Linkwood Distillery Upgrade
Linkwood Distillery, based in Speyside, was established in 1821 and is now owned by Diageo Plc. It has 2 wash stills and 2 unusually large spirit stills. Linkwood’s most recognisable product is a single malt whisky, part of the Flora and Fauna series, which has a light, grass fragranced character.
A renovation in the 1960s had changed operation from fully manual to a push button control panel system. This project was a complete overhaul of the distillery from a mechanical and control point of view. The control target was to replace the push button panels with a fully automated computer control system to perform all operations with the exception of making cuts during Distillation, which requires the skill of an experienced Still man.
Mechanical works in the Mash House saw a brand new stainless steel Mash Tun replace the copper one. In the Still House parts of the Wash and Spirit stills were renewed. A new caustic cleaning in place (CIP) skid was installed. Pipe work, valves and drives were upgraded by the customer.
Au Automation procured and installed all of the field instrumentation and pneumatic distribution. Au designed and commissioned field (I/O) networks throughout the Distillery connecting all the field devices to a Group Schneider Quantum programmable logic controller (PLC). An AS-i network was used for the Safe Area devices. For the first time, Au used a Stahl Ex I/O panel purpose built to connect the Still House Hazardous Area devices. The Stahl and Schneider products are well integrated allowing full visibility through software and proved to be an improvement on previously used equipment.
Au developed process automation functional descriptions and PLC control code for automated sequencing using Schneider Unity ProXL, based on current process techniques, with an acute sensitivity to the requirements of this Distillery. The primary consideration is after all to maintain the unique character of spirit produced by Linkwood. Other considerations included consistent operations on a flexible and upgradable system, increased productivity and efficiency, whilst ensuring effective cleans preserve a high standard of hygiene.
Au developed a Windows PC based, modern, user friendly Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system using Wonderware InTouch 10.1 for use by plant operations staff. Little training was required as even the operators with limited exposure to computers found the graphical interface highly intuitive. A historical data acquisition server was also supplied and configured with Wonderware Historian software, on which a bespoke reports package and user interface was developed to compile and graph key process data reports for quality control.
A key milestone, the First Mash was eagerly anticipated by all involved and the longest serving operator asked to “push the button”. It was one of many enjoyable moments, preserved for all time with the obligatory photograph! The project was delivered on time and support is ongoing.
