RENAIO Infrastrukturinvestments GmbH is a fast-growing company based in Augsburg, Germany, specializing in sustainable infrastructure projects in the field of renewable energy, with a particular focus on hydropower. With 30 power plants currently in operation in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Slovakia, RENAIO actively contributes to the energy transition while generating attractive returns for investors.
A key success factor in operating these geographically dispersed power plants is consistent digitalization. All facilities are now monitored and controlled via the AnyViz cloud platform. Karl Jung, Head of Operations Engineering, has a complete overview at all times and from anywhere – whether on the large screen in the office or on mobile devices.
“What I like is that you can easily configure the condition monitoring yourself instead of relying on rigid alarms that some programmer once came up with. But the deciding factor for us was that AnyViz lets you not only monitor, but actually control – something others can’t do.”
Karl Jung, Head of Operations Engineering, RENAIO
Central Control – Maximum Flexibility
With a single click on any of the 30 power plants, current operating states can be viewed, IP cameras displayed and even remotely controlled. Thanks to this comprehensive remote monitoring, the plants can be operated largely autonomously and efficiently. Should on-site intervention ever be necessary, AnyViz can generate a temporary access code. This grants local service staff entry via an electronic door lock system – securely and traceably.
All interventions, changes and maintenance work are fully documented in the digital logbook. This centralized data management makes communication within the international team considerably easier. Another advantage: AnyViz supports multilingual project configuration, so user interfaces can be displayed in the appropriate local language.
Complex Legacy Landscape – Simple Integration
One particular challenge was the heterogeneity of the power plant infrastructure: control systems from a wide range of manufacturers such as Siemens, Schneider Electric, WAGO and Mitsubishi were in use – some with components more than 20 years old. The hardware-independent AnyViz Cloud Adapter stood out thanks to its broad protocol support: ten different industrial protocols are supported, including older interfaces such as Siemens MPI. This made it possible to connect even legacy plants without any problems.
“AnyViz was the only solution that could reliably connect all these systems – without custom workarounds or complicated detours.”
Richard Bernreuther, Automation Engineer, BeEA GmbH
Since many of the power plants have no fixed internet connection, RENAIO relies on LTE routers from Regensburg-based INSYS. These not only provide reliable mobile connectivity but also allow the Cloud Adapter to run securely directly on the device. Thanks to AnyViz’s efficient data compression, the volume of transmitted data remains low – even with real-time transmission, VPN access and, when needed, video streams from the surveillance cameras.
Even during mobile network outages, no information is lost: the collected data is buffered locally and automatically synchronized with the cloud once the connection is restored.
More Than Monitoring: Automation and Optimization
For optimal control, not only operating data but also external information is integrated via the cloud. Weather forecasts and water levels, among other things, feed automatically into the plant control system. This enables early, automated responses to changing conditions – in the spirit of intelligent, predictive plant operation.
The cloud also plays an important role in the direct marketing of electricity:
Via the API integrated into AnyViz, wholesale electricity prices are automatically passed to the power plant control system and can thus be incorporated into the operating strategy.
Numerous analysis and reporting functions help the team continuously optimize operations. For example, vibration monitoring provides valuable indications of potential maintenance needs, which minimizes unplanned downtime and extends the service life of the equipment. In addition, management receives automatic reports from the power plants.
Conclusion
With the AnyViz cloud platform, RENAIO has not only found a scalable solution for monitoring and remotely controlling its hydropower plants, but has also created a central tool for modern, data-driven plant operation. At RENAIO, digitalization, efficiency and sustainability go hand in hand – demonstrating what future-ready energy infrastructure looks like today.