In Bridge City, Texas, a large chemical company uses an IVC video system to monitor a hazardous material incineration facility at their nylon plant. Personnel are able to monitor the flow of materials through the facility, confirm the accuracy of material identification, and ensure the safety of employees in potentially hazardous areas.
IVC’s explosion-proof PTZ cameras were selected for their long range optical zoom, high image quality, and rugged enclosures. They are positioned to provide clear views of the following areas:
- Tank Farm Area: The tops of multiple tanks can be viewed to ensure no personnel are in distress.
- Truck Unloading Bay: In this area, hazardous materials are unloaded from tank trucks and moved into holding tanks for storage or “hot piped” directly to the incinerator. A spill in this area could be extremely dangerous and a rapid response is essential.
- Drum Conveyors: An IVC camera overlooks five rows of conveyors that carry 55 gallon drums to a master belt that transports them to the incinerator. The camera’s high zoom enables personnel to read the 5” x 10” labels on the drums to verify their contents as they move down the lines. A second camera is placed to view the drums at the last conveyor stage point before they enter the furnace.
- Back End Process: In this typically worker-free area, IVC cameras are used to ensure there are no process problems and no individuals are in distress.
- Drum Unloading Area: IVC video cameras are used for surveying the front end of the process where trucks enter and drums are unloaded. This is a potentially hazardous area where immediate response is required if a drum spills or an employee is in distress.
In addition to the IVC cameras, there is an existing camera in an air-cooled enclosure that captures a fixed view of the incinerator hearth. This camera has been integrated into the IVC camera management system to operator interface.
IVC cameras were selected for their image quality, high zoom capability, specialized industrial enclosures for hazardous areas, the ability to connect over an existing fiber LAN, and ease of integration with the company’s process control software. Specifically, the IVC TCP/IP based video runs at this facility on a multimode fiber optic network with Cisco 2400 10/100 switches. The IVC cameras include fully integrated fiber optic media converters. The facility uses the ABB Infi-90 DCS control software and the IVC video and video controls are displayed through the “ABB Operate IT” HMI software.
The IVC cameras, which are pressurized with dry nitrogen and certified by Factory Mutual to Class I Division 2 for use in potentially explosive areas, enables the facility to operate more safely and efficiently.
“IVC’s explosion-proof PTZ cameras were selected for their long range optical zoom, excellent image quality, and rugged enclosures.”