Download ppt - The CERN Electronics Pool

Electronic Systems Support

The CERN Electronics Pool

The current review Long term issues

C. Parkman EP-ESSElectronics Advisory Board

23 May 2003


Introduction

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What is the Pool for? To facilitate the rapid assembly of

a test system or small experiment To make (the right) equipment

available When needed In correctly working condition With immediate spares With technical support

To circulate & reuse equipment For overall economy

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Note The Electronics Pool is a service

operated and managed by EP Electronic Systems Support Group (ESS) The term “ESS” encompasses the Pool

This talk will focus on the Pool, but some of the issues raised are heavily interlinked to the future of a generic electronics support group in the LHC era

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Pool resources Financial

Rental income ~96% Re-sales, compensation for losses ~4%

Manpower Industrial support (paid by Pool)

1 administrator 1 database engineer

Staff 1 storeman 0.8 operations manager

Technical support by ESS Group

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Group Leader

CHRIS PARKMAN

ELECTRONICS INFRASTRUCTURE

SECTION

PAUL MALEYBruno AllongueGerard Brouant

Philippe FontaineVincent Pittin

Andrew Billington

USER SERVICES SECTION

CATHERINE MOINEJames Rouet

Douglas Tserkezoglou (80%)Albert Zimmer

Alain GuyMike Koratzinos*

Bertrand Smaniotto*

Gueorgy Antchev

PROJECTS & ACTIVITIES

Sophie Baron (80% ATLAS)Mike Clayton (GIF)

Luciano Periale (GIF)Gilbert Dumont (LHC Crates)

Markus Joos (60% ATLAS DAQ/DIG)

Group Secretary

Evelyne Dho

Staff membersFellows, students, associatesIndustrial support (*paid by the Pool)

EP-ESS Group structureEP-ESS May 2003

21 people (19.2 FTE)6 industrial support

12 CERN staff2 Project Associates1 Technical Student

US Section is primarily, but not exclusively,“The Pool”. Almost all members of ESS

provide support for Pool activities at some level.

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Pool structure

OperationsCatherine

Moine

Financial & Technical

PolicyChris Parkman

ELECTRONICS POOL

EP-ESS GROUP

CERN/EP MANAGEMENT

DR, EP-DL,EP-DDL, EP-DPO

ELECTRONICS

ADVISORY BOARD

USERS

EPTAB

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Pool users May 2003ALICE6.9%

ATLAS17.3%

CMS12.7%

LHCb4.8%

Others17.3%

EP Division9.0%

Other Divisions5.2%

Isolde1.4%

LEP0.8%

Fixed Target24.5%

Total LHC Experiments 41.7%

% of rental revenue

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Pool users May 2003

ALICE, 162.5

ATLAS, 409.4

CMS, 300.9

LHCb, 113.9

Others, 409.2

EP Division, 212.7

Other Divisions, 122.6

Isolde, 33.7

LEP, 19.9

Fixed Target, 530.4

Total LHC Experimen

ts 986.7 kCHF

Annual rental revenue (kCHF) (12*May)Total 2.36MCHF

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Agenda Financial issues Operations Equipment Technical support Summary


Financial issues

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2002 balance sheet

* Carry over from 2001: following a management decision, the provisions made were not transferred, so were paid out of 2002’s income

CHF% total income

Income from rental (27354) 2,568,162 170.49%Resales (27355) 35,273 2.34%Compensation (27356) 55,990 3.72%CERN Electronic Contribution -199,139 7.75%

Carry over from 2001* -953,902

Total income 1,506,384

Maintenance (27352) 266,223 17.67%Manpower (27357) 243,888 16.19%

Consumables (27353) 1,110 0.07%

Total direct overheads 511,221 33.94%

Intermediate ELMB production - loan from 27354 (27359) 40,000

Disposable income (income-overheads-loans) 955,163 63.41%

Item2002REVENUE

Rental 2.568 MCHFResales & compensation 91

kCHFTotal revenue 2.660 MCHF

DISPOSABLE INCOME955 kCHF

COSTSCarry over from 2001 954

kCHFCEC 199 kCHF

Direct overheads 511 kCHF

COSTSCarry over from 2001 954

kCHFCEC 199 kCHF

Direct overheads 511 kCHF

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Return on investment

Total value ~90MCHF

Rental income/Total value

2.8% Disposable

income/Total value 1.1% 2.1%

(w/o 2001 carry over)

Investment profile Value of rented

equipment ~30MCHF

Rental income/Rented value

8.6% Disposable

income/Rented value 3.2% 6.3%

(w/o 2001 carry over)

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Diminishing rental income 2001 – 2.5MCHF 2002 – 2.4MCHF 2003 – 2.2MCHF

Reasons Economies, reduced scientific programme Custom electronics in LHC No beam in 2005

2002 crisis 950kCHF carry over from 2001 Reserve fund

} - 4%} - 8%

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Predicted revenue

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

MCH

F

Rental income Equipment purchases

2005 - ACCELERATOR GENERAL SHUT-DOWN

Assumes that CMS will keep equipment in place at “overhead” rate of 18%, no fixed target, and

other users continuing at 2004 levels

2006 - GUESS!Assumes that CMS will resume at 2004

levels, no fixed target and other

users continuing at 2004 levels

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Global amortisation

Normalised return over normalised age

• VAM - “Valeur d’Achat Moyenne” – the mean purchase price for one type of equipment

