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Matrikon appoints VRT as Systems Integrator for MES. [Jan-08] Since the early 90's, VRT has been building custom MES/PIMS solutions for its customers, as it is only in recent years that "packaged" solutions have been available. VRT's previous experience with MES/PIMS, along with a relationship with Matrikon dating back to the mid 90s, helped to make this a good fit for both companies. Read more »

BFM Sub-metering Breakthrough. [July-08] Specialist power meter manufacturer, SATEC, has released a novel product, BFM (Branch Feeder Monitor), suitable for retro-fitting to low voltage distribution boards for sub-metering purposes. Read more »

VRT Wins Citect Award [Aug-08] ...for the "Most Innovative New Project or Application of a Citect Solution" for 2007. This Award was presented to VRT Principal Engineer, Ken Johnson by Citect's Managing Director, Oceania, Scott Wooldridge, on the completion of VRT's LongView system for BMA's Broadmeadow mine. Read more »

VRT Adds LongView Simulator to the LongView Family of Products. [May-08] In conjunction with BMA Broadmeadow, VRT has developed a graphical simulator that enables planners of longwall moves to visualize each activity of a longwall move project in a rich, dynamic "Flash" graphics interface. Read more »

XTrack Showcased at Automining 2008 in Santiago. [Apr-08] Mark Oellermann was invited to present a paper including case studies of track & trace applications in the mineral processing industry at the international Automining 2008 Conference in Santiago in April 2008. This paper covered examples of both barcode and RFID applications, viz. copper cathode bundles and stainless steel cathode plates, respectively. Read more »
Download a copy of the paper »

Handshake "Partner for Life" Program. [Feb-08] Often when the D&C (Design and Construct) contractor completes a project, he's very quick to move on to the next one, leaving the Operations and Maintenance Managers without support for their systems. VRT can provide Support Agreements for the automation and SCADA systems in these cases.

Copperco's Lady Annie copper mine and EW processing plant was the first to enter into this arrangement with VRT. Although VRT had no role in the construction of the plant, it now has a Support Agreement in place to provide 24x7 support for all PLC and SCADA systems on this remote site.

If you need this type of support, please contact John Meehan at johnm@vrt.com.au

Citect+ES Matrikon licences VRT's +Enterprise Suite. [June-08] One of the world's leading industrial software developers, Matrikon, has entered into a licencing agreement with VRT for the use of its + Enterprise Suite toolset. Matrikon was impressed with the breadth of functionality and potential productivity benefits this toolset offers. Read more »

VRT announces the release of LongView® to the Australian market. [Feb-07] LongView is a packaged supervisory control and management solution tailored for longwall mining operations. It is based on an integrated software stack, comprising components specifically built and tested to meet the demands of longwall mining. Based on the industry de-facto standard, CitectSCADA, LongView is faster to deploy, lower-cost and risk to implement, and lower-cost to operate than CitectSCADA systems built from scratch. LongView also extends visibility of operations beyond the control room, with an integrated reporting solution and web based management dashboards. Read more »

RFID RFID Success at Xstrata. [Dec-06] VRT recently completed the commissioning of RFID readers on the second and final cathode stripping machine in Xstrata's Townsville Copper Refinery. Expansion of the RFID system was undertaken after a six month trial of the technology which demonstrated 100% read reliability for tags mounted in stainless steel plates. Each plate is fitted with a single RFID tag, mounted in such a way that it can be scanned from either side of the plate with the same reliability, without the need for redundant readers or antennas. Read more »

Graphical Logic Builder XempleX in various roles at Xstrata. [Nov-06] Xstrata has been evaluating Xemplex in roles covering contract management to logistics planning and scheduling. Work will start soon on improving the performance of the energy forecasting system, using XempleX for scenario analysis. Many other techno/economic roles are also under consideration. For more information contact Mark Oellermann. Read more »

CoalSync Partnership. [Sep-06] VRT has a long history in providing industrial grade information solutions to the resource industry. In recent years, VRT has sought to build on its experience in this area by improving the efficiency of coal supply chains in Queensland. As part of this process, VRT teamed with Transcoal, a specialist in the management of coal marketing and logistics. Approximately 6 months ago this relationship was formalised with the establishment of CoalSync Pty Ltd, a company dedicated to improving the efficiency of coal supply chain operations through improved sharing and processing of relevant information. For more information, visit coalsync.com »

