Tobacco Processing Line — End-to-End Electrical & Automation

Overview

Elezon delivered the complete electrical and automation infrastructure for a large-scale tobacco threshing facility — covering every process from raw material intake to finished product dispatch.

The scope covered full electrical design, panel manufacturing, PLC programming, SCADA development and on-site commissioning — executed entirely by Elezon's in-house team under a single project ownership model.

Client challenges

Before the upgrade, the facility encountered several operational issues that directly impacted performance and costs:

• Multi-process line spanning 9 zones — Dust, Stems, Scrap, Tips, Sorting, Strips, Cooling, Butts and Threshing — all requiring coordinated automation

• High-availability requirement — continuous line operation with no single point of failure

• Distributed MCC architecture across multiple process zones with 571 motors and 140 VFDs

• Complex motor interlock and process safety logic across hundreds of I/O points

• Requirement for unified diagnostics and predictive alarm management across all zones

Objectives

The primary objectives of the project were to:

• Deliver complete electrical infrastructure from PCC to field devices across all 9 process zones

• Implement high-availability Hot-Standby PLC architecture for continuous process operation

• Integrate intelligent MCC with digital motor management and predictive diagnostics

• Develop unified SCADA with centralised visibility across all process zones

• Complete FAT and SAT with full PLC–MCC–SCADA validation before handover

  
  

Solution approach

Elezon designed and delivered an integrated electrical and automation solution using Schneider Electric's high-availability platform — combining redundant PLC architecture, distributed intelligent MCC, and centralised SCADA across all process zones.

The solution was engineered for maximum uptime, structured diagnostics, and future scalability — with a unified logic library covering all motor control, interlocks and process safety functions across the line.

• Schneider Modicon M580 Hot-Standby PLC with redundant CPU racks

• Distributed iMCC architecture using TeSys Island digital starters

• 140 Altivar VFDs across conveyors, conditioning fans and process drives

• Ethernet + Profibus communication with fibre optic backbone

• 15" industrial HMIs at key operator stations

• AVEVA Plant SCADA — centralised with structured diagnostics

• Main PCC — top entry, CRCA, IP42, modular busbars and earthing

• iMCC cum Remote I/O PLC panels across all 9 process zones

• Unified logic library for motor control, interlocks and process safety

• Predictive alarms and trip analytics from TeSys Island digital starters

• FAT + SAT with harmonised PLC–MCC–SCADA validation

Implementation process

The implementation was carried out in clearly defined stages:

• Assessment & Design
  Full process audit across all 9 zones. Motor schedules and load lists reviewed. Unified automation architecture developed.

• Panel Manufacturing
  All panels — PCC, iMCC, RIO PLC — manufactured at Elezon's Bengaluru facility. Full I/O simulation FAT before dispatch.

• Site Commissioning

  Elezon's field team managed installation, loop checking and process commissioning across all zones. Full SAT with client operations team.

• Training & Handover

  Operations and maintenance teams trained on SCADA, PLC diagnostics, TeSys Island motor management and alarm response.

Conclusion

Elezon delivered the complete electrical and automation scope — from PCC to SCADA — for a large-scale tobacco processing line, under single project ownership with zero post-commissioning defects. The M580 Hot-Standby PLC, TeSys Island intelligent MCC and AVEVA Plant SCADA gave the client real-time visibility and control across all 9 process zones — with predictive diagnostics that transformed maintenance from reactive to preventive.