China's Leading Power Transmission and Transformation Equipment Manufacturer Baobian Electric Building a Smart Energy Management Platform

To achieve the 2060 carbon neutrality goal, the Chinese government is actively promoting upgrades in the energy, industrial, transportation, and construction sectors. In line with this policy, Baoding Tianwei Baobian Electric Co., Ltd. (BTW), the largest manufacturer of power transmission and transformation equipment in China, has adopted Advantech's WISE-IoT Intelligent Energy Management Solution (iEMS). This initiative aims to develop BTW's smart energy management platform, driving the company toward its sustainable operation goals.

Baobian Electric, a subsidiary of China South Industries Group Co., Ltd., has established itself over the past sixty years as a leading manufacturer of power transmission and transformation equipment in China, producing a range of cutting-edge products in the global power transmission sector. According to Advantech's solution architect Dong Wang, Baobian Electric has collaborated with Advantech in equipment monitoring and production automation since its early years. After that, when the company began implementing IoT applications, it further deepened its cooperation given Advantech's status as the world's leading logistics network solution provider. As a result, in recent years, when Baobian Electric began its digital transformation and promoted factory intelligentization, they were quick to choose Advantech's IoT solutions.

Advantech's Business Representative, Jun-Peng Tang, explained that this project primarioly focuses on system implementation at Baobian Electric's Hebei plant. The plant originally had a system in place to collect and record data from various energy-consuming equipment, such as power distribution, HVAC, and air compressors. However, this data was not centralized but scattered across different control systems, creating data silos. Additionally, the maintenance of energy-consuming equipment relied on manual inspections, leading to challenges such as high workload, low inspection frequency, and the inability to detect problems in real time. As a result, there was an urgent need for an intelligent energy performance management system to reduce energy costs and comply with national energy conservation and carbon-reduction policies.

To address these bottlenecks, Baobian Electric implemented various iEMS applications in two phases. The first phase focused on key energy-consuming facilities, such as compressor system efficiency management and real-time monitoring for the power supply network and electrical equipment. This phase involved data collection, recording, analysis, and monitoring, with real-time data displayed via 3D visualization charts. These tools enabled administrators to formulate energy-saving measures, evaluate their effectiveness, and continuously improve results through iterative adjustments and verification. The second phase included the implementation of HVAC efficiency management, energy management with ECOWatch, and carbon asset management with CarbonR, further optimizing carbon reduction and energy management within the plant.

Dong Wang emphasized that, in addition to iEMS, the Advantech team also provided customized development services tailored to the specific needs of the power transmission and transformation plant. This included creating 2D/3D visual management pages optimized for on-site workflows, such as electricity, water, steam, air compressors, HVAC, and heat exchange systems, making the system more user-friendly for administrators. Furthermore, the integration of scenario-based alarm management and operation and maintenance management tools allowed for timely responses, improved maintenance efficiency, and reduced costs.

Through the various intelligent applications of Advantech iEMS, Baobian Electric's plants have realized three major benefits in energy management: controllable costs, controllable maintenance, and controllable safety.

Controllable Costs: Through the system's optimized energy management, energy costs are reduced. For example, the system can precisely capture the minimum pressure requirements for air compressors based on the production plan and adjust the minimum pressure value for each time frame in real time. Additionally, it can switch between variable or fixed frequency operation to minimize energy waste caused by the over-operation of air compressors.

Controllable Maintenance: By analyzing energy usage, the system can immediately detect anomalies in the data from specific meters, allowing for the proactive identification of meters that need replacement or the detection of potential energy leaks in a production line.

Controllable Safety: Through real-time monitoring of electricity usage data, the system can immediately alert administrators to any anomalies, allowing for prompt action to prevent accidents and ensure the safe use of electricity in the plant. Due to its significant effectiveness, Baobian Electric plans to implement iEMS in its Hefei transformer plant and the plants of its partner, Tianwei Xinsheng, further advancing its commitment to sustainable operations.

• Established: 1999
• Industry: Power transmission and distribution equipment manufacturing
• Headquarters: China
• Company Size: Large enterprise with over 2,000 employees. Products are sold in more than 50 countries, including the USA, Canada, France, Japan, and India.

• Real-time detection of data errors
• Optimized energy management to achieve energy-saving benefits
• Ensured electrical safety in the plant

WISE-IoT iEMS is a comprehensive, one-stop solution that provides enterprises with carbon asset emission management, energy management, and key equipment energy consumption management. This project integrates intelligent applications such as below to achieve comprehensive intelligence and support the company in realizing its sustainability goals.

• CarbonR Carbon Emission Management
• ECOWatch Energy Management
• HVAC HVAC Energy Efficiency Management
• Compressor Air Compressor Energy Efficiency Management

Know more about WISE-IoT