React quicker
Siemens rolls out a comprehensive alarm and maintenance management solution

FunkServerPro from the Siemens Industrial Solutions and Services Group (I&S) alows plant operators to respond to faults without delay and thus avoid plant outages. Thus downtime and maintenance costs are reduced.

The modular alarm management system FunkServerPro supports text messaging on all European radio networks and allows message texts to be faxed or printed on an alarm log printer. Services available on optional radio paging service channels include recorded telephone messages, text messaging in GSM networks, recorded messages on telephones on Siemens Hicom or HiPath telephone systems, e-mail transmissions, the use of pager systems, and many other communications channels. With DECT telephones, maintenance personnel can be alerted within three seconds. The alarm management system is fully scalable: all functions can handle from one to a million messages a month. FunkServerPro is a modular solution that allows the integration at any time of additional radio paging service channels and process links to control and visualization systems. With the integrated Web interface, it can be configured and operated using a standard Internet browser from any PC in the enterprise network without the need for new software. A shift management function allows work scheduling for maintenance personnel for particular time periods during weekdays.

Fault alarms are
delivered
A fully programmable escalation system ensures that fault alarms are delivered. If the contact persons cannot be alerted, the system will automatically forward the message to other named persons. Flexible escalation strategies can be implemented with the acknowledge function that is already part of some radio paging service channels and with other optional acknowledgement packages. With the “Maintenance Manager” the user in the process control system WinCC can append previously defined standard comments to every fault alarm or enter new comments. Different acknowledgement philosophies allow (or require) new texts to be entered. The time taken by the service technician to clear the fault can be inferred from the date and time of day of the acknowledgement. Thus a logbook with information on faults and the time needed to clear them can be maintained and a knowledge base can be built up gradually. System statistics give a quick insight into the frequency of faults and their causes.kem