Integration of Siemens PLC, HMI, and WinCC with Production
Let's see what can be done with your Siemens infrastructure!
If you already have Siemens solutions at your plant but want to gain more from the data they provide, contact us. We will see what we can do for you.
When should you choose services for the Siemens ecosystem?
This solution is for you if:
- You already have Siemens solutions at your plant,
- You have Siemens S7-1200, S7-1500, S7-300 or S7-400 controllers,
- You want to retrieve machine data for MES, SCADA or reports,
- Operators still record information manually,
- HMI visualization does not show everything you need,
- You want to monitor statuses, alarms, cycles and process parameters,
- You are planning product traceability.
What can you gain?
Machine data available in production systems
Less manual re-entry of information
Visibility into statuses, alarms and process parameters
Two-way communication between the machine and the higher-level system
Better product traceability
Faster response to problems on the line
Consistent information for operators, process engineers and maintenance teams
Siemens PLC: data from SIMATIC S7 controllers
A Siemens PLC controls machine operation: process logic, signals, sensors, drives, valves and actuators.
At explitia, we work, among other things, with the Siemens SIMATIC S7 family, including the following models:
- S7-1200,
- S7-1500,
- S7-300,
- S7-400.
We provide support primarily when a controller needs to be connected to other production systems.
What do we do with Siemens PLCs?
- we retrieve data from Siemens controllers,
- we read machine statuses, cycles, counters and alarms,
- we integrate the PLC with the MES system,
- we connect the machine to a database or reports,
- we enable two-way communication,
- we support product traceability,
- we make the required changes to the PLC logic,
- we test communication in production.
Example: the machine reads the part code, sends a query to the MES and receives a response indicating whether the product can proceed. This makes it easier to reduce errors and collect quality data.
Siemens HMI and WinCC visualizations
Visualization helps the operator quickly check what is happening with the machine or line. It can run locally on an HMI panel or on a PC.
We work with:
- Siemens HMI operator panels,
- PC visualizations,
- WinCC Unified technologies,
- classic HMI panels in WinCC,
- legacy WinCC flexible projects.
What can the visualization show you?
- machine or line status,
- process parameters,
- alarms and warnings,
- production counters,
- temperatures, times and speeds,
- trends,
- basic settings,
- MES data or data from other systems.
We can create a new visualization, modify an existing one or connect it to data that is currently available only at the machine.
Siemens WinCC V8 and SCADA
When a single HMI panel is not sufficient, it is worth moving to a broader process view. Such projects involve Siemens WinCC V8 SCADA or WinCC Unified PC.
SCADA system helps collect information from a wider area of production in one place.
Typical SCADA requirements
- central view of a line or plant area,
- Remote process control (e.g. from a control room),
- alarms from multiple machines,
- process parameter history,
- production reports,
- data for team leaders, process engineers and maintenance teams,
- integration with MES, databases or the Production Portal.
We define the scope for WinCC V8 after analyzing the current environment, licenses, projects and operator workflows.
Let's plan an upgrade to your Siemens architecture!
Gain access to valuable machine data by collecting it from PLCs and SCADA visualizations. Talk to us about your plant.
Legacy Siemens WinCC flexible panels
Many plants still use older visualizations based on WinCC flexible. With such systems, we first check access to the projects, the scope of possible changes and the technical risks.
We can help assess:
| Whether the existing visualization can be modified |
| Whether you have the required project files |
| What limitations the current system has |
| Whether it is worth maintaining the solution |
| When to plan an upgrade |
What does cooperation with explitia look like?
Discussion of the objective
Technical verification
Scope of work
Integration and testing
Commissioning
1. Discussion of the objective
We determine what you want to achieve: PLC data, MES integration, reports, visualization, SCADA or two-way communication.
2. Technical verification
We check the controllers, panels, projects, licenses and access to the infrastructure.
3. Scope of work
We determine what can be done, what we need and how the implementation will proceed.
4. Integration and testing
We connect the systems, configure communication, modify visualizations and test their operation.
5. Commissioning
We verify the solution in production and hand it over to your team.
What should you prepare on your side?
For an existing Siemens environment, the following will be useful:
| PLC project files |
| HMI or WinCC project files |
| Description of the technological process |
| Controller and panel models |
| Access to the network infrastructure |
| Machine or line documentation |
| Contact details for a technical person |
You do not need to have a ready-made specification. To get started, it is enough to tell us which controllers, panels or WinCC systems are operating at your plant and what you want to achieve.
Siemens as part of a larger production system
A PLC is often the first source of data. The greatest value arises when this data is passed on. That is why we connect Siemens integrations with:
A PLC or Siemens visualizations can provide data about machine operation, quality, alarms and process flow.
We will help you connect the machine layer to systems that support daily production operations. We connect machine data to systems that support operators, process engineers and maintenance teams.
Let’s review your Siemens environment
Tell us which PLCs, panels or WinCC systems are operating at your plant. We will tell you what data can be retrieved from them, what they can be connected to and where it is best to start.
Schedule a Siemens consultation for your production operations.