Alewijnse connects Octalarm-Touch Pro to Scada Cimplicity
Wednesday 12 March 2025
To optimally support customers with continuously running industrial processes, Alewijnse is investing in an efficient and robust alarm solution. Project Manager Arjan Broeken explains why the company opted for the Octalarm-Touch Pro from Adésys and explains why this solution is perfectly suited to the high demands of industrial processes.
Alewijnse specialises in electrical engineering and automation solutions. With over 135 years of experience, the company focuses on the design, installation and maintenance of complex technical systems, ranging from marine installations to building-related installations and industrial process automation. The company has more than a thousand employees, half of whom operate in the Netherlands and the remaining colleagues are active in Romania. In addition, a group of employees works at locations in Vietnam, France and Spain.
Reliable system
Arjan Broeken is a project manager at the industrial branch of Alewijnse and is mainly involved in geothermal projects. He says that an alarm notification system is supplied as standard, but that the existing software solution was not always sufficient. “We were looking for a flexible and reliable system. One of our customers had an Octalarm from Adésys and was very satisfied with it. I then started to look into it further.”
Serious problem
A good, reliable alarm system is essential for Alewijnse customers. Many of these companies operate 24/7 and are not always manned. “This applies to a geothermal well, for example,” Broeken explains. “There is no one permanently present to monitor the processes, but if something goes wrong, action must be taken immediately. To illustrate: we are involved in a geothermal project in Westland to which more than fifty greenhouse horticulture companies and almost 350 homes are connected. If that heat supply fails, you have a serious problem. The reliability of the alarm system is therefore the number 1 priority here.”
No additional software
But Broeken looks beyond reliability. User-friendliness and simplicity also play an important role. “I am a great advocate of the ‘keep-it-simple principle’. That is why I was very enthusiastic about the possibility of creating a connection between the Octalarm-Touch Pro and our SCADA package Cimplicity via a REST API.” Broeken sees the fact that no additional software is required to create the connection between the alarm system and the SCADA package as a major advantage. “Such an intermediate package requires additional knowledge to work with it properly, involves costs and often requires a separate maintenance contract. Such an extra layer is therefore only a nuisance.”
Large amounts of alarms
Octalarm Link is an additional licence to report large amounts of alarms. Available alarm details can be forwarded as voice messages, app push notifications, text messages or pagers. Broeken: ‘This is very interesting for our customers. The operators can then receive very detailed information about the problem and therefore act much faster and more focused.’ The large amounts of alarms can be grouped, with corresponding priority, into alarm categories. A specific handling procedure can be connected to each category.
Testing
Arjan Broeken says the contact with Adésys is to my complete satisfaction. ‘When I indicated how and what I wanted to use the alarm device for, I was immediately provided with an Octalarm-Touch Pro with Octalarm Link licence. This allowed me to test whether the system works as I had in mind. I also like the fact that you can always call the Adésys engineering department directly. The lines are short and that works very pleasant.’