• Overheads and repair costs NOT included

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5

Total Net Fees/Total VAM

Av

era

ge

Ag

e/L

ife

tim

e

“Old”Age/Lifetime >1

More than amortised

Fees/VAM >1Current

Many items are “old” and not

amortised

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Rental scheme – current model

Difficult to implement, not transparent

Age less than lifetime

0.75VAM/year Maintenance

(~1.4% Total VAM) Age greater than

lifetime Rental fee reduced

by 10%/year Minimum 20% VAM

Not strictly applied (no 10% reduction)

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

140%

160%

180%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Years

% o

f P

urc

has

e P

rice

Rental Fee Total Revenue

Lifetime 5 years

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Rental scheme – other possibilities

No explicit rental Funding by levy on experiments &

support groups pro rata to needs Pre-1987

Objections Moves the problem Need to put responsibility for equipment

at the appropriate level to ensure its proper treatment & return to pool

Not transparent

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0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

140%

160%

180%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Years%

of p

urch

ase

pric

eAnnual Rental Total Revenue

Rental scheme – other possibilities

“Commercial” rental Life-time amortisation Age less than lifetime

VAM/lifetime per year Lifetime

amortisation Real overheads (%

total revenue) Factored for

occupancy Age greater than

lifetime Real overheads (%

total revenue) Transparent Objections

Equipment is not discarded at end of life (as with a car rental)

We do not aim to be “commercial”

Lifetime 5 years

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Rental scheme – compromise proposal

Rental fee based on Average purchase price (VAM) Estimated useful lifetime Likely maintenance charges (guarantee period, repair contract) Likely usage

Costs monitored regularly Verification after rental Repairs

When costs exceed revenue - action! Full or partial renewal of stock

New equipment, new guarantee Equivalent function with lower maintenance costs

Modification of level of support Increase in rental fee Declassification

Rental fee may change – (annual review?) Excessive costs (increase) New purchases (VAM) (increase or decrease)

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0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1

1.2

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Age (years)

Val

ue

Accumulated rental income Accumulated repair & verification charges

Costs exceed revenue - action!

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Advantages Simplifies existing procedures

Based on support and utility to users Allows the revenue to cover real costs

Automatic regulation of overall rental Implies close monitoring of revenue

and costs Transparency

Via EPTAB/EAB

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Compensation - loss or major damage

Present system leads to anomalous (high) payments for old equipment

Age calculated from 1 Jan 1990…

Proposal Annual 10%

reduction of purchase price to a minimum of 10% after 10 years

Full purchase price for 1st year

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Age (years)

% p

urc

hase

pri

ce

2 year guarantee period

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Re-sales of surplus equipment

Present system applies the compensation value

Propose Fully tested in working condition

Compensation value Untested in uncertain condition

Case-by-case Market value


Operations

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Actions - communication Electronics Pool User’s Guide

English & French Regroups all the rules and regulations Explains levels of support, compensation

payments, etc. Newsletter

Topical items Raising awareness of the Pool

Web site Revised, updated

E-mail list Update Used more often

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Support classesTERMINOLOGY - NEW (Old) SERVI CE DEFI NITION

Availability Small requests can be satisfied within the limits of the available stock. Requests that cannot be satisfied are recorded and are normally taken into account for additional purchasing. Requests for large quantities should be made in advance to the Electronics Pool Operations.

Evaluation A thorough check has been made that the equipment performs to the manufacturer's specification. A report of the tests is available on request.

Verification Each item of equipment is verified for full functionality at delivery time and also after use at each return to the Pool.

Spares A quantity of spares is kept in stock and in normal circumstances a non-working item can be replaced immediately.

Technical Support Detailed knowledge of this equipment exists locally, and verification programs are available. Equipment in use can be checked or calibrated on request.

Repair Nonfunctioning equipment is in most cases covered by an out-sourced maintenance contract. Typical repair times are 6 to 10 weeks.

FULL SUPPORT (Full support)

Documentation Detailed documentation exists, and in most cases is available on-line.

Availability No additional equipment will be purchased.

Verification Each item of equipment is verified for full functionality every time it is returned to the Pool, only if the necessary test instrumentation has been maintained in an operational state, and if expertise is available.

Spares Replacements for non-functioning items will be taken from any remaining stock.

Technical Support Technical support will be provided if available.

Repair Repairs will be made only in exceptional cases. All non-functioning equipment returned to the Pool will be sent for salvage.

REDUCED SUPPORT

(Obsolescent or obsolete)

Documentation Detailed documentation exists, and in most cases is available on-line.

DECLASSIFIED (Cancelled)

No technical or other support is given, and no documentation is available. This equipment is being sent for disposal.

