engineers design, program and customize a vision solution that’s right for you.
Our process automation services keep you running on modern control systems so you can continue to optimize your process, visualize the plant floor, and reduce costs. We have a robust range of applications we have been successful integrating into process applications for over 20 years.
Learn more about our specific capabilities in process automation.
PLC controls, material handling, robotics, vision systems, and component indexing are all examples of factory automation applications we can integrate into your plant. Our industrial automation services automate your manufacturing process, successfully implement quality control systems, and handle materials on the line.
Learn more about our Factory Automation Services
Integration of batching automation provides traceability, flexibility, better control of your recipe system. We have been helping clients realize these benefits for over 20 years. Trace your batches from inception, edit recipes in real time, and integrate data with your MES/MOM systems for smoother manufacturing.
Learn more about the batch process automation solutions we offer.
Harness the power of your manufacturing data to create a seamless supply chain and manufacturing process. Unite your data sources and let EPIC guide you through the process of designing an implementing an MES system that provides actionable insights and improves your bottom line.
See our full MES/MOM integration services…
Control migrations are a staggering undertaking that can make or break the productivity of your plant. Our proven methods maximize ROI and minimize downtime for your plant. Reduce risk and stress in the migration process by working with EPIC.
More about Control System Migrations…
Relieve your employees of the repetitive tasks that suck up time and hold them back. Integration of RPA systems results in people doing only the things people can do, and a highly effiecient logical algorythym handling the rest. Generate bills of material, OSHA data sheets, ingredients lists, and other tasks with reduced risk and increased speed.
High Product Demand Forces PLC5 Upgrade with Minimal Downtime Requirements
High Product Demand Forces PLC5 Upgrade with Minimal Downtime RequirementsAn outdated PLC5 chassis needed to be updated to avoid obsolescence, but production could not afford downtime. EPIC’s automation and controls team worked around the clock for seven consecutive weekends to convert the outdated PLC5 chassis and associated I/O to a new ControlLogix platform as quickly as possible without interrupting the client’s weekly production schedule.
KEY FEATURES:
- ControlLogix PAC Platform
- Wonderware Intouch
CORE CHALLENGES:
- Electrical schematics were incomplete or did not exist
- Multiple power sources were fed from unmarked sources
- Some I/O didn’t function before the migration; therefore, additional diagnostics were needed
- Hundreds of I/O points needed to be rewired
EPIC successfully upgraded the customer’s control system without impacting scheduled production. EPIC’s team was “all hands on deck” on the weekends – executing one complete conversion per weekend – for seven consecutive weekends. EPIC rewired and reprogrammed hundreds of I/O points to bring the system up-to-date. Our team also uncovered and corrected existing programming issues that left the customer with a more reliable solution, eliminating unnecessary legacy code. Finally, EPIC cleaned up the wiring and schematics to make sure that the controls systems would be easy to maintain in the future.
IMPACT
EPIC’s solution allowed for:
- Zero interruptions to current production which kept product moving out the door on schedule
- Critical controls updates which
- Ensured obsolete programming was eliminated and systems could run on Controllogix well into the future
- Allow for increased productivity and easier access to controls data for line operators and plant staff
Personal Care Product Vision System Reduces Defects on High Speed Line
Personal Care Product Vision System Reduces Defects on High Speed LineA consumer products manufacturer needed a custom machine vision system on a personal care product line that could be duplicated for multiple systems.
KEY ENGINEERING FEATURES:
- Custom machine vision system to identify multiple defects in production
- Complete vision system programming includes low false identification rates
- Development of a standard vision kit to be used on domestic and international lines
CORE CHALLENGES:
- High speed process
- Remote installation without direct supervision by EPIC Systems
- Multiple defect inspection
- Repeatable performance in multiple systems
Each camera on the production line looks for a number of different defects as the product is formed. Based on size and shape of a defect free product, the camera can pick out defects as they form in the sub-components, and signal the line to reject that product. A positively identified defect causes a product to be removed from the line. Defect free products continue through the line and are packaged into bags and boxes.
IMPACT
- Production speed was maintained while inspections took place
- Dramatic reduction in the number of defective products leaving the plant
- Waste kept to a minimum by maintaining a low false identification rate
- Time and money expenditure kept to a minimum by creation of a standard kit
- Programs designed for simple interface to allow technicians to monitor and adjust cameras as necessary
EPIC Industrial Automation
EPIC Industrial Automation