Removing barriers and increasing accessibility is and always has been the main aim of technology. Indeed, telemetry itself means transmitting data points from a remote location to a central point, increasing operational knowledge and reducing the costs of site visits etc…

It stands to reason then, that accessing data is becoming easier and easier in light of technology, and more specifically the connected internet of things (IoT). A physical machine used to be required to run the software to collect and display the data on a graphical display unit in the office. You had to be in the office to view the data or remotely control a system, and so the scope of telemetry systems, although impressive, was limited to a relatively small number of applications.

This changed over the next few years incrementally with the introduction of remote access viewing applications that could “dial” into the main machine enabling remote viewing of the data and system control from another PC or laptop located elswhere.

In the modern age, access to 4G technology and hosted server applications / software as a service (SaaS) becoming the norm with companies such as Dropbox and Google, the idea of a central control hub seems less important, with secure access being provided remotely through web browsers and native mobile applications.

What this effectively means, is that now, more than any other time before, any type of data gathered is accessible to anyone that requires it, anywhere and in any form. Exciting times lie ahead, as the realms of possibility are only increasing, enabling us to grow and achieve more than has ever previously been possible.

As a telemetry supplier to Internal Drainage Boards across the UK for the last 30 years, Oriel Systems are uniquely placed to give organisations what they need, when they need it, and with significant changes on the horizon (the retirement of PSTN for one), we know what is useful and what is not.

Drainage boards face increasing budget pressures, as well as worsening weather conditions across the globe, meaning that pro actively managing assets is now more important than ever. With an Oriel System, you can ensure that flooding events are strictly monitored and controlled, relieving pressure and stress, whilst at the same time improving working conditions for engineers through a structured and logical working process.

If you have a requirement for remotely controlling assets or receiving data from any source, from levels and temperature monitoring to industrial process control systems, then please get in touch with Oriel Systems Ltd on +44 (0)1249 70 50 70 or visit www.orielsystems.com

Oriel Systems prides itself on being the most experienced in the field when it comes to tank level monitoring and VMI.

Oriel systems has over 25 years of experience in the field of remote monitoring and control. Whereas some companies claim to be experienced, we can prove it.

As a company Oriel Systems has been developing and perfecting its in-house software and hardware solutions since its conception in the early 90’s.

See the evolution of our Remote Telemetry Units (RTU) below:

As the world around us is changing, flooding in the UK is becoming a widespread and devastating problem.

Being able to accurately monitor water levels is key to damage limitation and prevention.

Oriel Systems provides remote monitoring technology, using low power and solar powered systems, to provide real-time alerts and monitoring of water levels to facilitate a better flood prevention future.

For more information give us a call on 01249 705070

This year marks the 25th anniversary of our first gen “Mark I” monitoring system.

Still going strong today!

Today is World Battery Day!

Batteries are everywhere – remote controls, laptop, phones, cars, and beyond. In 1749 Benjamin Franklin first used the term “battery” – however batteries we are familiar with today were created by Allesandro Volta, an Italian physicist.

On this day we commemorate his birth, and stamps the importance of the modern day battery.
Can you imagine a world without batteries? We certainly can’t! Remote monitoring and telemetry systems are highly dependent on the use of batteries in order to provide information about those hard to reach places.

We honor this day by reflecting on why we use batteries for our remote monitoring stations. In some circumstances we cannot use solar power or mains to run our systems, such as monitoring fuel on a train, so the robust and reliable battery comes into action. The batteries we implement into our systems can last up to 10 years!

With Oriel Systems’ past clients ranging from Roche, Unilever and Virgin to Nestle, Federal Mogul and Nordson, it’s clear that the firm – with its south west of England manufacturing, research and development facility as well as two sites in Manchester and north of London – has certain attributes in its supply of wireless telemetry systems that consistently draw the biggest names.

It is likely to have much to do with the company’s ability to design and install seemingly any type and structure of telemetry system, for any and every need, in any part of the world – as well as in the most prominent sectors. A client in the water industry may be looking to invest in an outstation with support for different pumping profiles on the basis of their energy tariffs, or they may be in the chemical industry and seeking the best means of transmitting tank level information back to one central location.

Oriel Systems also receives enquiries from oil and gas industry clients looking to cut down on the manpower required for a tank loading/unloading operation. Meanwhile, in the printing industry, the company’s wireless telemetry systems incorporate such features as the ability to over-ride a system and contact the supplier if ink levels fall below a pre-defined limit.

All of these functionalities are mere single aspects of telemetry systems as renowned for their reliability, flexibility and power as they are for their cost-effectiveness. The Oriel Systems technical team is confident and capable in the handling of the largest and smallest projects, implementing the right hardware, installing the appropriate software and designing control routines, prior to the testing necessary to ensure the utmost levels of system performance for a long time to come.

The company is also marked out by the services that it continues to offer long after installation, in the form of support and maintenance for the optimal running of a client’s system. Maintenance costs can be minimised with the use of Oriel Systems’ own remote diagnostic facilities. These are just some of the features making Oriel Systems such a highly regarded industrial services provider more than 25 years after its establishment, its wireless telemetry systems continuing to be seen across the industry as truly second to none.

‘Telemetry‘ is a term that the layperson may only be aware of from arenas in which it plays an especially high-profile role, like motor racing. However, this highly automated communications process actually embraces an extremely vast range of fields, from meteorology, the oil and gas industry and space science to agriculture, water management and healthcare.

