Honeywell to Help Global PolySilicon Maker Meet Fast-Growing Demand for Solar Panels

Honeywell (NYSE:HON) has been selected to supply the process automation and control platform for a new South Korea polysilicon plant to help meet the rising global demand for solar panels. Woongjin Polysilicon will use Honeywell’s Experion® Process Knowledge System (PKS) with Foundation Fieldbus solutions to help the Sangju Plant produce an estimated 5,000 tons of polysilicon per year.
Polysilicon is a key material used in the manufacturing of photovoltaic panels, which helps convert solar energy into electricity and represents one of the world’s fastest-growing renewable energy technologies.
“The need for solar energy will only increase as the world looks for more sources of renewable resources,” said BD Kwon, project lead engineer of Woongjin Polysilicon. “This new facility will play a vital role in helping to meet that growing demand, and we selected Honeywell for this project because its philosophy of improving safety, reliability and efficiency is proven to optimize production and business results.”
Experion streamlines plant operations by pulling data directly from critical plant subsystems and sending the information to operators to help them make better decisions in the control room. As part of the agreement, Honeywell will also supply two additional solutions: Safety Manager and the Mobile Station wireless station tablet.
Safety Manager improves overall plant safety by providing operators with crucial safety information, such as pre-shutdown alerts, as well as plant-wide safety instrumented system (SIS) point data, diagnostics, and alarms and events. Mobile Station increases worker productivity by enabling operators to use a wireless tablet or other handheld device to access critical process information, historical data, graphics and other key functions in the field.
“The need for reliability is magnified for corporations such as Woongjin Polysilicon that aim to become global manufacturing leaders,” said H Han, domestic sales leader, Honeywell Korea. “The solution Honeywell is providing Woongjin addresses this issue by delivering the most-relevant information to operators controlling the processes, maximizing the productivity of the workers in the field and promoting overall safety. Having those critical factors in place will allow plant personnel to focus on maintaining high-quality production levels.”