Advanced Process Control

Maximize Profits & Stabilize Processes

Gain Control of Your Processes

APC maximizes profits by stabilizing plant processes & continuously calculating optimal setpoints using technologies such as MPC, multivariable control, process modeling & simulation, and online optimisation algorithms.

Unlock Maximum Potential

The objective of advanced process control is to push the plant as close as possible to the operating region or limit where maximum potential profits are realised. A two-step approach is followed to achieve this. Firstly, the process is stabilised, after which optimal setpoints are continuously calculated to keep the process in an optimal state. Numerous technologies are utilised as a part of our advanced process control solutions, like model predictive control (MPC), multivariable control, process modeling and simulation, and online optimisation algorithms.

Blue Nickel has successfully integrated APC solutions into flotation, milling, crushing, kilns, autoclave and abatement equipment, hot gas generators, as well as drying and evaporating processes. These solutions continue to create significant value for our clients today.

Benefits

Benefits resulting from process control improvements include:

• Improved process and energy efficiency
• Improved throughput
• Improved product quality

Process Optimisation

Unlock Your Plant's Potential

Optimise Your Process Performance

Dynamic/steady-state modeling & simulations determine optimal operating regimes. Implemented recommendations lead to significant performance improvement.

Gain Efficiencies with Process Optimization and Data Mining

When investigating process performance, it’s common to combine data mining and analysis with sound process engineering principles. This helps to ensure that the process is working at maximum efficiency and that any areas where improvements can be made are identified. Many factors need to be considered when assessing process performance, including process stability, the role of the operator, instrumentation, control system logic, equipment efficiencies, metallurgical performance, and operational costs.

One way to determine the optimal operating regime is through dynamic and steady-state modeling and simulations. These methods can help to predict the performance of the process under different conditions and to identify the best settings for each variable.

The recommendations that come out of these studies can result in significant improvements in process performance. By implementing the suggested changes, operators can reduce operational costs, increase efficiency, and improve overall performance. In conclusion, process performance investigations that utilize data mining, analysis, and sound process engineering principles can be incredibly valuable for organizations looking to optimize their operations.

Data & Systems Management

Unlock the Potential of Data

Unlock the Potential of Data and Systems Management

Improve data access & reduce costs for mining & process industries, making interaction seamless to improve productivity.

Unlocking the Power of Real-Time Analysis

Blue Nickel provides a customised solution that meets all data storage and management needs. We deliver a single integrated system with one tag list, one data source, and one standard web interface. With data access being a core process in all mining and process industries, our solutions make access and interaction seamless to reduce costs and improve profits.

Solution benefits that can be achieved include:

• Storage for large amounts of process and time series data, along with access to unlimited tag lists
• Rebuilding data based on interpolation of existing data
• Web interface for manual data like log sheets
• Web service to access data programmatically
• Excel add-in

Transformation and analysis of data, real-time and offline, are central to what we do. To assist with this, we have developed powerful software tools that seamlessly integrate with any database or control system to perform complex data manipulation tasks in real time.

Software tools such as the Phoenix Historian which is a data logging application that logs all process data from the PLC or SCADA indefinitely. Data from elsewhere, like a LIMS system or weighbridge database, can easily be pulled into the historian so that all data is available from one central location. Phoenix Historian not only gathers all real-time process data, it compresses and archives the data for subsequent statistical calculations and analysis. Data logger objects can be created automatically to query process data and pull time series information when necessary for effective analysis. Access to the data is made easy through DART and Excel. Built-in features of the Phoenix Historian include data backups and redundancy.

Performance Monitoring

Stay Ahead of the Curve

Stay Ahead of the Curve

Reporting solutions that use the latest technology to roll up process data in readily accessible summaries, rapidly identifying sub-optimal performance.

Optimise Your Process and Equipment Performance

Only once you know there is a problem in your process can you fix it. Our reporting solutions integrate and utilise the latest technologies to roll up large quantities of process data in meaningful summaries that are easily accessible. Sub-optimal process or equipment performance is rapidly identified through state-of-the-art reporting and dashboard interfaces. Our reporting solutions include production reporting, cell phone reporting, control loop performance monitoring, process stability analysis, environmental monitoring, downtime analysis, and instrumentation measurement validation.

