The project upgrades the EAE frontend controls, including proprietary Desk PCs/Screens, Net PCs, Service PC and Info PCs. All of these will be replaced with off-the-shelf standard PC/Touchscreens and Allen-Bradley Logix PLCs – giving the Windsor Star the ability to self-support their system going forward. The SBCs and SBCEs (on-unit control) are retained at this stage to minimize costs. If required, however, these can be addressed on a unit-by-unit basis, at a later date.

"This project follows other successful EAE and KBA upgrades in recent years and a mailroom upgrade here in 2014 on their Goss Inserters”, said John Staiano, Harland Simon’s Director – Americas. “We are confident this upgrade will help the Postmedia to continue to build on their growing commercial market in the area.”

Harland Simon used Allen-Bradley Logix PLCs with its RSlogics 5000 diagnostic software, available via the Harland Simon-supplied maintenance PC, streamlining fault-finding procedures and allowing remote diagnostics and support via a VPN line. Using this same approach and hardware platforms, Harland Simon also completed similar successful projects at Postmedia’s production facilities in Vancouver, BC and Saskatoon, SK.

John Staiano further commented, “Our engineers are looking forward to returning to site and working once again with Doug Shillington, Director of Production and his team on another project.”

Harland Simon are also upgrading twelve upper press Indramat drives and motors to the latest Indradrives and MLCs to replace the obsolete CLC system. In addition, the Reel Acceleration Control Techniques Vector drives and Infeed Lenze drives will be upgraded to complete the picture.

All of the equipment and technology will be delivered and installed without any disruption to production at the Windsor facility. This system replacement approach has been developed by Harland Simon over the past 15 years for press facilities using Goss, KBA, EAE, Rockwell Automation, Honeywell, and manroland systems.

About Harland Simon
Harland Simon is one of the world’s leading suppliers of newspaper press control and management systems. With its roots going back to 1915, the company has been providing innovative, user-friendly and reliable solutions to the newspaper printing industry for over thirty years, from ‘turnkey’ systems for new presses to cost effective upgrades on existing presses.

Utilizing the benefits of industry-standard hardware and software platforms, Harland Simon offers a complete range of products and solutions including press drives and controls as well as associated computer management systems and production tools. It’s an approach that Harland Simon has used on many occasions previously on systems supplied by Goss, KBA, EAE, Rockwell Automation, Honeywell, and manroland to improve performance, minimize waste and maximize production quality whilst keeping presses in daily production.

(http://www.harlandsimon.com)