On behalf of SIG Combibloc GmbH, the multitechnology services company for energy and communications SPIE modernized the IT infrastructure of the production plant in Wittenberg, making the factory site, which was built in the 1990s, fit for Industry 4.0. The new data network consisting of fiber optic and CAT‑7 copper cables was initially set up in parallel with the existing network to ensure that production continued to run around the clock. By duplicating the fiber optic backbone, the multi-technology service provider also built the new architecture to be fail-safe. As part of a maintenance cycle, the company managed to connect the production machines to the new network in record time.
Strict safety and hygiene guidelines during implementation
The entire project demanded accurate execution of the work by SPIE, as SIG Combibloc GmbH, as one of the leading system and solution providers for aseptic packaging, produces under strict regulations.
“It was therefore particularly important that the work was carried out conscientiously under high safety and hygiene guidelines in these sensitive production areas.”
- Marcus Kriebel, Project Manager
Successful solutions for modern IT network
“We successfully laid and installed more than eight kilometers of fiber optic cable and eleven kilometers of copper cable with a total of 600 data ports.” In the process, the SPIE team also mastered some challenging situations. For example, fire partitions had to be opened and closed as well as new cable routes opened up and parts of the cabling had to be routed along at a height of eight meters under the ceiling of the production hall.
“We had a constructive and very good exchange with our client throughout and were able to use our experience to implement cable routing optimizations even at short notice during the ongoing project,” Marcus Kriebel continues. The result is a modern IT network that ensures future-proof communication between the devices and machines on the entire plant site, from production and administration to the plant fire department.
