From aging infrastructure to a future-ready automation roadmap
A food manufacturing facility located in Norway operating a critical production line was facing increasing risks due to obsolete control systems. With aging PLCs, outdated SCADA running on unsupported platforms, and recurring breakdowns, the need for a structured modernization strategy became urgent.
Rather than jumping directly into implementation, the focus was on building a clear, actionable roadmap, one that would reduce risk, enable informed investment decisions, and ensure a controlled transition to modern automation technologies.
Project Highlights:
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Comprehensive on-site engineering assessment of legacy systems
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Full mapping of existing control architecture and dependencies
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Identification of obsolete components and critical risk areas
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Definition of future-proof system architecture
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Proposal for centralized PLC with remote I/O
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Recommendation of Thin Client-based HMI/SCADA architecture
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Delivery of budget estimation and phased implementation plan
The challenge
Operating critical production on unsupported and failure-prone systems
The production line relied on outdated control infrastructure, including Siemens S5 PLCs, legacy HMI systems, and SCADA running on Windows NT. These technologies were no longer supported, making maintenance increasingly difficult and costly.
Frequent breakdowns had already impacted production, with multiple incidents resulting in extended downtime and requiring expensive international sourcing of spare parts.
At the same time, any modernization effort required careful planning, both in terms of capital expenditure and production downtime. A lack of clear system understanding and upgrade strategy made it difficult to move forward with confidence.
Our approach
Defining a clear transition path from legacy systems to modern architecture
Contec initiated the project with a detailed on-site engineering assessment, focusing on understanding the full system architecture, dependencies, and operational constraints.
All existing hardware components were identified and mapped, providing a clear picture of the current setup and its limitations. Based on this analysis, a modernization concept was developed, centered around replacing distributed legacy PLCs with a centralized PLC architecture supported by remote I/O.
In parallel, a transition from traditional HMI and SCADA systems to a Thin Client architecture was proposed, enabling centralized management, improved scalability, and reduced maintenance effort.
The outcome was a complete upgrade roadmap, including budget estimation and implementation planning, allowing the client to prepare for a structured and phased transition.
