VDL Industrial Modules developed an innovative and sustainable paint mixing machine with solid dyes. Thanks to the smart software and ICT Group's embedded expertise, the company managed to optimize the machine.

VDL Industrial Modules, located in Helmond, develops, produces and assembles mechatronic modules and machines for various markets. "For the paint mixing machine, we gradually made the transition from contract manufacturer to OEM." says software engineer Tijn van Bommel. "At the request of colorant producer Vibrantz, we developed a paint mixing machine that uses dyes in solid form instead of liquid ones." VDL Industrial Modules has already had three hundred of these machines operational since the first roll-out three years ago.

Paint mixing machine

The VC1000 paint mixing machine takes up only one square meter and is one and a half meters high. At the top, there is room for sixteen reservoirs of colorants from Vibrantz, the Pearls. "Each reservoir is equipped with smart software and components that together ensure that the right amount of colorants is dosed. In this way, we can add up to sixteen individual colorants to the base paint," explains Van Bommel. "Our Pearls machine doses to an accuracy of 0.8 ml".

Mixing paint based on solid dyes offers many advantages. Solid dyes, for example, do not contain biocides and have a longer shelf life. "Thanks to the longer shelf life, customers can more easily stock colors that they use less often. With liquid paint, they would either not keep these colours in stock or most of them would spoil after use," explains Van Bommel. The use of Pearls not only makes the VC1000 more sustainable, but also more cost-efficient and maintenance-friendly, the software engineer continues: "Liquid paint hardens, so if a classic paint mixing machine is idle during a holiday, it gets clogged. That doesn't happen with Pearls in combination with our machine."

Cooperation ICT Group

VDL Industrial Modules wanted to expand the VC1000 software team, Van Bommel explains: "We were able to develop well with our team and also provide support. However, we sometimes lacked the capacity to perform both tasks properly at the same time, so we looked for reinforcements."

Conversations with ICT Group created trust. They emerged as the best option. "After an introduction, ICT Group quickly presented a plan that had immediate added value. This led to two years of cooperation in which ICT Group not only brought extra capacity but also valuable experience to our team. We have learned many best practices in software development as a result, which has significantly increased the quality of our software."

IoT-platform

With more and more paint mixing machines being installed in the field, a new challenge arises: how do you manage a growing fleet? "For a customer with about fifty machines, it is already a challenge to manage them. In Europe alone, there are thousands of mixing machines with liquid paint, which will eventually have to be replaced by stricter European sustainability requirements. What if all of these are replaced by our Pearls machine? Without an IoT platform, this is unfeasible. Customers are already asking to be able to view the status of their machines live, so that they can, for example, reorder paint in time."

Real-time insight

VDL Industrial Modules has therefore evaluated various options, both developing it itself and purchasing a ready-to-use IoT platform. "We also discussed this with ICT Group, who presented us with their solution conNXT. We are now implementing this to gain real-time insight into the status of all machines and to be able to configure them remotely." According to Van Bommel, it will also improve support: "If a customer now calls with a problem, I have to look at the logs via a Teams video call to find out the cause. With the online platform, on the other hand, we have direct access to the logs of all machines. We can also more easily keep track of how many errors occur and which ones. Based on that information, we can also improve our software. In short, the technical possibilities and expertise that ICT Group contributes allows us to take major steps forward in the coming period."