Manufacturing plant management system

Abstract

To provide a manufacturing plant management system capable of recycling waste materials in accordance with changes in plant's operating conditions at a manufacturing plant.SOLUTION: This system is for management of a manufacturing plant in which by-products are generated as a result of production of a main product from raw materials using energy. Some of the by-products are environmentally hazardous substances that can be recycled and reused as raw materials or as part of the main product. The system includes a value information creation unit configured to assign value to each of the raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main product to create value information, and a planning unit configured to use the value information created by the value information creation unit to create a recycling plan that maximizes the sum of values of the raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main product. The value is set so as to fluctuate depending on the location of the manufacturing plant and its changes over time. This contributes to energy and resource conservation, and even carbon neutrality.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a manufacturing plant management system. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, when a main product is produced from raw materials in a manufacturing factory, by-products are often generated separately from the main product. These by-products have traditionally been discarded as they are, but in recent years, from the perspective of environmental considerations, efforts have been made to recycle by-products where possible (for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-55008 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Incidentally, some by-products contain environmentally hazardous substances, and ways to deal with these substances are divided into recycling them for other uses, or entrusting them to a specialist company for disposal, which processes and disposes of them in a way that minimizes the environmental impact. Carbon dioxide, a substance of environmental concern that is a major cause of climate change, is emitted after burning fossil fuels as a heat source for power generation in conventional factories, and the majority of this is currently released into the atmosphere without being recovered.

[0005] When recycling by-products by processing them using energy, the economic value of the energy used and the processing, and the social value of the recycling process, all change over time. Therefore, depending on the timing of the recycling process, the value of the recycled product may be less than the value of the discarded product. In other words, the value of recycling and disposal fluctuates depending on social conditions, and which should be prioritized varies depending on the situation, making it difficult to determine the priority between recycling and disposal, the timing of recycling, etc.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a manufacturing factory management system that enables recycling to be carried out in accordance with changes in the manufacturing factory's circumstances. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] One aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a management system for a manufacturing plant in which by-products are generated in conjunction with the production of a main product from raw materials through the utilization of energy, wherein some of the by-products are environmentally harmful substances and can be recycled to be used as the raw materials or as part of the main product, and the management system comprises a value information creation unit that creates value information by assigning a value to each of the raw materials, the by-products, the utilization of energy, and the main product, and a planning unit that uses the value information created by the value information creation unit to create a recycling plan so as to maximize the sum of the value of the raw materials, the value of the by-products, the value of the utilization of energy, and the value of the main product, wherein the value fluctuates depending on the location of the manufacturing plant and changes over time.

[0008] The term "environmentally hazardous substances" as used herein refers to substances that, when released directly into the atmosphere, impose a burden on the environment, such as carbon dioxide, hydrogen, organic substances, acids, and alkalis. The term "energy utilization" as used herein refers to processing using energy, and includes energy generation, energy storage, and energy utilization.

[0009] According to this aspect, the value information creation unit allocates values ​​to raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main products, taking into account the location of the manufacturing plant and fluctuations in value over time, and formulates a recycling plan that maximizes the total value of the allocated raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main products, making it possible to implement recycling that adapts to changes in the situation of the manufacturing plant.

[0010] Furthermore, according to this aspect, since a recycling plan is formulated, it is possible to manufacture the main product in accordance with the recycling plan, which not only saves energy and resources but also enables value-maximizing factory operations that significantly contribute to carbon neutrality.

[0011] In a preferred aspect, the value information creation unit has a coefficient input unit for inputting a coefficient, and a value adjustment unit for adjusting the value to be assigned based on the coefficient inputted to the coefficient input unit.

[0012] According to this aspect, the value is adjusted based on the coefficient input in the coefficient input unit, so that the worker can adjust the value assigned by the value information creation unit by inputting the coefficient in the coefficient input unit.

[0013] In a preferred aspect, the environmental load substance is at least one selected from the group consisting of carbon dioxide, hydrogen, an organic substance, an acid, and an alkali.