EEO EEO: The Australian Government gets serious about energy reduction. [Jul-06] The Australian Government's Energy Efficiency Opportunities (EEO) program encourages large energy-using businesses to improve their energy efficiency. It does this by requiring businesses to identify, evaluate and report publicly on cost effective energy savings opportunities. This applies to companies that consume over 0.5 Peta Joules (PJ) per annum (about $10 million in electricity costs). This applies to about 250 mining, resource processing, manufacturing, transport and commercial businesses. Read more »

SATEC SATEC Powermeter representative. The SATEC meter aspect of our business has now grown to the extent that we have recently appointed a dedicated resource to address your electrical metering requirements. Feel free to contact Bob Wilmott.
Browse SATEC catalog »

Citect +Enterprise Suite Citect + Enterprise Suite installed at BMA Broadmeadow. Citect + Enterprise Suite has now been installed as part of the upgrade of BMA's Broadmeadow longwall mine. The productivity and the flexibility to accommodate the requirements of different user roles have been very impressive. Read more ».

Tux the Linux Penguin Open Source Software Solutions. Australia is now catching up with the rest of the world in its knowledge of and support for the Open Source software movement. This is partly driven by monopolistic and security concerns associated with Microsoft software and partly driven by the need for less expensive IT infrastructure. VRT Systems delivered its first open source solution in 1996 and plans to increase its emphasis on Open Source based information solutions. Customers now running VRT open source solutions include: Australia Department of Defence, Xstrata, CJ Ord and CoalSync. Read more »

VRT awarded a High Commendation at the Australian Engineering Excellence Awards. VRT, Citect, EDMI and the Department of Defence are the proud recipients of a High Commendation awarded by the Queensland Division of Engineers Australia. The award was presented in Brisbane at a gala evening held to recognise and celebrate the outstanding engineering projects undertaken in Queensland over the past year. Read more »

VRT Citect Solutions Launched. VRT and Citect have successfully implemented a number of facilities and energy related projects over several years. Both companies recently teamed with electrical meter provider, EDMI, to provide an energy/environmental solution to the Australian Department of Defence through the Facilities Manager, Resolve FM. Based on the success of this project, and a fruitful working relationship spanning several years, VRT and Citect have joined forces to partner with facility owners and managers to help them meet their business imperatives in the areas of costs and the environment, via facilities management. Read more »

Mobile Data Solutions. VRT has recently established a new division for Mobile Data Solutions. The Manager is Mark Oellermann, who previously worked with VRT in SCADA and general industrial information systems areas before spending several years in Europe. The initial focus for this Division is in the area of Warehouse Tracking Systems, particularly for industrial, spare parts stores. This is to maximise the leverage (and reduce the risk) of P-trak solutions that have been delivered to the Gove Aluminium Refinery and Tomago Aluminium Smelter. Read more »

Citect Customer Excellence Awards

VRT is the proud recipient of the 2004 Citect Regional and National Excellence Citect Excellence Award Environmental Management Award for the development of the Regional Utilities Management System (RUMS), an enterprise-wide SCADA solution using CitectFacilities for the Australian Department of Defence.

The RUMS project covers the South East Queensland bases of Gallipoli Barracks Enoggera, Amberley Air Force base and Army Aviation Oakey providing a unique set of management tools that deliver sustainable energy conservation benefits.

The RUMS SCADA system provides an unprecedented level of monitoring of the smart metering network across all three bases, as well as scheduling load and equipment switching. The system also provides an integration of disparate Building Management Systems into one common user interface.

The award was officially presented in Brisbane on Wednesday 27^th October 2004 at the Citect Award Dinner during the Citect User Conference.

As a consequence of the joint VRT/Citect effort in this project, along with the success it has generated, Citect is currently presenting VRT's RUMS solution to its band of Systems Integrators in Europe. VRT has prepared a short demo/video outlining the features and benefits of the RUMS system for facilities owners and managers. You can download the demo here. [30MB compressed MS Windows executable]

PlantPortal™ for Newlands Coal

VRT has recently installed a PlantPortal™ facility for Newlands Coal, a subsidiary of Mount Isa Mines. This facility delivers live performance data to the coal preparation plant management personnel via their web browsers. It is the simple, effective solution they have been seeking for many years.

Product Tracking for CRL

As the first step towards an integrated B2B solution, involving CRL’s finished products, its transport and downstream processing partners and its customers, CRL has commissioned VRT to implement an online barcode tracking system for the copper cathode products. Once implemented, this system will enable immediate location or notification of product arrival at various intermediate storage and processing locations on the East Coast of Australia. In addition to the online communications aspect of the barcoding systems, the core of the application will be developed using Oracle’s Designer/Developer 2000 product.

