_The monitoring, something quite simple, is passive, it just covers the operation conditions of a facility; the management allows intervention, correcting the parameters. _

Surely, remote management has more advantages than local management. You gain autonomy, agility, and precision when solving issues. But, please pay attention: it is important not to confuse the term monitoring (to oversee passively the information about a facility), something relatively simple, with management, which allows us to intervene in altering the parameters without the need to visit the facility in person, in addition to monitoring it. And if the alarm situation cannot be solved remotely, the remote diagnostic will allow the maintenance staff to be more productive and only take the necessary spare parts and tools before visiting the site.

Remote monitoring is helping to make essential factors in HVAC-R more efficient and precise, such as temperature control, whether in cold rooms, chillers, refrigerated counters, or air conditioning systems.

Remote monitoring is so important for the quality of refrigeration in Brazil and around the world that the main health and food regulatory agencies demand this tool to warrant the quality of the stored goods and products. Example: Anvisa, FDA (US), HACCP food safety system requirements, among others. Remote management also contributes to power efficiency. The staff worker can identify the system’s areas where power savings are possible by accessing the data. Sometimes, these corrections may be small adjustments or adaptations in the system that may result in significant cost savings. Talking specifically about our solution, Sitrad PRO, the management and monitoring executed through it increase precision and efficiency considerably since the installer, the maintenance-responsible user, and the business owner can access the information in real-time, avoiding issues related to, for example, an open cold storage door, and also predictive and preventive maintenance.

There are several benefits, ranging from the stored product’s integrity protection to reductions in power costs and an increase in the equipment’s shelf life. Among them, you can continuously supervise the temperature control process, generate reports and alerts for the managers when necessary, ensure the quality of perishable foods, improve equipment performance, and bring more economy and agility to problem-solving.

Remote management also allows the staff worker to access the controller's historical data, such as temperature, pressure, UR, voltage, current, electronic expansion valves, and superheating, as well as the compressor, evaporator fan, defrost, condenser fan, lights, and door statuses. The data can be stored for long-term archiving in case of issues or conflicts. Workers can start the defrost process or modify the adjustment point for other parameters from their remote location, avoiding unnecessary trips to the site.

And, as important as the economy is the peace of mind brought to managers and owners. They know that whenever something deviates from the established parameters, the team will receive an alarm and will be able to respond immediately, protecting whatever is stored in accordance with the most demanding requirements of the market.

We know that there is still some reservations about the monitoring to be applied to large facilities, since some automation systems are really high-cost. But nowadays there are options for all business sizes.

We are offering Sitrad PRO to the market completely free, so everyone can benefit from its advantages. The investment cost is very low: just a few controllers with serial communications and the data converter, that can be paid for in 5 or 6 months by using the system. It is a small price to pay compared to all the safety brought by the system. In Sitrad PRO’s case, the quantity of controlled points and equipment power define a facility's size. The automation system may be offered in the same way for all applications. The user’s need to manage and control will determine the level of automation to be applied. For example, a convenience store may have the same automation level as a supermarket.

We have the Sitrad software since 1997, when it arrived in the market to democratize access to the information of facilities that use our instruments, which allows real-time monitoring and management through the internet, on PC or mobile app, for parameter changes, alarm setting, generation of graphic reports, and more. It has a friendly interface so the owner of a neighborhood minimarket can use is in their business.

The first version of Sitrad was launched in 1997, at a time when management software was taking its first steps, but most were expensive and hard to use. Full Gauge Controls then, with a little over 10 years of experience, decided to invest and offer to the market an easy and free tool accessible to everyone. Since then, we have had an exclusive team working on Sitrad’s continuous updates, always adapting to the market’s needs and exceeding the client's expectations with new resources and new possibilities. Sitrad has had a friendly interface since its first version and was created to be used by the most varied audience, including manufacturers, installers, and end-users.

Rodnei Peres, Commercial Deputy Director of Full Gauge Controls.