TouchBatch Ready Mix
A Full-Featured 100% Windows-Based Batch System
Overview
Designed from the ground up to be the easiest system of its kind to operate and maintain. There is only one regular Windows PC in the system, so it’s easier to upgrade or troubleshoot —no PLC’s or secondary computers to update.The TouchBatch Ready Mix provides everything you need to run your plant:
* Automatic batching, either as a standalone device or integrated with your dispatch system
* Order entry, ticketing, reports, batch results, DOT/MTO certificates
* Integration with other systems: Dispatch, Accounting, CRM, Quality Control
* Remote access to all your plant data from anywhere in your company network using a simple web browser.
All our systems are built with nonproprietary parts, which are available from multiple vendors at competitive market pricing. This facilitates low-cost maintenance and protects your investment —no planned obsolescence !
- Virtual Batch Screen: observe a batch progress in auto mode or manually intervene using the batch screen when needed. A screen video and all amounts are always stored in the Q/C Log for each load.
- Freewheeling: starts weighing up a load for the next truck while finishing the load for the current truck.
- Moisture and yield compensation: readjusts the water and the materials’ targets in real time during a batch to maintain the original slump and yield of the mix design.
- Admix Fail Detection automatically stops a batch if a pulse meter starts to malfunction. In plants using twin meters (instead of bottles), the program continuously cross-checks both meters, and if it detects a difference, it will stop the batch and indicate which one is malfunctioning, so you can temporarily disable it.
- Batch water temperature control: blends 2-3 waters while batching in order to achieve the water temperature specified in the mix design. The water temperatures can be either sensed by RTD probes or manually entered.
- Batch speed and precision: Continuous free fall and jog time calculations maintain optimal accuracy by automatically adjusting parameters to changing conditions.
- Ribbon feeding: Aggregates and cements discharge into the mixer at a controlled rate to maximize truck loading speed while achieving a better mix.
- Auto Tare feature takes into account leftover material in a scale to always batch by Net Weight.
- Progress bars on the batch screen graphically show the batch progress while weighing and discharging the ingredients.
- Recycle water limit: assures the percent of fines in the total batch water does not exceed a preset limit.
- Bin Switching: switch from an empty bin to another bin with the same material and continue without aborting the batch.
- Manually added materials: reminds the operator to add a special material by hand and how much to add. All reports show manually added materials.
- Decumulative mode: handles batching by weight loss, with intelligent logic to allow refilling any bin not being used while batching.
- Paving mode: allows repetitive batching of the same mix for highway paving jobs.
- Fiber batching batching by scale or meter.
- Hold/Continue/Skip feature for water and admixtures for more flexibility during batching.
- Batch simulator can be used to train a new operator, without affecting the materials’ inventory, reports or tickets.
- Actual batched amount recordation in Q/C Log, inventory and reports includes water/cement ratio, material moistures, returned concrete, water in truck and more.
- DOT modes, to comply with regulations of the U.S.A. Departments of Transportation.
- Audit log continually records any changes to plant parameters, mix designs and other important information showing old and new values, time stamped, to facilitate troubleshooting or analyze operational issues.
- Video History shows an animation of each important operator’s action, such as batching, data entry and editing.
- Order entry and ticketing to enter orders directly on the batch system and print delivery tickets with multiple copies on laser printers. Pricing, taxes and running totals are printed for COD orders. Transactions can be exported to QuickBooks or other software systems.
- Microsoft SQL database for batch data, with remote access via web-browser from anywhere in your company network.
- Custom delivery ticket layout, adjustable to conform to your existing ticket layout. Support for barcode printing.
- Plant Link: companion module to access and work with your plant data in the background with just a web browser, from anywhere in your company network, without interfering with batching. The web GUIs for Clients, Trucks, Mixes, Materials, Action Codes and others closely resemble the look and feel of their desktop counterparts.
- Remote operation: The TouchBatch can be remotely operated from anywhere in your local network, or from another location through your VPN.
- Interface with Dispatch: connect your TouchBatch plants to any ready mix dispatch system in the market through the well known Universal Link Protocol (ULink) and its comprehensive set of features.
- Integration to Accounting and CRM: Ticket data is easily sent to QuickBooks Premier or Enterprise using its native API, as well as other accounting or CRM software using our robust custom integrations.
- Integration to Q/C: TouchBatch integrates to quality control software such as Stonemont.com and iQuadrel.com for seamless transfer of mix designs and batch results in real time. Custom integrations can be implemented for other systems.
- Remote inventory levels: cement silos inventory levels are transmitted to our Insight Dispatch, to graphically show the amount of cements available for the on-going orders.
Control set — base/expanded
Base control set handles a plant with 4 aggregate bins, 2 cement silos, 6 metered admixtures, 1 metered water, truck conveyor, horn, 1 aggregate scale, 1 cement scale, silo aeration and scale vibrators.
Extra controls can be added as needed to handle up to 10 aggregate bins, 8 cement silos, 16 admixtures (bottles/direct), 4 waters (normal, hot, recycled and chilled), stationary mixer, holding hoppers, water scale, admixture scales, multiple aggregates/cement scales, silo levels, double feed gates (fast/slow) dust collectors, baghouse shakers, spray bar, telescopic sock, multiple conveyors, stationary mixer, skip-hoist, live bottom batcher, decumulative plants, wet/dry plants.
* Special controls can be implemented upon request.
ROYAL READY MIX
The TouchBatch system install and commissioning went smoothly and the plant has been performing well with our controls .
“ I knew MPAQ from the time they automated our first plant in 2000 and had no doubt about getting a third system from them because their product and support are great. Also, the old system can run the same software as the new one. “