Arnott’s Biscuits Ltd

VRT has recently implemented the first stage of a comprehensive PIMS (Plant Information Management System) for Arnott’s Virginia factory in Brisbane. The basic data collection and storage infrastructure for the project utilises Rockwell Software’s RSSQL realtime transaction manager and RSHistorian, a Microsoft SQL Server temporal database. This application is also being built according to Microsoft DNA standards. Web browser access to information is being provided where appropriate, including some plant floor locations (touch screens). The infrastructure being installed in this initial phase will provide a suitable basis for additional KPI (Key Performance Indicator) reporting systems for other areas of the business.

South East Transit Busway - Brisbane

Queensland Transport is building a dedicated Busway as part of the SET (South East Transit) Freeway expansion project. VRT is currently assisting Maunsell Mamic with the analysis and design of the ITS (Intelligent Transport System) requirements for this project. The specification calls for a highly integrated supervisory system incorporating tunnel management systems, bus station facilities management systems, closed circuit TV, voice communications, bus scheduling, incident management, traffic control, etc. The initial stages of this project are being driven by a very tight timetable to meet the needs of fans attending Olympic soccer matches at the Gabba cricket ground in September 2000.

EnvisionIt and VRT Announce Reseller Agreement for VisualFlow Products in Australia and the South Pacific

This Agreement was announced on 10 May 1999. EnvisionIt Software is a leading provider of Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) Software that enables the easy integration of manufacturing systems. Their VisualFlow family of products provides a powerful and flexible way to integrate over 120 industry leading applications in such areas as ERP, MRP, MES, process control, laboratory automation, database management, etc. EnvisionIt is an SAP Complimentary Software Partner (CSP). For more information please refer to the Press Release.

VRT Becomes a Reseller of SATEC Electrical Meters

Israeli manufacturer, SATEC, is a worldwide supplier of top quality instruments for electrical power consumption and quality measurement. During May 1999, VRT reached an agreement with SATEC to act as a Reseller for their products in Australia and New Zealand. In recent years SATEC meters have become something of a defacto standard in underground coal mining in Australia. VRT plan to capitalise on this situation and introduce the SATEC product into additional markets. VRT has recently received an order from BHP Coal for the installation of an energy management system based on SATEC meters. With the increasing deregulation of the electricity industry within Australia, VRT has decided to increase its focus on energy management as a core element in its business. The securing of the SATEC Reseller Agreement is complimentary to both VRT and its subsidiary Kepra Software. VRT is also fortunate, having secured the services of Kevin Ogilvie, who operated the predominant SATEC reseller organisation in South Africa for several years prior to his migration to Australia recently.

View SATEC Power Meter Pages.

Brisbane City Council Chooses VRT to Develop its Oracle Based Weighing Information System

As part of its Year 2000 activities the Brisbane Works Division of the Brisbane City Council is replacing many of its in-house business systems with Mincom's MIMS ERP system. As part of its major upgrade Brisbane Works conducted a search for an Oracle based weighing information system but was unable to find one in the market place. VRT proposed a joint venture between weighing specialist organisation Weighmaster and VRT, based on the redevelopment of the existing Weighmaster FoxPro based application software in Oracle. VRT have now completed the redevelopment of this software in Oracle. The commissioning of this system is planned for mid June. In addition to the basic weighing information system functionality, this system for Brisbane Works will include interfaces to the MIMS software to download work orders and an additional interface to upload costing information to MIMS for the generation of invoices, accounting data, etc. For more information on this project please refer to the Project Summary Sheet.

Gordonstone Chooses MacroView Version 3 for Its Upgrade

Following a thorough evaluation of all of the leading brands of SCADA software, Pacific Coal chose MacroView Version 3 for the Year 2000 initiated upgrade of its SCADA systems for the underground mine and coal preparation plant. Because of the extremely high levels of performance and reliability provided by the existing system, both parties have chosen to stay with the same system architecture as was previously installed. The major changes are the change from a workstation to a PC platform and the change from Version 2 to Version 3 of MacroView. This will improve the ease of use of the system from a control room operators perspective and also provide an improved facility for the integration of business systems and management reporting. Successful commissioning of the coal preparation plant system was completed in early May with the commissioning of the underground mine monitoring system scheduled for mid June.

Copper Refineries Project

This project exemplifies the changing face of plant automation - islands of automation with multiple levels of redundancy, all interconnected on a plant-wide network with standard software modules. The RSSQL and RSLinx software components provide a real-time data interface from the plant floor to the enterprise - standard Oracle database at the head office. This is a major advance in the quest for easy access to plant-floor data from the enterprise level.