Telemetry serves the purpose of making measurements and collecting data at remote or inaccessible points, with the transmission of this information enabling monitoring. Data can be transferred in many different ways in a telemetry system – the term may be used especially often for wireless data transfer such as radio, infrared or ultrasonic systems, but the information can also be transferred over such media as optical link or computer or telephone networks.

More and more relevance has been gained by telemetry in all manner of fields in the 21st century, as organisations in both the public and private sectors seek ever-greater operational efficiency. Increasing numbers of these firms – which in the case of Oriel Systems, includes but is not limited to Virgin, Unilever, BP, Roche, Federal Mogul, Oxfordshire County Council and Nestle – greatly appreciate being able to call upon a powerful, scalable, cost-effective system that reduces labour costs and manpower in an important area.

Those interested in a telemetry system for their own firm’s operations will need to make choices relating to such components as the telemetry outstation or RTU (Remote Terminal Unit) itself, which collects data from the various sensors located at a given remote site. The sensors themselves, of course, are for the measuring of a value obtained at the site. In addition, the outstation requires a means of relaying its information back to the main office. For this, transmission options include broadband, PSTN, GSM, GPRS, radio or 3G technology.

Finally, once that vital information does reach the main PC, there will need to be the right software to interpret it. In this regard, Oriel Systems is again a leader with its highly-rated VMI and SCADA packages. Such software presents the data gained in a pictorial format, this allowing decisions to be made to ensure the continued smooth operation of each site.

By contacting the technical team at Oriel Systems today, potential clients can get a greater sense of just what form their own telemetry solution could take, bearing in mind their most exacting and individualised requirements.

Even before one considers the complete Oriel Systems range of hardware and software products, it’s clear that the company – with its manufacturing, research and development facilities in South West England, in addition to two further sites in Manchester and North London – is well-placed to cater for the complete range of telemetry needs.

If there is just one Oriel Systems product that makes this especially evident, it is surely its highly rated low power outstation. Although the firm also specialises in intelligent outstations and video outstations, its low power outstation is in great demand among clients that appreciate its functionality for small solar panel and/or mini-windmill power.

Reliable, confident readings are ensured by an outstation that can generate its own 24 volt supply for ultrasonic sensors – or any other analogue sensor – thanks to the unit having its own internal charge pump. This outstation’s communication is usually over the radio or GSM/GPRS modem to the AWAX master station, with a repeater station generally unnecessary.

Power is also conserved by the Oriel Systems’ low power outstation, with all non-essential devices being turned off and the outstation sleeping until the next time a measurement is required. Despite power consumption of the outstation while asleep being below 1uA, even in this state, it remains capable of recording rainfall data.

The considerable flexibility of the unit’s I/O allows for the incorporation of any desired number of analog and/or digital inputs, while an RS232 or RS485 communications link enables the unit to talk to devices. When communication with the master station is required, all of the unit’s stored values are uploaded from its memory.

This low power outstation is just one of several outstation communication options offered by Oriel Systems for maximum remote monitoring and control functionality. For unlicensed frequencies, one may opt for Low Power Radio Outstation 10mW-750mW complying with MPT1329, subsequently replaced by the ETSI Standard EN 300 220.

A fine communication option for licensed frequencies, meanwhile, is Low Power Radio Outstation 100mW-5Watt, which complied with MPT 1411, since replaced by the ETSI Standard EN 300 220, EN 300 113, MPT1411.

By getting in touch with Oriel Systems’ receptive technical team, clients with an interest in realising the full potential of the low power outstation can have an initial discussion on how it can form part of the ideal wider telemetry system for their needs.

The need for the most reliable, cost-effective and scalable telemetry systems is as urgent as ever – as market leader Oriel Systems is well-placed to judge. The company does, after all, have a considerable installed user base across the globe, with such names as Celcon, Federal Mogul, AAK, Virgin, Unilever and Roche having all previously availed of its services and expertise.

Organisations across such industries as oil and gas, print, water and chemicals have benefitted from well-tailored solutions from a firm that has spent more than 25 years as a key player in high technology industrial services. In so doing, they have called upon not just in-depth knowhow in hardware including video, intelligent and low power outstations, but also software applications developed by those who have worked in the field since the infancy of Windows.

Nor are these firms exactly alone in giving telemetry an increasing place in their operations, particularly when one notes a recent report suggesting that the global telemetry market will be worth $72.42 billion this year. An anticipated Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7.31 per cent is set to raise that figure to $103.42 billion by 2019.

The report, entitled Global Telemetry Market by Application & by Geography- Forecast Analysis, was published by US-based global market research and consulting firm MarketsandMarkets, and analyses prospects for the global telemetry market over the next five years. In addition to scrutinising the industry’s drivers, challenges and restraints, the report discusses the market, technology and industry trends of relevance to those offering or requesting telemetry solutions.

The findings of the report included that the global telemetry market is being driven by a continued need for cloud-based services, interoperability and scalability. Europe and the United States is where the primary market players are based, on account of their technical knowhow that is now enabling them to turn their attentions to emerging economies like Brazil, China, Australia, UAE and South Africa. Transition is also taking place within the market towards quicker, more efficient telemetry systems, in which Oriel Systems continues to play its own leading role.

Indeed, for both small and large projects, Oriel Systems remains the first telemetry contact of choice for all manner of prestigious clients, which have previously included such organisations as BP, Chick Master, SunChemical and Oxfordshire County Council. The firm remains of service for new clients seeking the most functional telemetry systems that also make economic sense, in the context of any investments that they may have already made in this area.