Nordzucker AG has been manufacturing top quality sugar since 1838 and is now Europe's second largest sugar manufacturer. The approximately 3,300 employees of the company, which is based in Braunschweig, Germany, supply the food industry, retailers and consumers from 18 European locations. In addition to sugar, the Group also produces bioethanol and animal feed from sugar beets.
Common basis
By 2004, Nordzucker had thoroughly researched its specific engineering requirements on the CAE market. The company opted for AUCOTEC which, with AUCOPLAN, already combined P&IDs and electrical engineering in a common database - one of Nordzucker's basic requirements. "When we were offered the option of upgrading to the more advanced Engineering Base (EB), we tested it in a pilot project. The users were very satisfied. They appreciated in particular the more intuitive method of working with EB", recount Frank Weishäupl and Jürgen Stock of the Industrial Engineering Division at Nordzucker. "Most employees have prior experience anyway with the integrated drawing tool Visio", adds Frank Weishäupl.
Secure data exchange
© Nordzucker AGIn addition to the linking of P&I and electrical engineering, Nordzucker attaches major importance to the ability to consistently exchange and reuse multi-site information, shapes and diagrams. EB offers the best conditions for this purpose with its openness, easy handling and convenient change management. "EB's database is perfect for a higher level of standardization", says Jürgen Stock who also emphasises the practical support provided by AUCOTEC. "The EB experts moderate our regular forum during which representatives from all locations discuss solutions and optimisation options", says the Head of Engineering. Individual plants are over 100 years old and their documentation is accordingly diverse. AUCOTEC also assists in the analysis of the quality of the data and its processing. "Almost all of the old diagrams have been migrated in the meantime, and EB was able to adopt even AutoCAD P&IDs with a sufficient density of information", reports Weishäupl.
Consistent data flow
Nordzucker also wants to transfer its xls tag lists to the EB database. The desired combination of process engineering and electrical engineering will soon become a reality. "EB supports the flow of data from P&I via the tags to detail engineering and even up to our automation systems Siemens PCS 7 and ABB 800xA. We have continuously increased the number of EB licenses in recent years so that everyone involved, from mechanics to control room, and all sites can benefit from it", explains Frank Weishäupl.
