Cloud-Star technology logistics and distribution career

Sales and administration career at Cloud-Star

Cloud-Star technology are a global supplier of 4G and 5G mobile connectivity products based in Copgrove near Harrogate.

Due to continued growth we are looking for someone to join us in our busy sales and purchasing department.

Working from our headquarters in Copgrove the position is varied and includes taking and processing sales orders through our various channels, booking international shipments helping with purchasing and other admin tasks.

The hours are 9am to 5.30 pm Monday to Friday

If you are commited to working to a high standard and can actively contribute to the future growth of the company company then we we would love to hear from you.

The hours are 9am to 5.30 pm Monday to Friday.

For more information please call Tim on: 01423 340066 or e-mail your CV to: tim@cloud-star.co.uk

Traxens partners with Port of Rotterdam in groundbreaking Smart Container initiative

Smart Container will gather data and insights to help understand challenges facing maritime industry

Traxens, experts in providing high value data and services for the supply chain industry, today announces a partnership with the Port of Rotterdam in a groundbreaking initiative and first for the shipping industry. Joining as a key partner in the #WeAre42 smart container project, Traxens will provide the technology to help answer questions on logistical efficiency, sustainability and the future of technology in the supply chain.

Over the course of two years, Container 42 will be shipped to ports around the world and share information it has gathered on this data-collecting mission. The container is equipped with Traxens’ device and communication technology that will generate IoT data via its platform, Traxens Hub.

Traxens will provide a important part of the entire embedded technology, it will measure changes in everything from vibration, acceleration, position and sound to local air pollution, temperature and humidity. The Smart Container has also been fitted with solar panels and the journey will help determine how much power the container generates and uses for data gathering.

As one of the leading ports in the world, the Port of Rotterdam is in the vanguard in digitization as it strives to become the smartest port in the world. Looking to transform port logistics, processes and the way cargo is shipped across the globe, Traxens has been chosen as one of the partners in this revolutionary initiative.

The company’s breakthrough Internet-of-Big-Things technology provides comprehensive, real-time information for managing logistics assets anywhere in the world and received the Frost & Sullivan’s Technology Leadership Award in 2019.

“Traxens is the future of digitalization in the supply chain industry. Our smart technology will gather, generate and aggregate data from Container 42 in this worldwide data finding mission. The Port of Rotterdam is one of the leading ports in the world. We are looking forward to working with them to digitally transform multimodal supply chains and improve logistical efficiency,” said Jacques Delort, Managing Director at Traxens.

“We are very happy to welcome Traxens to the Container 42 journey. We believe the digitization of Rotterdam’s port services will contribute to even safer, swifter and more reliable forwarding of cargo,” said Erwin Rademaker, programme manager Port of Rotterdam. “At some point in the future, it will also enable Rotterdam to accommodate autonomous shipping in its port area.”

ABOUT PORT OF ROTTERDAM

The objective of the Port of Rotterdam Authority is to enhance the port’s competitive position as a logistics hub and world-class industrial complex. Not only in terms of size, but also with regard to quality. The Port Authority is therefore leading the transition to sustainable energy and it is committed to digitalisation in order to make the port, and the supply chain, more efficient. The core tasks of the Port Authority are to develop, manage and exploit the port in a sustainable way and to deliver speedy and safe services for shipping.

Facts and figures for the Port Authority and the Port of Rotterdam:  https://www.portofrotterdam.com/en/our-port/facts-figures-about-the-port

About Traxens

Traxens generates, collects, consolidates, enriches and transforms logistics asset data into an easily understandable format, enabling effective decision-making. The company’s breakthrough Internet-of-Big-Things technology provides comprehensive, real-time information for managing logistics assets anywhere in the world. Traxens’ solutions digitally transform multimodal supply chains, enabling customers to reduce costs, optimize investments, comply with environmental regulations and deliver premium services to their customers.

Source: Traxens

How to use predictive maintenance to increase efficiency

Predictive Maintenance is one of the largest application areas of Industrial IoT. But, how to use IoT Predictive Maintenance to increase production efficiency in different industries? What are the benefits, which sensors are available, and how to get started? This blog gives a full overview and examples for IoT Predictive Maintenance!

What is Predictive Maintenance?

Maintenance has always been an intrinsic part of any production. A good maintenance plan ensures safe operations, equipment availability and reduces costs. Maintenance includes the troubleshooting, repairing, controlling and verifying physical equipment, and contributes to the improvement of industrial processes. According to Gouriveau et. al., the last 20 years have meant new requirements for maintenance in terms of quality, safety and costs. As industrial equipment become more complex, they require greater competence in maintenance as well.

