FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

Please find below our list of questions and answers.

You may also find answers to your questions on these detailed pages:
 
1. Reporting
Where's the Payoff ?
Accurate Production Tonnage without relying on guesses, drone flights, pile sizes, or measuring barge draft. Reduced Downtime by using the downtime reporting and analysis systems to show which equipment parts historically are breaking, or where the trouble points are in your process. KNOW when the conveyor starts, product is running, and when it's NOT running - today, and any day in the past. Extensive reporting shows slacktime - downtime and helps employees improve on their own as a team in all parts of your conveyor operations.
 
What kind of information can we get from the systems?
Real-time display of production Status on or off the plant. Tonnage per hour/per day/per week/ Product Totals . Barge Totals. Scale Startup Time at start of shift - Product moving time - Conveyor and Product slowdowns and downtime. Downtime Reasons - by Date , Equipment, Location. A daily KPI (Key Performance Indicators) single page report for any date in the past. See some of the sample reports here . Note: the links will open in a separate tab in you browser.
Some of the downtimes reasons might be "Out of Rock"' "Lift Motor Circuit Breaker" "Barge not in place" . Find repeat problems and save downtime.
 
How often can we run reports ?
Unlimited. Real-time and Dashboard display reports are usually up to the minute. There are only restrictions based on a person's security settings and location. There are three levels of settings for location: On-site Only, Designated office only, or "Anywhere"- a setting to be used for mobile access or multi-office enterprise use.
 
What prevents operators and others from seeing production figures, or running other reports ?
MatMonitor™ has a multi-level security system. Operators, Manager, and Administrators are assigned security levels, and there are also separate settings for Administrator level information. This system was put in place by us for Gulf of Mexico oil rigs in 2002, and the controls have worked very well.
 
 
2. Data Collection
How does the information get collected ?
A MatMaster™ data collector connects to a conveyor once a minute (settable) and gets the weight, speed etc. Information is stored locally and then transferred to the Cloud Server. If the server does not confirm receipt , the collector will retransmit automatically. Note: Days long internet outages over the years have shown the value of storing, then forwarding, and also proved the value of automatic data recovery .
 
How does the Operator Enter information ?
The operator logs into MatMonitor™ using his browser on a tablet. Your custom data entry screen will display. Typical entries are Product via a dropdown list, BargeID/# dropdown list, or open text, etc. When in Downtime or Slowtime condition, a Reason can be selected from a custom Downtime Reason list - and a specific location from a custom Equipment location dropdown. The operator can also enter comments. Note: We recommend a hardened tablet - such as the Panasonic 'Toughpad" Android series. There is a toughpad running for the last 4 years in a brutal inventory yard enviroment.
 
Where is the information stored: the tonnage material movement, operator entries, etc
All information is stored on the secure Cloud Server in the Data Center. Logins, Reports, Security Settings, and most importantly, all your tonnage, production, and downtime data are stored away from the Plant/Quarry/Mine. Therefore no server maintainance, no moving parts, and no on-site security risks.
 
 
3. Security
How is the information kept private over the internet? Can't someone see my login, or my reports ?
The information is secured by the https: connection from your browser to the Cloud Server. The information flowing back and forth is encrypted, just like when you connect to a bank. You can tell the information is locked by seeing a little "lock" in the top of your browser .
 
How is remote access set and controlled ? What does 'based on location' mean ?
Special settings control access if someone is not at the quarry/mine. Remote office people, Offsite Managers, Supervisors have special "Offsite" access settings controlled by IP Address.
 
 
4. Hardware
What kind of equipment do I need to use MatMonitor™ ?
1. A local network. 2. A conveyor belt scale that communicates. Here is a link to our list of belt scale suppliers 3. Our data collector MatMaster™ Store and Forward device. 4. A hardened tablet for Operator Entries. 5. Connection to the internet 6. A port thru the firewall to the Cloud Server for scale data transfers. Here is also a link to the full description of equipment needed on the Technical details webpage. Note: the links will open in a separate tab in you browser.
 
Where do I get the MatMaster™ data collector Store and Forward device?
RTA Automation MatMaster™ Data Collector Supplier Phone: 800 249-1612. Industrial interconnection experts - they just make it all work. You could ask for Drew or Jeff. Note: If you click the above, the RTA website opens in another browser window/tab.