Sinopec Zhongyuan Ethylene Industrial Personnel Positioning Project
I. Project Background
As an important holding subsidiary of China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation, Zhongyuan Ethylene’s History is closely intertwined with the national and Henan Province’s strategic layout for the Petrochemicals industry. It was a key national project under the “Eighth Five-Year Plan,” jointly funded by the People’s Government of Henan Province and the former China National Petroleum Corporation, and from its inception has shouldered the significant mission of advancing Henan Province’s pillar petrochemical sector. After years of development, Zhongyuan Ethylene has become one of the leading enterprises in Henan’s petrochemical field, playing an irreplaceable role in ensuring energy supply and promoting local economic growth.
However, as the enterprise continues to expand and production technologies grow increasingly complex, safety management in the key production area of Zhongyuan Ethylene faces numerous challenges. This area covers a vast footprint, houses a large number of equipment units, features intricate process flows, and sees frequent, dispersed personnel activity. Traditional safety management approaches struggle to achieve real-time, precise control over personnel; in the event of an accident, it is difficult to promptly determine their locations and conditions, posing significant obstacles to rescue operations and emergency response. Moreover, monitoring and early warning systems for unauthorized or non-compliant behaviors remain inadequate, increasing the risk of accidents and safety hazards. To enhance safety management and ensure production safety, Zhongyuan Ethylene has decided to implement a project integrating personnel positioning and intelligent video analytics in its key production areas.
II. Project Overview
This project aims to leverage advanced positioning technology and video intelligent analysis to achieve comprehensive, real-time management of personnel in the key production areas of Zhongyuan Ethylene. The designated positioning area covers approximately 160,000 square meters, encompassing multiple critical production workshops, warehouses, and equipment zones. By attaining a positioning accuracy of 3–5 meters in these key areas, the system can precisely track personnel locations and movement patterns, providing robust support for safety management. The project deploys a total of 1,600 Bluetooth Beacons, 300 chest-mounted locators, and 4 positioning Base Stations, thereby establishing an efficient and stable positioning network.
III. Implementation Plan
(1) Positioning System Setup
Beacon Deployment: Based on the layout of key production areas and patterns of personnel movement, technicians strategically deployed 1,600 Bluetooth Beacons throughout the facility. These Beacons were installed at critical locations such as walls and equipment surfaces, creating a dense signal network that ensures seamless Bluetooth coverage across the entire area. The Beacon deployment carefully accounted for signal strength and stability, effectively eliminating signal blind spots.
Beacon Installation: Four Beacon Base Stations have been installed as the core components of the Positioning System. They are responsible for receiving signals transmitted by Bluetooth Beacons and chest-mounted locators, and for processing and transmitting the data. The Beacon Base Stations are positioned at elevated locations or in areas with signal concentration within the zone to ensure accurate and timely signal reception.
Badge-style locators were distributed: 300 workers in key production areas were issued badge-style locators. These devices are compact and lightweight, easy to wear, and equipped with a built-in Bluetooth module and sensors. They can collect real-time location data and movement status of personnel and transmit the information to the Base Station.
(II) Video Intelligent Analysis System Integration
Integrate the video intelligent analysis system with the Positioning System to achieve all-round monitoring of key production areas. By installing high-definition cameras at critical locations, capture on-site video footage and employ advanced image recognition and analysis algorithms to perform intelligent analysis of the video content.
IV. Functional Applications
(1) Real-time Personnel Positioning
Through the Positioning System, management personnel can view the precise locations of 300 workers in key production areas in real time on the backend management platform. On the electronic map, each person’s location is clearly displayed as an icon, allowing managers to intuitively grasp the distribution of personnel and promptly detect phenomena such as crowd gatherings or unusual prolonged stays, thereby facilitating timely dispatch and management.
(II) Query Trajectory
The system automatically records personnel movement trajectories, enabling managers to query, as needed, the travel routes and locations of individuals over any specified time period. By analyzing this trajectory data, it is possible to gain insights into employees’ work habits and patterns of activity, providing valuable input for optimizing production processes and workforce allocation. Furthermore, in the event of a safety incident, the trajectory‑query function helps emergency responders quickly pinpoint the location of trapped personnel, thereby enhancing rescue efficiency.
(3) Electronic Fence Configuration
Management personnel can deploy electronic fences in critical production areas to meet safety requirements. Hazardous zones and no‑entry areas can be designated as part of the electronic fence perimeter; when personnel enter these zones, the system immediately triggers an alarm to alert both workers and management to prioritize safety. The configuration of the electronic fence can be flexibly adjusted to suit specific needs, thereby ensuring operational safety.
(4) Video Interconnection
When the Positioning System detects an abnormal situation, such as a person entering an electronic fence area or remaining in a zone for an extended period, the system automatically triggers the video linkage function. The backend management platform will automatically switch to the camera feed of the corresponding area, enabling administrators to view the on-site conditions in real time and make timely decisions and take appropriate actions. Meanwhile, the video linkage feature can also be used for routine safety inspections and monitoring, enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of safety management.
(5) Intelligent Recognition and Analysis of Personnel Violations
By leveraging video intelligent analysis technology, the system can intelligently detect and analyze personnel violations. For example, it can determine whether workers are wearing safety helmets, whether they are smoking in non-smoking areas, or whether they are operating equipment in violation of procedures. Upon detecting a violation, the system immediately triggers an alarm and logs the time, location, and corresponding video footage, providing evidence for subsequent safety training and disciplinary actions. Through its intelligent recognition and analysis capabilities, the system effectively reduces the occurrence of employee misconduct and enhances overall production safety.
V. Effective Date
This project was officially launched in June 2023. Throughout its implementation, the project team overcame numerous challenges, including tight timelines, heavy workloads, and a complex construction environment, while adhering rigorously to the project schedule and established standards for construction and commissioning. Following sustained efforts, the project was successfully completed and put into operation, delivering significant results.
Through the implementation of the personnel positioning and video‑based intelligent analytics project in the key production area of Zhongyuan Ethylene, the enterprise has achieved a substantial improvement in its safety management capabilities, ensuring effective protection of production safety. The successful deployment of this project also offers valuable lessons and reference for safety management at other petrochemical enterprises.
Previous page
Experience the intelligent integrated personnel positioning system solution now.
Contact Us
Address:
No. 162, Lane 456, Dieqiao Road, Pudong New Area, Shanghai
WeChat