Pharmaceutical · Digital Transformation

PI System Global Rollout Across Three Sites

A validated historian architecture connected production assets across three sites and created a shared foundation for real-time manufacturing insight.

ClientGlobal pharmaceutical company

LocationIreland and international sites

DisciplineDigital Transformation

Sites delivered

70,000

Historian tags

185

Networked assets

Validated environments

Project profile

Outcome-led engineering

A validated historian architecture connected production assets across three sites and created a shared foundation for real-time manufacturing insight.

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Business challenge

The organisation needed to replace fragmented data capture with a robust site historian that could connect a mixed estate of sophisticated systems, legacy PLCs and diverse interfaces. The architecture had to meet GxP expectations, support aggressive timelines across several geographies and remain ready for future integration with EBR systems.

Shutdown windows and validation milestones were tightly coordinated. Infrastructure delays and technical dependencies increased delivery risk, making detailed planning and cross-functional alignment essential.

Execution approach

Réalta used a three-phase model covering preparation, execution and validation. The core PI architecture was designed in a DEV environment with standardised global data models and templates. Controlled Software Design Specifications aligned the solution with the validation lifecycle from URS and SDS through IQ and OQ.

The team configured approximately 70,000 historian tags and developed advanced handling for UFL connectors and RDBMS sources. Custom parsing normalised unstructured feeds, while timestamp reconciliation and validation controls protected data integrity. Site-specific IOQ execution confirmed operation across DEV, VAL and PROD.

Operational visibility

The programme defined requirements for at least 10 Power BI dashboards and 15 PI Vision displays. These gave process leaders structured access to equipment-level data and extended visibility from the shop floor to the desktop.

Historian analysis exposed inaccurate pressure transmitter readings that contributed to an overfill event. In another process, PI Vision and Power BI highlighted product-transfer discrepancies, helping the team improve jacket blowdown and fill monitoring procedures.

Business impact

The rollout connected 185 assets through one validated historian platform across three sites. Teams can now analyse live and historical data more effectively, investigate root causes faster and make better plant-level decisions using evidence from actual operating trends.

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