[0014] In a preferred aspect, the value of the utilization of the energy is the sum of the value of the generation, the value of the storage and the value of the utilization of the energy.

[0015] This aspect allows values ​​to be set based on more actual energy usage.

[0016] In a preferred aspect, the value information creation unit has a market information acquisition unit that acquires market information regarding the market value of at least one of the raw materials, the by-products, the energy utilization, and the main product from outside, and the value information creation unit assigns a value based on the market information acquired by the market information acquisition unit.

[0017] According to this aspect, since value is assigned by acquiring market information from outside, it is possible to set a value that is more in line with reality.

[0018] In a preferred aspect, the recycling plan includes the amount and content of recycling.

[0019] This aspect makes it easy to plan specific recycling of by-products. [Effects of the Invention]

[0020] According to the present invention, recycling can be carried out in accordance with changes in the situation at the manufacturing plant. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 is a configuration diagram of a management system for a manufacturing plant according to a first embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.

[0023] A manufacturing factory management system 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as the management system 1) according to a first embodiment of the present invention is a management system for a manufacturing factory in which by-products are generated in conjunction with the production of main products from raw materials using energy.

[0024] One of the features of the management system 1 is that it assigns a value to each of raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main products, and formulates a by-product recycling plan that maximizes the value of raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main products.

[0025] The management system 1 is a computer having a hardware configuration including a central processing unit consisting of a control device that controls each device and an arithmetic unit that performs calculations on data, a memory device that stores data, an input device that inputs data from the outside, and an output device that outputs data to the outside. As shown in FIG. 1, the management system 1 includes a value information creation unit 2, a plan formulation unit 3, and a plan output unit 5.

[0026] (Value Information Creation Department 2) The value information creation unit 2 is a part that creates value information by assigning a value to each of the raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main products of the manufacturing factory. As shown in FIG. 1, the value information creation unit 2 includes a factory information acquisition unit 20, a market information acquisition unit 21, a coefficient input unit 22, and a value adjustment unit 23.

[0027] (Factory information acquisition unit 20)

[0028] The factory information acquisition unit 20 acquires raw material information A1, main product information B1, by-product information C1, energy information D1, and factory environment information E1 from the manufacturing factory, and inputs each acquired piece of information into the value adjustment unit 23.

[0029] The raw material information A1 is information relating to raw materials, and includes raw material basic unit information A2. The unit consumption information A2 includes information on the monetary value of the raw material, information on the stock amount of the raw material, information on the processable amount of the raw material, and information on the process amount of the raw material. The information on the monetary value of raw materials is information on the monetary value (for example, purchase price) of the raw materials in stock. The stock amount information of raw materials is information about the stock amount of raw materials, that is, the inventory amount of raw materials. The information on the processable amount of raw material is information on the maximum amount of raw material that can be processed per unit period in production.

[0030] The information on the amount of raw material processed is information on the amount of raw material processed, and includes information on the amount of raw material consumed in one production run and information on the amount of raw material discarded due to expiration date.

[0031] The main product information B1 includes the basic unit information B2 of the main product. The basic unit information B2 includes information on the monetary value of the main product and information on the amount of the main product in stock. The information on the monetary value of the main product is information on the monetary value (for example, expected price) of the main product in stock, that is, information on the monetary value of the main product in stock. The information on the stock quantity of the main product is information on the stock quantity of the main product, that is, the inventory quantity of the main product.

[0032] The by-product information C1 includes information C2 on the basic unit of the by-product and recycling information C3. The basic unit information C2 includes information on the monetary value of the by-product and information on the amount held. The monetary value information of the by-product is information on the monetary value of the by-product in stock (for example, the disposal price or the selling price), that is, information on the monetary value of the by-product in stock. The by-product inventory information is information about the inventory amount of the by-product, that is, the inventory amount of the by-product. The recycling information C3 is information about the recycling use of the by-products, such as information about raw materials and products that can be recycled from the by-products.

