Compressed Air Monitoring System

The problem: compressed air is expensive, and most of the waste is invisible

Compressed air is one of the costliest utilities in a factory, and leaks and inefficient use can add significantly to that cost. But most plants can't see where it goes: metering compressed air usually means a SCADA or OT project that is costly and slow to stand up. So the waste continues, unmeasured, on the energy bill.

Measure the air. Find the waste.

ZentNode AL adapters read pressure and flow from sensors along the pipework and carry the readings over an IP-native Single Pair Ethernet network to a periMICA-based edge server. The data is stored in a standard SQL database, while solution partner Zentinel MDS provides the web dashboard for live and historical analysis.

Patterns that indicate leaks or inefficient use become visible in the data. Because the measurements are stored in open SQL form, they can also be used by downstream analytics and BI tools. Communication is TLS-encrypted, and additional measurement points can be added without changing the production control system.

Control unit with Start, Stop, Reset buttons, system cabinet with glass door behind it, compressed air hoses

How the monitoring setup works

Reference implementation: finding the leaks

A manufacturer wanted to understand how compressed air was being used across its production facility and find the inefficient parts, without standing up a SCADA system. Working with solution partner Zentinel MDS on the Perinet platform, ZentNode AL adapters were placed on the compressed air lines to read pressure and flow, feeding a periMICA-based edge server that stored the data in a SQL database and presented it on a dashboard for real-time and historical analysis. The resulting analysis made leaks and inefficient consumption visible, giving the manufacturer specific areas to address in order to reduce compressed-air energy costs.

Why this approach works

Your compressed air system keeps running as it is; Perinet adds a measurement and analysis layer alongside it. Because the measurement layer sits alongside the existing system rather than depending on the control system, you can start without a SCADA integration, keep the data open for other tools, and add measurement points as requirements grow.

Where the same approach could apply

Automotive: compressed air used across painting, assembly and tooling.

Food and beverage: compressed-air supply for production and packaging equipment.

Chemical and pharmaceutical: compressed-air distribution in production environments.

General manufacturing: plant-wide pneumatic equipment and compressed-air networks.

Industrial production, compressed air pressure gauges, various adjusting screws and cables

industrial production air cylinder machine mechanical engineering pneumatics

Frequently asked questions

ZentNode AL adapters read the existing pressure and flow sensors and carry their values over an IP-native network to a periMICA-based edge server. The sensors and the production control system stay as they are, so there is no SCADA or OT integration involved.

Usually yes. The adapters connect to standard industrial sensor outputs, so existing instrumentation on the compressed air lines can be read without replacing it.

By measuring flow and pressure continuously rather than during periodic audits. Consumption that does not match production, or pressure that keeps dropping when nothing should be drawing air, shows up in the live and historical data.

Readings are stored on the periMICA-based edge server in a standard SQL database. The data stays in open SQL form, so downstream analytics and BI tools can use it, and Zentinel MDS provides a web dashboard for live and historical analysis.

Exploring compressed air monitoring?

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