Mechanisatie Haarlemmermeer sells, repairs and maintains agricultural machines of renowned brands and also develops and builds machines specifically for flower bulb cultivation. This innovative partner for the agricultural sector, in the field of agricultural mechanization, machine construction and internal transport, annually buildsprevious agricultural machinery for its customers. However, one problem they encountered was the disruptions and travel time of the technicians involved. To be able to monitor the machines remotely, it was desirable to build a mobile internet solution in the machine and connect it to the Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). A PLC is an electronic device in the form of a digital computer that controls the operation of a machine. In collaboration with Comgate and Capestone, the total solution was found in the combination of a 4G router, 4G MIMO puck antenna and connectivity.
Most malfunctions that Mechanization Haarlemmermeer received of customers could usually be remedied quickly, provided they knew exactly what was going on. Previously went er many time lost to travel timed. Ttechnically had to regularly turn out for a simple malfunction that the customer also himself HAD can help by means of telephone support. ''A solution for remote management and analysis of the machines was desirable. We started looking for a party that could advise us on a 4G total solution against an affordable price without unnecessary extras. Important Requirements when choosing the right hardware were among others: the compactness en the resistance to vibrations. in addition moest the hardware can be paired with our own hardware and programming environment and can be switched on and off several times", thus Alexander Sweers Control Engineer at Mechanization Haarlemmermeer. "Customer focus is for us very important. We want to understand and relieve the customer as much as possible. Dear flexible and Innovative to be, can we make it to care that we each be able to successfully deliver a challenging project. ''
In their search for a mobile internet solution kwam Mechanisatie Haarlemmermeer went to Comgate and its sister company Capestone. Comgate advised them om to make use of de cradle point IBR200 4G router, 4G MIMO pucks antennas en connectivity from KPN. The 4G router sufficed fully at iron. Remote management of the routers and the ability to guarantee a secure mobile internet connection is guaranteed by the management and application platform: NetCloud. Settings and firmware-updates for a router from a certain series of machines, can be performed at once. Since the router is incorporated in a metal cabinet, an external antenna was necessary to properly pick up the signal. For connectivity, voor a data bundle from KPN with 250MB. Because the SIM cards parties are and agricultural machinery often in different periods from each other being used, this data bundle is sufficient for the whole year. Read more about Comgate's IoT solutions here.
''This 4G total solution enables us to watch live in the machine. A thorough problem statement can be formed from a distance. We can then instruct the customer to solve a malfunction ourselves or we can solve minor malfunctions remotely. If both cases fail, a diagnosis has often already been made in the meantime and a service technician can work in a targeted manner without first having to start an analytical investigation on location, which is often more time-consuming. Customer-specific wishes can also be realized remotely. The use of a router also offers many possibilities to expand future machine options,'' says Alexander.
By adding a mobile internet solution in an agricultural machine, the customer is helped more quickly. After all, he does not have to wait until a service technician is available and/or on site. The technician can watch directly from a distance and downtime of the customer's company is kept to a minimum. In this way, Mechanization Haarlemmermeer can offer a total solution that completely unburdens its customers.
Alexander Sweers is very satisfied with the collaboration with Comgate and Capestone. “We are very satisfied with the entire process. The sales staff understand the hardware and connectivity. The various options are proactively considered. In addition, the technical engineers are competent and quickly accessible, which was very nice when we needed some help while assembling and setting up the hardware."
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