The project started in October 2016 and the contracted scope of Automind included the supply of Autoload^® with the services of parameterization, implantation, tests and training of the acquired modules.

Pandenor, located in the Port of Suape, is a terminal specialized in the storage and handling of liquid bulk with a current tank park with a total volume of 62,000 m³. The terminal is investing in building new tanks to increase its capacity to 122,000 m³.

In this first stage of the project, the terminal achieved an increase in productivity of 40% in road handling. From Autoload modules^® implemented, scheduling was the one that most impacted the productivity of the terminal, since now Pandenor can provide its customers with a precise scheduling service, which guarantees service predictability, real-time supply of the status of shipments, such as such as inputs and outputs of tank trucks, broken down by quantity, by product and by time of day. In addition to the productivity gain brought about by an automated operation, the other modules installed brought security and traceability to the process, making it possible to eliminate some steps that were previously performed manually.

“The deployment of Autoload^® is a priority project for Pandenor. As we are expanding our storage capacity to 122,000 m³, we needed to improve the productivity of our road handling assets, minimizing the need for investment in these assets and directing resources to storage”, explained Pandenor's superintendent, Paulo Perez Filho.

In view of the result obtained in the project, the second stage of implementation of Autoload was started in May^®. At this stage, the access control and inventory modules are being installed. After installing these modules, Pandenor will have a more complete version of Autoload^® for your operations. The access control module will efficiently control the entry and exit of operational and non-operational vehicles in the terminal. The inventory module will monitor the product movement operations in the tanks, including the calculation of ambient and corrected volumes through the tank sag tables, data from the level telemetry system and API standards for correction at 20°C .

The technical evaluation of the project started in July last year, with Automind as a participant, as well as other players national and international supply of automation systems for terminals.

The technical evaluation process was led by Ricardo Andrade, Petrobahia's PP&D Manager. “Since it is a large investment for Petrobahia, we dedicate the necessary time to a technical evaluation of the products on the market. We decided not to be in a hurry at this stage of the process, identifying in a quantitative and qualitative way the fulfillment of our requirements”, pointed out Ricardo Andrade.

“We knew that no product on the market would completely meet our expectations. It would be necessary to carry out customizations to comply with all the business rules demanded in our process meetings, however, it would not be economically viable to acquire a system of this nature. We were looking for consolidated solutions with a solid installed base. A product that met most of our requirements with native functionalities and that had the flexibility to perform customizations”, continued Ricardo Andrade.

The best solution was presented by Automind and culminated in the acquisition of Autoload^® by Petrobahia, more specifically the scheduling, access control, queue control, loading and unloading, pump and inventory control modules, in addition to a customization package to meet ten specific business rules.

“The time dedicated by Petrobahia in the technical evaluation process contributed a lot to the clear definition of the scope to be offered. As the three bases were included in the evaluation process, meeting the requirements will allow all to have a single version of Autoload^®, even with customizations, directly and positively impacting system implementation costs, which made our offer more competitive”, commented Automind's Business Director, Adriano Macário.

The Autoload Deployment Deadline^® in the three bases it is 240 calendar days, with a forecast to end in December of this year.