Tarong Energy MacroWeb™

Tarong Energy's Market Trading Division in Brisbane now has on-line access to the operating status of the Tarong and Wivenhoe power stations with a recent MacroWeb installation. MacroWeb was ideally suited to this application as the link is running over the the corporate WAN, and allows the information to be accessed anywhere within the organisation with minimal loading on the MacroView servers. VRT assisted Tarong Energy with their web content, developing web pages which include graphical equipment status, and generator output displayed on analog trend charts.

MacroWeb™ Navigator Released (1996)

VRT has released the MacroWeb™ Navigator for MacroView. Like the original MacroView Navigator, the MacroWeb™ Navigator organises displays and provides a number of ready made applications. Alarms, groups, detail pages, trends and help are all included, with a neat navigation system that also contains an alarm line to display the most recent message.

MacroView User's Forum

The MacroView Users Forum held in June 1998 at the Bronco’s Leagues Club in Brisbane was a great success, with all customers expressing satisfaction with the day. The keynote topics were:

Year 2000 Issues presented by John Hall from Mount Isa Mines
Internet/Intranet/Java etc. presentation/demo by Sun Microsystems.

Motherwell Systems Expands Systems Integration Capability with Vector Merger

9th April, 1998 - The Australian operation of Motherwell Systems has acquired the assets of local SCADA and real-time systems house Vector International Pty Ltd. Motherwell Systems, part of the world-wide Motherwell Bridge Group based in the UK, specialises in large control systems for bulk material handling and oil and gas systems. Vector International brings a wide range of real-time systems experience to the merger, predominantly through their smart-card transaction data acquisition system and general process automation activities.

The goal of the acquisition is to develop a strong Australian-based engineering organisation with the capacity to implement major systems throughout Asia and the rest of the world. Motherwell’s acquisition of Vector continues their strategy of integrating business systems with real-time control and data acquisition systems. This initiative began several years ago with Motherwell’s acquisitions of CSI in Australia and CIMDEC in New Zealand.

VRT has a non-exclusive, worldwide agreement with Motherwell Systems for the distribution and resale of the MacroView software. Motherwell is committed to the continued development of MacroView as a world leading product, particularly its middleware capabilities.

Tarong Energy, MacroView and Wivenhoe - Lighting Up Your Life

As a consequence of the rationalisation of the electricity industry in Queensland, Tarong Energy has chosen MacroView to remotely control the Wivenhoe hydro-electric power station from its coal-fired power station at Tarong. MacroView servers are already used at Tarong to control all of the station auxiliaries.

Upgraded Power Management System Delivered to Mt Isa

Mt. Isa Mines' upgraded Power Management System is based on MacroView Version 3 and runs on a multi-processor Sun Solaris box. It incorporates live data transfers of electrical energy usage into an Oracle database as well as direct web browser access to MacroView data.

Energex, Advance Energy and Toht® - Another Australian Success Story

Toht^® has been chosen by two of Australia's most innovative electricity retailing companies for their MDA (Meter Data Agency) requirements. Both Advance Energy in NSW, and Energex in Queensland, had their systems installed by VRT and our partner, Datec, on a fast track basis. Energex is the second largest electricity retailer in Australia. Toht^® has been acknowledged as world-leading software in the area of meter data collection. It is the only Australian-developed product operating in this market. Both the Advance Energy and Energex projects have been accredited by NEMMCO as authorised Meter Data Agents.

MacroMerge™ Installed by Westralian Sands (1998)

The MacroMerge™ product, pioneered by VRT and TriSys Engineering, was recently installed in Western Australia at the Westralian Sands processing plant. Merge provides an integrated engineering environment and database commonality between Schneider's Quantum PLC and MacroView software.

VRT Engineers Paged While Working on the Gold Coast

VRT has developed and released a pager interface for the NT version of MacroView. The first installation of this product was for the Gold Coast City Council.

MacroView - Recent Successes In Japan

MacroView Goes Nuclear in Japan - several more MacroView systems are being installed in the nuclear industry in Japan. Interfaces include Yokagawa and Toshiba control systems.
Japanese Learn to Navigate - Nihon Vector International (VRT's Japanese subsidiary) has released the Japanese version of the MacroView Navigator. This was developed by Ken Hayakawa in Brisbane.
Nippon Sheet Glass Sees Through MacroView - One of Japan's largest glass manufacturers , Nippon Sheet Glass, has selected MacroView for use as a supervisory system for its Yokogawa DCS system.