Solution benefits include but is not limited to:

• Access data from any data source
• Visualize data online and offline on a dashboard interface
• Summarised reporting of data tags in customised time trends
• Event or interval-based reporting
• Measurement limits and threshold triggers reporting
• Good monitoring of as many tags as you want
• Accurate insight into the process KPIs
• Detection and prediction of weak spots in the production and process system
• Evaluation of the overall equipment effectiveness and operational costs
• Automated monitoring of hundreds of PID control loops
• Identify causes of loop poor performance
• Sub-optimal control tuning parameters
• Faulty control valves and pumps
• Malfunctioning measuring instruments
• Excessive external disturbance
• Real-time control loop data analysis
• Detailed diagnostic report of problematic control loops

Useful information is presented to clients in tables and graphs by automated emails to client PCs and mobile devices through the messaging application (yammer), SMS, and MMS. Our solutions give you accurate process information needed for you to make the right decision that is uniquely designed to suit all Monitoring and Reporting needs. We have partnered with various clients in the mineral processing industries with the ultimate goal of identifying opportunities for increased productivity and process efficiencies.

Engineering Services

Discover the Key to Process Success

Discover the Key to Process Success

Qualified process & metallurgical engineers offering services, incl. process studies, R&D, equipment design, production reporting, metal accounting, training, feasibility/capacity studies, project execution & management.

Make Your Processes Shine

Blue Nickel’s team of highly qualified process and metallurgical engineers offers a range of expert services to optimize your operations, including:

• Process studies for identifying improvement opportunities
• Research and development
• Functional specification definition and documentation
• Experimental design
• R&D project execution and management
• Plant and equipment commissioning
• Equipment design, modeling, and simulation
• Daily process performance analysis
• Production reporting configuration and maintenance
• Metal accounting
• Metallurgical and operator training
• Feasibility and capacity studies
• Project execution and management

With our extensive expertise and knowledge, we can help ensure that your business is running smoothly and efficiently. Trust Blue Nickel to provide you with exceptional support throughout your projects. Contact us today to learn more about how our services can benefit your business.

Digital Transformation

Take Your Business into the Digital Age

Take Your Business into the Digital Age

Transforming businesses into digital empires, starting with lower-level services & layer by layer transformation.

Transform Your Business Layer by Layer

Many companies today are rushing to transform their company via Digital Transformation (DX) but do not fully understand what DX is or how to incorporate it into their business model.

Blue Nickel has been providing services and products to digitalise business processes for years and understands that a transformation does not happen overnight. So to ensure your business gets into the digital age, we have identified that the changes should happen at the lower-level services first and make their way up the overall system, layer by layer, transforming your business into a digital empire.

Training

Empower Your Plant Technicians

Empower Your Plant Technicians

Operator training simulators with dynamic process models, control system design/validation, advanced process control training, metallurgical services, and Excel training.

Enhance Your Plant’s Process Understanding

Blue Nickel is driven by a goal of transparency and simplicity in its development of applications that deliver a solution geared at empowering plant technicians and operators. Our operator training simulator provides an accurate and in-depth process understanding through simulation of the plant operations.

Solution benefits:

• Dynamic process models (first principle or data-driven models)
• Model validation techniques
• Dynamic simulation environment with good integration with different heterogeneous systems (DCS, SCADA)
• Control system design and simulation environment
• Control system validation techniques to validate DCS control and logic checkout
• A platform for implementing advanced process control

Our computer-based application provides an interface suitable for the training of plant operators and technicians, designed to mimic client plant operations. Blue Nickel can also assist clients with training with regard to Advanced process control, Metallurgical services, and Excel.

Product Portfolio

Experience Increased Efficiency

Experience Increased Efficiency

Our products are adaptable and customizable, with interfaces available for clients to modify the software to fit their needs.

