The challenge
What needed to change.
Fourteen pumps remove millions of gallons of spring water from the Severn Tunnel site. PLC hardware was obsolete and support risk was increasing.
Control systems · Utilities & infrastructure
Pumping-station control upgrade
A supportable control platform for a historic pumping system that protects critical rail infrastructure around the clock.
ClientSevern Tunnel infrastructureSectorUtilities & infrastructurePrimary disciplineControl systems
Adbro’s approach
How the solution was engineered.
Adbro surveyed the live system and introduced modern, accessible controls while protecting the continuity of the pumping process.
The outcome
What the project delivered.
The station now benefits from improved reliability, easier support and a more responsive control system for this critical infrastructure asset.
Technical delivery
Inside the engineered solution.
The detail below shows how the main equipment, software and interfaces were brought together—not just what the project achieved.
14pumps across the site13Siemens S7-1500 PLCs installed4resilient RSTP network rings7Wonderware InTouch workstations
System scope
- Live-site PLC and network survey
- Thirteen Siemens S7-1500 controllers
- Six master/standby PLC pairs
- Westermo managed network switches
- Four RSTP resilient network rings
- Seven distributed Wonderware InTouch SCADA stations
- Temporary control panels for staged cutover
- Expanded alarm and diagnostic coverage
Resilient control architecture
Six controller pairs use a master/standby arrangement so a PLC failure does not remove control from the associated pumping duty. A further controller completes the site-wide architecture.
Fault-tolerant communications
Managed Westermo switches form four RSTP rings, providing alternate network paths if a cable or switch connection is lost.
Distributed operator access
Seven Wonderware InTouch stations give operators access to plant status, controls and alarms from the locations where the pumping system is managed.
No-outage migration strategy
Temporary control panels kept pumps available while legacy panels were replaced in stages, avoiding a full pumping outage during the control-system changeover.
Verification & handover
Each staged cutover included I/O checks, pump-control tests, master/standby changeover, network-ring fault testing, SCADA communications and alarm proving before the associated legacy equipment was removed from service.
Project highlights
Critical infrastructurePLC upgradePumping controlObsolescence
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