The new Rittal ePocket offers environmental friendly documentation solution with constant access to data

Anyone who has ever looked at manufacturing will have seen it: thick paper folders with equipment and system documentation inside the enclosure. From Eplan and Rittal’s point of view, such practices are no longer up-to-date when the data can be used digitally and centrally. The sister companies present Rittal ePocket – the digital wiring plan pocket. In terms of environmental friendliness, the new space in the cloud has the benefit of doing away with paper. In addition, operators, planners, switchgear manufacturers and maintenance staff will find it easier to work together because of the constant availability of up-to-data data.

Paper will bear anything. Eplan and Rittal’s take on this is that it is a no-go in digital times. Through the development of the Rittal ePocket, the new digital wiring plan pocket, the sister companies are having a clear-out and giving digital data to the enclosure the “right of way.” This means that widely-used paper documentation has become a thing of the past.

“With Rittal ePocket, our customers take another step to benefit from data quality as applications in operations and service continue to grow,” says Uwe Scharf, Managing Director Business Units and Marketing at Rittal. If all project data, such as wiring and maintenance plans, certificates, etc. of a machine or plant, is available digitally, any changes can be directly fed back into the project and possible downtimes can be reduced to a minimum.

Project access via the Eplan Cloud

So that this workflow functions, every single member of the VX25, VX SE, AX and KX enclosure range will have its own “place ” in the Eplan Cloud. The owner can access the equipment and system documentation, including a digital twin, in the Eplan Cloud via a QR code on the enclosure. The benefits increase if the owner gives other players an insight into the latest documentation. For employees in service and maintenance, for instance, this means that they can easily access the circuit diagrams directly on the system with a smartphone or tablet using the integrated Eplan eView function. This ensures quick troubleshooting in the event of repairs and maintenance.

Companies benefit in three ways from this digital process from schematic creation of circuit diagrams to maintenance: Incidents are eliminated faster, and repeatedly printing out up to 500 or more pages of documentation is no longer necessary, which represents a clear time advantage. The environment also benefits from not using paper, thanks to the reduced carbon emissions. And finally, there is less risk of fire if paper is not stored inside the enclosure.

Digital twin in operation

From now on, the digital twin accompanies the real enclosure throughout its entire life cycle. With the digital wiring plan pocket, the equipment and system documentation is always up-to-date; it is accessible from any device, wherever it is located while operating. “We are intensifying our portfolio for ‘Operations’ as the opportunities for our customers and the industry are clear,” explains Scharf: “Tracking features and information contained in the data are continuously increasing. As a result, operators, planners, control- and switchgear manufacturers and maintenance professionals remain in permanent contact and in business with each other during operation of the plants as well.”

For more information, please visit http://www.rittal.com.