Case Study - Loch Level Monitoring

Safewell was contacted by a specialist Atlantic salmon breeding company based near Lochgilphead, Argyll on the West Coast of Scotland to provide a solution for remote loch level monitoring. The water from the loch is used in a private hydro scheme to generate electricity for the salmon farm process to sustain the juvenile fish stock. The level of the remote lochs is therefore crtiical to the efficient and sustainable operation of the process.

Safewell offered to install its 'Viewprocess' solution which allows process data to be transmitted via GPRS on existing mobile networks to a secure server where the data is presented in graphical form for review using a standard browser. 'Viewprocess' also provides automatic alerts when alarms or process devaitions occur. All alerts are logged on the secure web site.

One of the challenges on this project was the fact that the equipment had to be installed in a remote area with no electricity supply. Safewell overcame this by designing a solar powered battery power system to power the level instrumentation and 'Viewprocess' data module. Designed with a margin in hand to overcome the unpredictability of the Scottish climate the solution has proved successful and data has been consistently logged over several Scottish winters.

Benefits include easier managment of power generation capacity and process water usage, more detailed knowledge of seasonal variations in remote loch levels, reduced travel by lone workers to remote areas reducing risk and improving employee safety and also reduction of carbon footprint due to less land rover journeys over difficult terrain.