Maintenance Systems Technology (MST) has won a contract to implement a production scheduling system at Dubai Aluminium Company Limited (Dubal). Dubal is one of Dubai`s biggest industrial complexes in the UAE with an aluminium production capacity of over half a million tons per annum.
The deal, signed mid December, is central to MST`s focus of exporting its scheduling expertise to the rest of the world.
Francois van Huysteen, manager of the Rockwell Software Group at MST, said the contract is proof of MST`s expertise and ability to operate on a global scale.
The scheduling project would provide assistance with regard to customer delivery performance, revenue optimisation, minimisation of operating costs and inventory and quantification decisions. In order to obtain these objectives, a RS Scheduler finite capacity scheduling system will be configured and implemented by MST.
"We will work closely with the IT and production personnel of Dubal and develop the Scheduler scheduling model most closely representing the production process in accordance with the information supplied by Dubal. This process has been and will continue to be a joint effort between Dubal and MST," he said.
Dubal exports its products worldwide with the main markets being the Far East, particulary Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Thailand and other countries forming the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in addition to the Middle East/Mediterranean Europe and US.
The aluminium metal is produced in the Smelter plant through the electrolysis process using aluminia as the raw material. This is done in pots situated in the pot lines of the Smelter plant. Each time the hot metal is tapped from three pots and transferred to either of the two Cast Houses in a crucible. The hot metal is cast into different products in the cast houses.
Extrusion billets are produced through Vertical Direct Chill casting stations after which each billet is ultrasonically inspected, homogenised, cooled, cut into required lengths and bundled.
Standard Ingots are manufactured through three Continuous Ingot Casting machines. Two Horizontal Direct Chill machines produce 8kg ingots and T ingots. After being cast, these products are inspected, bundled, weighed and stored.
Mohammed Abdulrahman, Senior Project Leader, IT at Dubal said MST was chosen as the preferred scheduler consultancy due to the flexibility of MST`s product and the ability to program additional decision-making rules.
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