Honeywell has launched its Honeywell Instant Location System (HILS), a real-time location solution that industrial manufacturers can use to ensure safety, improve security and manage people and valuable assets within their facilities.
HILS integrates the latest identification and location technologies available today, such as Ultra-Wideband (UWB), Global Positioning Systems (GPS), Wi-Fi and active radio-frequency identification (RFID), with Honeywell's process automation system, Experion Process Knowledge System (PKS). Installed at locations throughout a facility, receivers can pinpoint the location of an employee or piece of equipment and send the information to the HILS server, which directly feeds the information to the operator's workstation. The receivers can transmit data wirelessly using Honeywell's new OneWireless network.
"Every second counts when you're trying to locate employees during a plant emergency. Additionally, when employees spend hours looking for a lost piece of equipment, it wastes production time," said Jack Bolick, President, Honeywell Process Solutions. "Location is not a process variable, but it is a variable that can be monitored and used to improve operations and reduce costs. More importantly, it can save lives."
Within seconds of a major plant incident, HILS can track employees and visitors through personal tags attached to their clothing and generate real-time mustering reports. These reports allow emergency responders to quickly obtain accurate headcounts and locate missing or injured employees.
Integrated with Experion, HILS can use equipment and personnel geo-location information to improve plant safety. For example, HILS can use interlocks to ensure dangerous procedures are only executed when personnel are a safe distance from a process unit or machinery.
"This is the first real-time location system designed with the process industry environment in mind," said Bolick. "Integrating this technology with the control system produces a solution that gives manufacturers even greater awareness of what's happening in their facilities. That awareness leads to safer and more efficient operations."
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