Pakistan-based DG Khan Cement Co Ltd, has chosen Schneider Electric to provide a comprehensive electrification solution for the 10,000tpd Balochistan plant.

The facility will use a range of smart hard- and software and services that will fully power the site as well as optimise power usage to make the works more energy efficient and sustainable.

Schneider's EcoStruxure equipment is internet-of-things enabled, allowing the operations team a full view of energy usage across the factory. Artificial Intelligence-powered software will help the company to take a predictive approach to maintenance, resulting in a facility that is much more productive.

The hardware supplied includes low- and medium-voltage equipment, special dry type transformers and speed drives. Power meters and sensors will help provide data to the operations team on equipment performance. Uninterruptible power supply devices will provide backup power. All of the hardware is Internet-of-Things enabled and will share essential information about energy usage and efficiency levels.

EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert (PME) software will be used to help maximise uptime and operational efficiency across the facility by maximising operational lifecycle efficiency by using Artificial Intelligence to model power usage. Thanks to EcoStruxure Asset Advisor, the plant's equipment will be monitored 24/7 by Schneider Electric’s Connected Services Hub, and management will be able to see performance data and recommended actions through an application on their phone. Any issues will be flagged immediately and rectified on-site.

"The most important criteria when selecting a solution was to have green technology that's state-of-the-art and which will help us improve our energy efficiency. It's important to us that we work with reputable suppliers who have a presence on the ground and a history in the country," said Raza Mansha, CEO, DG Khan Cement Co.

DG Khan Cement's Technical and Operations Director, Dr Arif Bashir, added: "Our goal is to monitor and manage power across our infrastructure efficiently, find electrical faults sooner, fix issues quicker, and achieve a faster return on investment. Thanks to Schneider Electric for introducing energy efficiency solutions that will improve performance."

The plant will also include a 10MW waste heat recovery system and a 30MW coal-fired power plant, which are scheduled to start electricity generation in December 2020 and March 2021, respectively.