[0033] The energy information D1 includes energy intensity information D2 and required recycling amount information D3. The unit energy consumption information D2 includes information on the monetary value of energy and information on the amount of energy held. Energy value information is information about the monetary value (for example, contract price or purchase price) of the energy medium in possession. The information on the amount of stored energy is information on the amount of stored energy medium. The required recycling amount information D3 is information about the amount required to recycle the by-product.

[0034] The factory environment information E1 includes basic unit information E2 of the manufacturing factory and abnormality detection information E4. The basic unit information E2 includes storage information of the manufacturing factory. The storage information of the manufacturing factory is information relating to storage at the manufacturing factory, for example, information relating to storage fees incurred when storing main products, etc. at the manufacturing factory. The abnormality detection information E4 is information on the presence or absence of an abnormality that hinders production in a manufacturing factory (for example, information on the stoppage of a manufacturing line or maintenance information).

[0035] (Market Information Acquisition Department 21)

[0036] The market information acquisition unit 21 is a part that acquires raw material market information a1, main product market information b1, by-product market information c1, energy market information d1, and factory transportation information e1 from one or more external databases, as shown in Figure 1, continuously or at regular intervals, and inputs each acquired information into the value adjustment unit 23. External databases are databases of external organizations, and some external databases contain information that changes over time. The external database may be a database of a public institution or a database of a private institution. The raw material market information a1 is information relating to the market value of raw materials, such as the market price and demand amount of raw materials. The main product market information b1 is information about the market value of the main product, such as the market price and demand amount of the main product. The by-product market information c1 is information about the market value of the by-product, such as the market price and demand amount of the by-product. The energy market information d1 is information relating to the market value of energy, such as the market price and demand amount of energy.

[0037] Factory transportation information e1 is information relating to transportation from the manufacturing factory to the provided company, such as the transportation fee per unit amount from the manufacturing factory to the provided company, and the storage fee per unit amount at the relay point when transporting from the manufacturing factory to the provided company via the relay point.

[0038] (Coefficient input unit 22) The coefficient input unit 22 is a part where an operator directly inputs coefficients to the value adjustment unit 23 according to the situation and necessity.

[0039] (Value Adjustment Department 23)

[0040] The value adjustment unit 23 is a unit that assigns a value to each of the utilization of raw materials, main products, by-products, and energy based on the information input from each information acquisition unit 20, 21 and the coefficients input from the coefficient input unit 22, creates raw material value information, main product value information, by-product value information, and energy value information, and inputs each value information to the plan formulation unit 3. Here, the value is expressed as a number, and there are positive and negative values, with a positive value being assigned a positive value and a negative value being assigned a negative value.

[0041] Positive values ​​include, for example, monetary values, and negative values ​​include, for example, environmental impact values. In other words, when the value is positive, the monetary benefits outweigh the environmental losses, and when the value is negative, the environmental losses outweigh the monetary benefits. The value may take into account the effects of disaster prevention measures depending on the location of the manufacturing plant, hot water storage tanks, drinking water, etc.

[0042] (Planning Department 3)

[0043] The planning unit 3 is a part that uses the value information created and input by the value adjustment unit 23 to formulate a recycling plan so as to maximize the sum of the value of raw materials, the value of main products, the value of by-products, and the value of energy utilization. The recycling plan includes the amount of by-products to be recycled and disposed of, the contents of the recycling, and the timing of the recycling.

[0044] Examples of recycling methods include generating hydrogen through electrolysis when the by-product is acid, or separating and recovering carbon dioxide from exhaust gases from boilers and the like using various membrane separation or absorption methods when the by-product of energy consumption is carbon dioxide. Then, by reducing the carbon dioxide using electrochemical methods, hydrocarbons such as methane and ethylene, alcohols such as methanol and ethanol, and formic acid can be produced. Furthermore, when the by-product is hydrogen, hydrogen and oxygen can be mixed, and the carbon dioxide can be used as a carbon source to produce biodegradable polymers using gas cultivation techniques with hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria.

