The situation
PI Technical Services required PLC and HMI programming, upgrading, and factory acceptance testing for a Shotcrete machine. The existing control system ran on a legacy Rockwell SLC PLC — a platform no longer supported by the vendor — that needed to be migrated to ControlLogix to ensure ongoing maintainability. All updated programs needed to be functionally tested before the machine was dispatched to site.
Our approach
- Reviewed provided electrical schematics and created I/O lists across digital input, digital output, analogue input and output modules.
- Set up a virtual machine with compatible Rockwell software and extracted the existing PLC and HMI programs.
- Updated the PLC program to the latest software version, preserving existing control logic and incorporating any corrections identified during review.
- Upgraded the HMI program to the latest version and flashed new hardware to current firmware.
- Attended the Torque Industries workshop for full Factory Acceptance Testing: I/O verification, functional testing, HMI navigation and alarm verification, E-stop and interlock testing, PLC/HMI data accuracy cross-check.
- Delivered commissioning test sheets and program backups.
Outcome
The Shotcrete machine was successfully updated, fully programmed, and factory acceptance tested before site dispatch. PI Technical Services received complete FAT commissioning test sheets and program backups — a solid verified baseline for site commissioning and future maintenance.