Municipal and industrial wastewater treatment is a critical procedure for water conservation and management. The water treatment industry is undergoing a digital transformation with the adoption of IT/OT convergence and integration of IoT sensors. In this case study, we’ll be uncovering how a leader in wastewater treatment and management enables real-time data analytics with Premio’s industrial mini computer, RCO-1000-EHL.
Challenge:
- Seeking an ultra-compact IoT gateway solution for real-time data analytics
- Capability to be deployed into a NEMA enclosure with DIN-Rail mounting
- Operability in extreme temperature conditions
- Solution must be certified with UL Listed
- Premio’s Intel NUC alternative industrial mini computer, RCO-1000-EHL Series
- Rugged reliability with fanless and cableless design
- IoT-centric connectivity
- World-class certifications: CE, FCC, UL Listed
- OEM flexibility to rapidly design side profile DIN Rail mount
- Turnkey image loading services for seamless field deployment
- Premio’s communicative supply chain and sales teams to minimize initial 12-week lead time
The Company
With 170+ years of operation, this environmental resource management group has provided world-leading solutions for environmental protection and replenishment. Its water management division is the largest private operator of water services in the world with more than 8,500 water and wastewater facilities in operation. This water treatment and management company provides solutions to numerous market verticals from municipal water utilities to industrial wastewater treatment.
The Challenge
The renown water treatment company sought out to replace their current IoT gateway solution due to its failure to meet the wide operating temperature claims. They began their search for a reliable edge computing manufacturer that can provide a competent solution. The replacement IoT gateway had to be small enough to fit into a compact NEMA enclosure with a DIN-rail configuration for outdoor deployment. Additionally, the water treatment company required that the IoT gateway solution must be UL Listed to ensure that it was tested and validated for safety standard compliance.
After evaluating several edge computing providers, Premio was selected as the key computing hardware supplier for its robust ruggedized computing product portfolio and turnkey OEM manufacturing services for mass deployment.
The Solution
Premio recommended its RCO-1000-EHL Series fanless mini pc for its super-compact size, UL-listed certification, and rich I/O support. This industrial mini computer was able to fit into the compact NEMA enclosure and provided the necessary edge processing performance and wireless connectivity.
Real-time Predictive Analytics for Water Treatment Plant Operations
Integrating the RCO-1000-EHL has reduced the reliance on cloud computing and the risk of a single-point failure, which could halt facility operations. The RCO-1000-EHL is powered by Intel’s latest 11th gen embedded processor, formally known as Elkhart Lake, to drive 24/7 in real-time data aggregation and storage. By gaining real-time insights, water treatment plant operators can monitor wastewater remotely for actionable decision-making, as well as establish predictive analytics for significant improvements in operational efficiency.
Intel’s Elkhart Lake processor is part of Intel’s embedded roadmap, ensuring an extensive 15-year product support lifecycle. This ensures that the water treatment plant will have a consistent solution with no design alterations that can affect overall quality or compatibility.
IoT-Centric Connectivity for Homogenous Data Flow
Numerous IoT sensors are utilized when collecting data from pumps, pressure gauges, water meters, and such. The RCO-1000-EHL, acting as an IoT gateway, provides the proper connectivity to process the oncoming data from various IoT sources. With support for USB interfaces, RJ45 LAN, and legacy COM ports, the RCO-1000-EHL was configured to support IoT-centric connection types and offer I/O flexibility through EDGEBoost I/O modules if needed. The methodology of consolidating crucial data from multiple IoT devices establishes a homogenous data flow for an enhanced shared data ecosystem.
Water treatment plant operators can analyze real-time data for the whole treatment process more effectively within a dedicated control room. From predictive maintenance procedures to full operation transparency, the RCO-1000-EHL plays a pivotal role in enabling these technologies for enhanced treatment plant operations.
Fanless & Cableless Design for Rugged Edge Reliability
For this deployment, the water treatment company required a reliable solution that can sustain 24/7 uptimes and withstand extreme outdoor temperatures within the NEMA enclosure, without any maintenance for its full lifecycle. The RCO-1000-EHL meets these durability requirements as it is designed with wide operating temperatures, resistance to shock and vibration, wide power input range, and uses a fanless and cableless design. Its rugged claims have been tested and validated to achieve UL Listed safety standards compliance, ensuring confidence in deployment.
The Benefits
Premio has essentially become the water treatment company’s one-stop shop for their industrial computers due to extensive knowledge and a robust portfolio of rugged edge computers. Before discovering Premio, the company faced an issue with OEM flexibility and long-term commitments.
Premio’s 35 years of rugged edge manufacturing expertise resulted in the ability to seamlessly accommodate all the deployment criteria. The RCO-1000-EHL has been specially designed with a side DIN-rail mount to be retrofitted into their NEMA enclosure and established a partnership for long-term depot support. Additionally, Premio’s system integration capabilities also helped load the OS and their water asset management software for seamless field deployments. With Premio’s OEM manufacturing services in the USA, the water treatment company streamlines their deployment processes and allocates resources to their own operations.
With Premio’s dedicated sales, engineering, and supply chain teams, they were able to avoid an initial 12-week lead time by providing the option to schedule just-in-time inventory batches for faster time-to-market. Overall, the water treatment company was appreciative of how accommodating and supportive Premio was for their project.