Foxboro mesh network technology for mineral plant

IOC to expand I/A Series digital automation systems using latest Foxboro mesh network technology on Canada's largest mineral processing plant.

The Iron Ore Company of Canada to expand I/A Series digital automation systems using latest Foxboro mesh network technology at Canada's largest mineral processing plant.

Project will connect multiple generations of systems, putting entire Iron Ore Company of Canada plant under I/A Series control.

Invensys Process Systems has been selected by Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) to implement a new mesh network-based Foxboro automation system for beneficiation processes at the IOC Labrador City iron ore concentrator.

The plant is located near the western boundary of Labrador, in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

Connecting with several existing Foxboro systems, the new control system, when completed, will put all plant processes under I/A Series control.

The IOC Labrador City concentrator complex is Canada's largest such operation, with an annual concentrator production capacity of about 16 million tons.

Approximately 75 percent of this capacity is processed into pellets on-site, and the balance is shipped directly to sinter feed customers.

Invensys will implement the latest I/A Series Version 8X hardware and software, including the CP270 family of control processors and a range of I/O modules.

The system will replace outdated equipment, which was used to control the magnetite recovery and spiral processes.

It will also integrate with existing I/A Series systems used for controlling the grinding area and hematite plant, and the expanded system will have approximately 10,000 I/O points connecting to the network.

The Foxboro award-winning mesh network process control system backbone utilises advanced commercial communications technologies in robust industrial configurations.

Providing high-availability, self-healing network performance, the mesh architecture can connect thousands of stations at data speeds up to one gigabit between network switches.

Existing I/A Series systems at the IOC Labrador City plant will be integrated into the mesh network using the new Foxboro ATS (Address Translation Station) modules.

These modules enable I/A Series workstations and controllers on both mesh- and nonmesh-based networks to interoperate seamlessly.

The integrated network will leverage the IOC investment in existing controls, and will allow IOC to combine all the process areas into a single process control system with a common operator interface for all plant units.

The network infrastructure also has the capacity to integrate controls that support planned future production expansions by IOC.

The earlier implementations of Foxboro I/A Series at the concentrator installed in 1997 include automation for the grinding mills and the main spiral extraction processes.

Controls for the balance of plant operations were installed in 1999, including the flotation plant and the entire pellet plant, adjacent to the concentrator operation.

The contract also includes services from Invensys Systems Canada, covering engineering services, factory acceptance testing, training services, and field services to support the I/A Series implementation.

The Foxboro control automation project will be implemented in stages, with completion planned for the fall of 2006.

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