Flexible, efficient and open-minded project engineering at Enerke

Enerke Oy's engineering vision:
Enerke Oy offers a wide range of infrastructure services in Finland and operates in 16 different locations, employing nearly 300 people. On the substation and industrial business side, Enerke has switched to Eplan in 2023 and planning is mainly done in Nokia facilities.

When first time meeting the Enerke design team, one can feel the forward thinking and efficient mindset. When the Eplan software was implemented, clear metrics were set to measure performance. When asked about the expectations and how those were met during the transition to the new engineering-software, Kim Lillfors, Service Manager at Enerke Oy, explains the experience of the Eplan pilot project during the implementation phase as follows: "The aim was to increase efficiency, reduce the number of hours and improve the quality of documentation, leading to reduced time spent on error checking." Lillfors continues, "We also wanted to reduce manual, repetitive work and we were able to reduce engineering time considerably. In some areas, the time spent on engineering has halved".

Streamlining engineering
Mikael Kotilainen, Electrical Engineer at Enerke Oy, continues about the experience and says that the benefits are most apparent in repeated projects. "In Eplan, reports can be generated automatically and making changes in just one place in the project, automatically updating the database and the whole project, is a big factor in achieving efficiencies." In design, time is freed up for actual engineering and development work instead of manual tasks. "Now time is spent on circuit diagram design and reports are generated automatically based on this information."

High quality design benefits not only customers, but also our own production, installation and subcontracting. This keeps project management high quality and predictable, which is both time- and cost-efficient.

"There was a need for design software that could automatically fill production needs." adds Kotilainen. Stakeholders are provided with documentation in Eplan PDF, making it easy to follow even large project documentation with smart cross-referencing while navigating". Lillfors continues. "The feedback from the installation side has been good from the start. The number of errors has decreased because there are no more inconsistencies in the documentation. Customers also like the Eplan documentation, which is perceived as easy to read and use," adds Kotilainen.

The engineering-to-production chain:
The streamlining of processes is also reflected in supply relationships. Enerke takes advantage of the Data Portal component library in the Eplan software to bring the schematic representations it needs from the online library of more than million components directly into the electrical design documentation. The library also offers a wide range of cabinet document representations from sister company Rittal, including accessories.
EPLAN ProPanel 3D design software gives users the confidence that the right parts have been selected and will fit into the designed enclosure with selected components.

Speed in the design-to-production chain is brought by an easy ordering and delivery process, where Rittal is a reliable supplier. "Part-lists from Eplan are easily available, after which it is easy to place orders. Last-minute changes are smooth with good communication and the project progresses quickly," says Kotilainen. When asked about the future, Enerke brings up option of using Rittal's cutting and drilling services, especially for larger projects. Enerke is also looking for to receive customized enclosure solutions from Rittal, which will make the mechanical work of assembly easier.

Together with the easy integration of Eplan from design to production and installation, Rittal's product portfolio offers more standardised solutions, which are also increasingly being offered for the needs of the energy sector, summarizes Juuso Vuorinen, Area Sales Manager at Rittal

The benefits of standardisation:
Enerke sees the value of standardisation as both an element of quality and efficiency. During the implementation phase of the Eplan software, Enerke worked carefully on the creation of their component library. The creation of report-templates was soon followed by the establishment of a macrolibrary. Macros are Eplan circuit diagram snippets that can consist of individual component representations or complete page representations. These are stored in Eplan's single database, where they are available to all designers in the same format.

A high-quality macrolibrary also brings cumulative benefits, as the same, frequently repeated clips can be reused. Macros have enabled Enerke to standardise design. Jarno Simolin, chief designer at Enerke Oy, sees the potential for generating circuit diagrams automatically as an interesting future direction.

Enerke already gets benefits from effiency of macrolibrary usage, and generating cumalative benefis seems as an attractive option.