IoT Predictive Maintenance Techniques

Predictive Maintenance (PdM) techniques are used to determine when in-service equipment need repairment. Predictive Maintenance, also known as condition-based maintenance, is based on real-time analysis of data from the industrial equipment. The objective is to prevent unexpected failures without costly and inconvenient routine checks, or any unnecessary downtime.

Condition Monitoring

Predictive maintenance requires condition monitoring. This means the continuous monitoring of machines during process, to ensure optimal use. Condition monitoring can be done continuously, periodically and remotely. First, production or machines are monitored continuously, with data collected on critical moments. Periodic monitoring gives analysis over the changing vibration behaviour. And finally, remote monitoring enables the equipment to be kept an eye on from a remote location.

Data Collection and Processing

Data collection and processing is one of the main components of Predictive Maintenance. The data collected can be based on physical phenomena such as vibration, temperature, pressure, voltage, light dispersion or humidity. Other kind of data can be, e.g. process deviations, raw material quality, control settings, or machine specification. Technology has made it possible to monitor machines and equipment continuously. This is done by using different kinds of sensors to assess the degradation and predict the failures ahead of time.

IoT Sensors for Predictive Maintenance

Wireless internet of things (IoT) sensors make the Predictive Maintenance easier than ever before. Further, retrofit IoT sensors allow easier and faster setup, and enable industrial enterprises digitalize old process equipment without large investments.

Here are examples of industrial sensor, which can be used for various IoT Preventive Maintenance use-cases.

A retrofit angle sensor for measuring the position of manual, rotating hand-operated valves. It is attached to the body of a manual valve. It has magnetic and mechanical angle sensors to monitor the valve’s position, and to report any dispositioned valves to the central operational dashboard of the plant to allow for a rapid fix by the maintenance staff.

A retrofit angle sensor for measuring the position of manual, rotating hand-operated valves.

Multi-functional environment sensor which monitors, and wirelessly reports all conditions in the factory – including the temperature, humidity, luminosity, the machine run-time data and more. The sensor is equipped with a rugged IP67 casing, and its replaceable battery can operate up to five years depending on the set transmit interval.

What are the Predictive maintenance Benefits?

The benefits of predictive maintenance are vast, and differ from a case to another, but here are some of them listed:

Predictive Maintenance can reduce the number of breakdownsPredictive Maintenance increases reliability of production processesPersonnel safety can be improved through Predictive MaintenancePredictive Maintenance reduces the periods of inactivity for the equipmentThe company performance can be increased by Predictive MaintenancePredictive Maintenance can increase equipment lifetime

In addition to this, predictive maintenance functions can often be made when the equipment is on service. Thus minimizing any interruptions to operations.

IoT Predictive Maintenance Examples

Haltian’s Thingsee IoT platform has been used for several Predictive Maintenance projects. In one of Haltian’s predictive maintenance examples, Finland’s transmission system operator Fingrid show how IoT solutions can optimize maintenance costs by measuring the temperatures of connecting components in electrical substations.

Preventive vs. Predictive Maintenance

Preventive Maintenance (PM) means maintenance that is carried out before the failure occurres. Now, this might sound very similar to predictive maintenance, but Preventive Maintenance techniques include a schedule for periodic checks. These checks are performed to all monitored elements, whether they actually need maintenance or not. According to Gouriveau et al., this “predetermined maintenance can lead to over-care, that is, an excess of useless interventions, and thus financial wastes for the company.” Predictive maintenance is more dynamic, as it takes into account the current condition and attempts to predict the equipment’s state evolution in time.

Another problem with preventive maintenance is the possibility of breakdowns between the routine checks. In these cases, unplanned maintenance (or run to failure maintenance) is performed when something is already broken which, of course, leads to unknown costs depending on the broken element.

How to get started with IoT predictive maintenance?

In conclusion, a well planned and implemented Predictive Maintenance is the foundation of any maintenance program. Investing in IoT predictive maintenance for critical operational functions could save you a lot of money in maintenance costs alone, not to mention the increased safety. Though predictive maintenance won’t erase all routine checks, it can certainly reduce them.

Luckily, the Internet of Things, new technologies and digitalization has made the optimization of maintenance possible. The question now is how to get started with IoT Predictive Maintenance?

Start by checking what other IoT Predictive Maintenance companies have done – for instance Haltian’s Smart Factory Solution, or read more about our Commercial IoT.

Here you can Read More about Predictive Maintenance

 R. Gouriveau, K. Medjaher and N. Zerhouni, From Prognostics and Health Systems Management to Predictive Maintenance 1: Monitoring and Prognostics, 2016“Condition Monitoring of rotating machines,” [Online]. Available: https://www.istec.com/en/condition-monitoring-rotating-machines/N. Amruthnath and T. Gupta, “Fault Class Prediction in Unsupervised Learning using Model-Based Clustering Approach,” 2018.