VRT and Coke

VRT and Coca Cola Amatil have been working together for several years with the implementation of the MacroView process control system in several Coca Cola Amatil bottling plants in Australia. This relationship continues to prosper with the awarding of a new Production Line monitoring and management system for the new line at their Richlands, Brisbane bottling plant. This utilises MacroView for the monitoring of the line through Schneider Quantum PLCs. The system also performs a large number of line management tasks including:

Production management.
PRMS production management system interface to obtain a seamless "order to production" system.
Downtime reporting and management.
Interface to the existing MacroView located in the syrup room to download batching information.

In addition to this project, VRT has also just installed a production management system in a Coca Cola Bottling plant in Japan. This utilises the latest Intranet technologies through the MacroView Web Interface (MacroWeb), allowing the plant manager located at head office, to get access to the production and efficiency data from the factory via standardised reports. The manager also has remote access to the MacroView system to enable the viewing of live graphical data and charts.

VRT has been commissioned to redevelop the Syrup Room recipe and batch management systems for Coca Cola Amatil’s Richlands plant in Brisbane. A CIP management module is also under development. To conform with CCA’s standards this application is being developed on Microsoft’s DNA (Distributed iNternet Applications) architecture. The application is based on CI Technologies’ Citect SCADA software, which has been adopted as the standard for the CCA group. This system is being developed in a Three Tier architecture to facilitate future extensions and maintenance.

MacroView Selected for Control of Melbourne CityLink

Transfield-Obayahsi Joint Venture has awarded implementation of the Central Computer Control System for the Melbourne City Link Project to Schneider Pty Limited with Vector International.

The system will be based on Vector International's MacroView software to provide a single integrated user interface to major tollway and tunnel systems. In the event of a traffic incident , the operator will be immediately notified and presented with a menu of possible response plans that the system can perform. Response plans can bring up messages on tollway signs, close or open lanes, call emergency services and actuate tunnel safety fire and ventilation systems. An integrated traffic forecasting module will assist the operator to compare actual traffic loads with expected peaks to assist with the early identification of potential problems.

A feature of the system is the complete integration of video displays. Video signals selected from 80 CCTV cameras will be superimposed on graphical maps of roads and junctions. In many cases, an incident will automatically select the most appropriate CCTV camera for immediate operator attention.

The system will use a high availability Unix main servers with Windows NT based workstations on a dual redundant LAN. A high speed router will interconnect the CCCS with VicRoads existing traffic management systems.

The detailed design and engineering of the MacroView systems is being handled by Vector Systems Integration , Vector International's project division, under a subcontract to Schneider Pty Limited. The work will be performed by engineers in Vector's Melbourne office supported by Vector's head office in Perth Western Australia. The first stage system is due to be completed in December 1998.

VRT sweetening up with Vietnam

We have recently secured several orders for the supply, engineering and commissioning of MacroView to be used in sugar mills in Vietnam. All of these mills use Allen-Bradley PLC's which communicate to MacroView via a dedicated Ethernet network.

The main contractor is STG-FCB who among other things, specialise in the design and installation of sugar mills. STG chose to use MacroView after the successful installation of our product at CSR Ord Sugar situated at the top of Western Australia in the Kimberley region. MacroView is also installed at the Harwood sugar mill in Northern New South Wales.

Our Senior Systems Engineer, Mark Oellermann is looking forward to spending his time leading up to Christmas in Vietnam. We anticipate commissioning to run smoothly as all Factory Testing and Switchboard testing has been undertaken in Brisbane in conjunction with STG-FCB prior to the shipment to Vietnam.

Mark has been practising his Vietnamese, reading up on menu items (don't ask for duck eggs - you're likely to have served embrionic duck), and most importantly, he's had his shots and continuous dosage of malaria tablets.

Vector Software in Hong Kong Ticketing Triumph

Western Australia based Vector International has played an integral role in the September 1 launch of the Hong Kong Octopus Automatic Fare Collection System. The Hong Kong system which commenced public revenue service today is the world's largest application of Contactless Smart Card (CSC) technology for public transport.

Over 90 MacroView installations have been deployed throughout the Hong Kong rail, bus and ferry services. The MacroView Local Data Processor systems manage transactions from the card reading devices and downloads control information to those devices. MacroView also provides a state-of-the-art graphical interface for management and operations personnel, integrating both new CSC and existing system information for each of the public transport providers.

Vector were afforded the opportunity to work with ERG Limited, a world leader in CSC technology, as part of the prestigious Hong Kong project.

Vector Managing Director, Mr Sandy Muir said, "This is a clear example of Australian companies working together to export leading edge technology to the world, and Vector is proud to be a part of this outstanding ERG success."

Gold for MacroView NT

The Olympic atmosphere has arrived early in Queensland. The first two NT versions of MacroView to be installed in Queensland have both achieved gold, having been installed at the Gold Coast City Council and Golden Circle.

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