[0045] (Plan Output Section 5)

[0046] The plan output unit 5 is a part that outputs the recycling plan formulated by the plan formulation unit 3 to the outside, and may output the recycling amount obtained by the recycling plan in addition to the recycling plan to another computer, display device, etc.

[0047] (manufacturing factory) The raw materials used in a manufacturing plant are appropriately selected according to the main product being manufactured, and include, for example, hydrogen, water, hydrochloric acid, etc.

[0048] The main products produced in the manufacturing plant are appropriately set according to the production of the manufacturing plant, and include, for example, hydrogen oxide and hydrogen peroxide that can be used for factory bleaching, sterilization, substrate cleaning, etc. By-products produced in manufacturing plants are produced as a by-product in the manufacture of the main product from raw materials. By-products produced in manufacturing plants contain environmentally hazardous substances in part, but can be recycled and used as raw materials or as part of the main product. The environmental load substance may be, for example, at least one selected from the group consisting of carbon dioxide, hydrogen, organic substances, acids, and alkalis.

[0049] The energy utilized in a manufacturing plant is not particularly limited as long as it can be used to manufacture the main product from raw materials, and examples thereof include electrical energy, thermal energy, and light energy. Energy utilization in this embodiment includes energy generation, storage, and utilization.

[0050] The method of generating energy is not particularly limited, and examples include a method using a power generation device that generates electricity using a naturally occurring energy medium, such as a solar power generation device, a wind power generation device, a geothermal power generation device, or a tidal power generation device; a method using a power generation device that generates electricity using a chemically produced energy medium, such as a fuel cell; and a method of obtaining energy by interconnecting with a commercial power system.

[0051] The energy may be stored directly by a storage battery as electrical energy, or indirectly as an energy medium used in generating energy such as hydrogen, hydrogen peroxide, or ammonia.

[0052] Next, a recycling method using the management system 1 of this embodiment will be described.

[0053] The recycling method of this embodiment uses the management system 1 to create a recycling plan for by-products generated in conjunction with the production of main products at current or future manufacturing plants at any time or at specified intervals, and then produces the main products at the manufacturing plants in accordance with the recycling plan.

[0054] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the factory information acquisition unit 20 acquires at least one of the current raw material information A1, main product information B1, by-product information C1, energy information D1, and factory environment information E1 from the manufacturing factory, and the market information acquisition unit 21 acquires at least one of the current raw material market information a1, main product market information b1, by-product market information c1, energy market information d1, and factory transportation information e1 from an external database.

[0055] Then, the various information acquired by the factory information acquisition unit 20 and the market information acquisition unit 21 is input into the value adjustment unit 23, and as necessary, the worker inputs coefficients into the value adjustment unit 23 via the coefficient input unit 22, either directly or via another computer.

[0056] When various information and coefficients are input into the value adjustment unit 23, the value adjustment unit 23 assigns a value to each of the utilization of raw materials, main products, by-products, and energy based on the input information and coefficients, creates raw material value information, main product value information, by-product value information, and energy value information, and inputs each value information into the plan formulation unit 3.

[0057] When each piece of value information is input into the planning unit 3, the planning unit 3 uses the input value information to formulate a recycling plan that maximizes the sum of the value of raw materials, the value of main products, the value of by-products, and the value of energy utilization, and outputs the recycling plan to an external computer or display device via the plan output unit 5.

[0058] The worker judges whether the recycling plan is feasible, and if there are no problems with the recycling plan, the production volume of the main product is adjusted and produced at the manufacturing plant based on the recycling plan, and the by-products are recycled and / or disposed of.

[0059] According to the management system 1 of this embodiment, the value information creation unit 2 acquires, via the market information acquisition unit 21, market information a1, b1, c1, d1 that fluctuates over time and factory transport information e1 that fluctuates over time and the location of the manufacturing factory, and the value adjustment unit 23 assigns values ​​to raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main products based on the market information a1, b1, c1, d1 and factory transport information e1. The plan formulation unit 3 then formulates a recycling plan to maximize the sum of the assigned values ​​of raw materials, by-products, energy utilization, and main products, making it possible to implement recycling that adapts to changes in the manufacturing factory's situation. In addition, since a recycling plan is formulated, it is possible to manufacture the main product in accordance with the recycling plan, and it is also possible to operate the factory in a way that maximizes value.