The Right Fit for Your Business

Our products at Blue Nickel are geared towards ensuring that we assist our clients in increasing the efficiencies of their operations whilst keeping the products simple to operate. Blue Nickel products are easily adaptable, allowing for many special features deployed within each version. Interfaces are available at all connection points to allow clients to adapt the software for their specific needs, or Blue Nickel can add any customisations required per request.

DART

Data visualization plays an integral role in understanding one’s process. DART is our data trending and query tool. With DART, one can connect to a multitude of data sources ranging from plant historians to lab databases. Tags can easily be searched and visualized, and the data can be exported to more user-friendly environments like Microsoft Excel. DART gives its user the power to quickly find, identify, and troubleshoot process issues that arise.

Fluid Reports

Daily performance monitoring is key to improving and stabilizing one’s process. At Blue Nickel, we provide this service with our Fluid Reports reporting tool. Fluid Reports can connect to all available data sources on site, extract data for a specified period and display the data in ways to identify process performance and highlight where improvements can be made. Fluid Reports is used by both metallurgists and control engineers to monitor the process performance and controller performance daily, giving them the ability to act quickly when performance issues arise. Fluid Reports can distribute reports, at fixed intervals, through emails and messaging apps like telegram. It can also be set up to trigger a report.

Opto One

Opto One is an automated web-based application that monitors the performance of all PID control loops on a plant. This package makes it easy for an instrumentation technician to monitor the performance of hundreds of control loops. Control loop data gets analysed and processed in real-time so that a high-level report allows the user rapid navigation to faulty control loops where diagnostics of the problematic control loops are available.

Phoenix DB

Data from the PLC or SCADA are stored at high frequency through an OPC connection. The end user uses DART to access data, while a web service exposes data to be obtained programmatically. Data backups and redundancy are inherited from the NoSQL backend.

Phoenix RTE

Phoenix RTE is a highly functional analytics engine. It is a web-based interface that reads and writes to any data source. A live environment enables real-time monitoring of process and controller KPIs. It performs complex calculations in real-time or process data in batches. Phoenix RTE is ideal for the implementation and monitoring of advanced control strategies.

Psibyl

In today’s competitive industry, it has become essential to have a competitive advantage. Blue Nickel can offer this advantage in Advanced Process Control (APC), specifically Model Predictive Control (MPC). Psibyl, Blue Nickel’s MPC software, gives you our client the ability to stabilize and optimize your process, resulting in less downtime and improved process performance. Using multivariable models, Psibyl can predict how a process is going to react at any given moment and then take steps to ensure the process stays or goes to the desired process state. Blue Nickel has over 100 Psibyl controllers running on 12 sites, providing our clients with cutting-edge technology in control engineering.

Olympus

To be an industry leader, you need the latest information digitally at your fingertips. No more paper trail or excel spreadsheets! Blue Nickel offers versatile solutions to this with our Olympus Framework. With our Olympus Framework, you can select from a multitude of modules and tailor solutions to your specific needs. Putting you in control of your data and daily operations. Modules include Security, Breakdown Event Monitor – to capture all equipment-based failures and maintenance, LIMS, Digital Data Events – to capture daily or shiftly data, Logsheets – to keep on top of your action lists for planned projects, Links – to access important reports and information from the same web interface. These are just some of the modules that will be available for you.

Asset Tree

In today’s data-driven industrial environment, having clear and structured asset information is essential. The Asset Tree provides this foundation by organising plant equipment, areas, and operational data into a logical, hierarchical structure. By standardising how equipment, process areas, and downtime reasons are linked, the Asset Tree improves visibility and provides better context for plant performance data. This enables teams to more easily understand, analyse, and improve operational performance across the site.

DownTraX

In today’s operations, reducing equipment losses is essential. Blue Nickel’s off-the-shelf Downtime Logging and Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) system, DownTraX, captures and reports equipment downtime and performance data in real time. By clearly showing availability, performance, and quality metrics, the system helps onsite teams quickly identify issues, make better decisions, and continuously improve operations. This leads to better visibility, improved maintenance planning, reduced production losses, and increased overall efficiency.