SPECI AL Specific items of equipment where the level of support is decided on a case-by-case basis. Typically high-performance measurement instruments and other very specific items fall into this class

Full SupportVerification after rental, spares,

technical support, documentation all assured. Additional purchases will be

made if required

Reduced SupportVerification after rental, and

documentation assured, spares from existing stock, technical support if

available, no repairs

DeclassifiedNo support, equipment for disposal

SpecialSpecific support on case-by-case basis

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Actions - database management

Database management - BAAN BAAN - CERN AS division supported stock control and

management system Used by the CERN stores

The Pool currently uses a separate instance with customisation for rental

This has diverged from the instance used by the stores Diluting the support given by AS

Pool will move to BAAN 400 Same instance as the CERN Stores

Separate accounting Easier support from AS Division More complete integration with the CERN financial system

Material requests to allow more “off-line” working Scheduled for June 2003

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Special cases Concessions, special arrangements

Complicates operations and financial management CERN Electronics Contribution – CEC

Granted to a number of privileged experiments (LEP experiments, NA48, NA49, NA50, etc.)

Sets the rental rate to 4% of the purchase value of the equipment per year

No new CEC has been granted since 1995 Cost the Pool ~200kCHF in 2002

7.75% of rental revenue

PROPOSAL - terminate the CEC at the end of 2004


Equipment

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Problems Over-stocking Unfocussed selection of

equipment Historical reasons

Old experiments Meeting users’ specific requirements

Rental profile Many items with low income and

high repair cost

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Rental profile

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

0 100 200 300 400 500

Monthly rental (CHF)

Nu

mb

er

of

ite

ms

Many items with very low rental, often with

high repair costs

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Electronics Pool Technical Advisory Board

Aims Adapt Pool’s technical profile to users’ needs Target the spending of the diminishing income Promote visibility, transparency

Members Experienced engineers and physicists advising the

ESS GL Jan Buytaert (LHCb) Augusto Ceccucci (NA48, EAB) Magnus Hansen (CMS) Luciano Musa (ALICE) Georges Schuler (ATLAS) Chris Parkman (EP-ESS GL, Chairman) Catherine Moine (EP-ESS, Pool Operations)

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EPTAB recommendations “Right-size” the Pool

Remove surplus equipment Continue to assure financial viability

Achieve a coherent technical profile Focus the stock Adapt to common applications

Assure the availability of specialist high-performance instruments Via the Pool List “private” instruments - for possible loan

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Actions “Right-Size”

Stock reduction under way Surplus stock, obsolete items, non-functional equipment

Stock renewal Reduce maintenance costs, benefit from guarantee period

Coherent technical profile ESS task group is reviewing the stock and will introduce

“application dependent” sets Modular electronics

Concentrate on NIM & VMEbus CAMAC for “legacy” applications only

Infrastructure Crates Power supplies: HV, LV, bench

Measurement instruments Low and medium range measurement instruments

Outsource high-performance instruments High performance instruments

Uneconomical for the Pool to hold high-cost instruments Low use, specialised knowledge, calibration, etc.

Outsource to specialist rental companies?

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Private Instruments (Dec 2002)

Memo from W-D.Schlatter

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Private Instruments


Technical support

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Pool’s services Verification of equipment before rental

Not always the case Outsourced verification can be slow Lack of expertise in-house for urgent cases Requires larger stocks

User help & consultation Missing expertise

Evaluation of new equipment Missing and/or limited expertise

Problems Compromising the technical quality impacts on the Pool’s credibility

Potential waste of user's time Missing expertise

Owing to recent retirements expertise missing in key areas High-voltage power supplies Mechanics

Further retirements are imminent Continuity in key areas is assured by specific industrial support

people

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The role of EP-ESS Past

Equipment rental (Electronics Pool) Strong technical team

Participation in the choice and procurement of equipment for experiments

Common development projects Present - LHC Development

Equipment rental (Electronics Pool) Limited role in the choice of equipment - experiments are

autonomous, funding outside CERN Common projects - rack control, LHC crates, GIF

Future - LHC commissioning, operation Equipment rental (Electronics Pool) Operation of support contracts, quality control, logistics Continuity of expertise Quality control - evaluation, Repair & maintenance, Long-term

reliability studies Longer-term future - upgrades, R&D, new experiments

As future Technology watch, technical evaluations, etc.


Summary

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Electronics Pool - present Review of operational procedures

Underway – aimed at improving efficiency

Finance Living within our means – using

revenue wisely Technical relevance

Being addressed through EPTAB Technical quality

Difficult manpower situation

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Electronics Pool – future Growth?

To maintain utility, viability & improve efficiency the Pool’s “market” should be as large as possible

Expand activities to achieve economies of scale

Existing logistics could handle more CERN-wide Pool? Include other equipment?

Financial situation Crises over…

Year on year rolling accounting to prevent “last-minute” or inappropriate purchases

Depends on future scientific and R&D programme

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Remarks Is there is a need for an Electronics

Pool? “No”

If the Pool is run down it would be very difficult to revive it at a later date…

“Yes” – consensus But what needs should it serve?

What is the place of a “generic” support group? Should not be considered in isolation

To be seen within a strategic vision of electronics for experiments

Provide and retain expertise - continuity