[0060] According to the management system 1 of this embodiment, the value information creation unit 2 assigns a value based on the coefficient inputted in the coefficient input unit 22, and therefore, by inputting a coefficient in the coefficient input unit 22, it is possible to weight the value assigned by the value information creation unit 2, making it easy to adjust the value.

[0061] According to the management system 1 of this embodiment, the recycling plan includes the amount of recycling and the recycling content, so that it is easy to plan the recycling of by-products specifically.

[0062] In the above embodiment, the market information acquisition unit 21 acquires the current market information a1, b1, c1, d1 and factory transport information e1, but the present invention is not limited to this. Market forecast information and transport forecast information, which are future market information and factory transport information predicted by artificial intelligence or the like, may be acquired instead of or in addition to the current market information a1, b1, c1, d1 and factory transport information e1.

[0063] In the above-described embodiment, the value adjustment unit 23 may create future market information and factory transportation information using artificial intelligence or the like based on the information input from each information acquisition unit 20, 21, and assign value using the future market information and factory transportation information.

[0064] In the above-described embodiment, the value adjustment unit 23 assigned a large value to each of the raw materials, main products, by-products, and energy utilization, but the present invention is not limited to this. Values ​​may be subdivided and assigned to each of the raw materials, main products, by-products, and energy utilization. For example, values ​​may be assigned to each of the energy generation, energy storage, and energy utilization for energy utilization. In this case, when the plan formulation unit 3 formulates a recycling plan, it adds up the assigned value of energy generation, energy storage, and energy utilization, instead of the value of energy utilization. This allows the value to be set based more on actual energy utilization.

[0065] In the above embodiment, the market information acquisition unit 21 acquires the current raw material market information a1, main product market information b1, by-product market information c1, energy market information d1, and factory transportation information e1 from an external database and inputs them to the value adjustment unit 23, but the present invention is not limited to this. If there is no change in the current information compared to information acquired previously or information in a past external database, past information may be input to the value adjustment unit 23 without acquiring new information.

[0066] In the above-described embodiments, each component can be freely substituted or added between the respective embodiments as long as it falls within the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0067] 1 Management System 2. Value Information Creation Department 3 Planning Department 5 Planning Output Section 20 Factory Information Acquisition Department 21 Market Information Acquisition Department 22 Coefficient input section 23 Value Adjustment Department

Claims

1. A management system for a manufacturing factory in which by-products are generated in conjunction with the production of a main product from raw materials by utilizing energy, a part of the by-product is an environmentally hazardous substance and can be recycled and used as the raw material or as a part of the main product; a value information creation unit that creates value information by assigning values ​​to the raw materials, the by-products, the utilization of the energy, and the main product; a planning unit that uses the value information created by the value information creation unit to create a plan for the recycling so as to maximize the sum of the value of the raw materials, the value of the by-products, the value of the utilization of the energy, and the value of the main product; The value varies depending on the location of the manufacturing plant and changes over time.

2. The management system according to claim 1 , wherein the value information creation unit has a coefficient input unit that inputs a coefficient, and a value adjustment unit that adjusts the value to be assigned based on the coefficient inputted to the coefficient input unit.

3. The management system according to claim 1 , wherein the environmental load substance is at least one selected from the group consisting of carbon dioxide, hydrogen, organic matter, acid, and alkali.

4. The management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the value of the energy utilization is the sum of the value of the energy generation, the value of the energy storage, and the value of the energy use.

5. the value information creation unit has a market information acquisition unit that acquires market information relating to the market value of at least one of the raw materials, the by-products, the utilization of the energy, and the main product from an external source; The management system according to claim 1 , wherein the value information creating unit assigns a value based on the market information acquired by the market information acquiring unit.

6. The management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the recycling plan includes a recycling amount and a recycling content.

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