by Gary Mintchell | Dec 1, 2014 | Automation, News, Operations Management, Software
Rockwell Automation product managers took me through a number of new software initiatives at Automation Fair November 19. Here is a description of the enhancements to its Manufacturing Execution System (MES) software.
“Modern manufacturing requires modern MES. Manufacturers today have operations spanning time zones and continents; employees that need to collaborate as they travel between plants or work remotely; and complex and varied enterprise-, plant- and cloud-based information systems that must interface continuously.” To address all these needs, Rockwell Automation updated its FactoryTalk ProductionCentre manufacturing execution system (MES) software to improve application performance and scalability, speed deployment, and support mobile and cloud infrastructures.
“Manufacturers continue to investigate how to better leverage new technologies, like the cloud, to cut costs,” said Kevin Chao, senior director for Rockwell Software product marketing and engineering, Rockwell Automation. “With our latest iteration of the FactoryTalk ProductionCentre system, we’ve aligned to Java EE 7 and HTML5 standards. The application is now even easier to use and lets customers explore mobile and cloud-based solutions at reduced risk and infrastructure costs. Additional upgrades to the notification service and work flow structure improve process enforcement and reduce re-work.”
Technology Update: The latest iteration of the MES software has been refreshed to the latest Java Enterprise Edition 7 (EE7) standards. FactoryTalk ProductionCentre R10 software improves application performance and flexibility on the Web, and speeds time to value by reducing development and deployment effort, all while maintaining adherence to open standards.
Mobile and Cloud Support: New HTML5 zero-footprint, true, thin-client user interfaces (UIs) eliminate the need for virtual terminals, like Citrix, or terminal servers. Users can run the application in a Web browser, easily integrate it into an HMI terminal, and implement it across multiple networks without the need for local installation. This reduces IT capital costs and maintenance burdens. Additionally, the thin client UIs can be easily extended to mobile devices. Mobile applications leverage the existing FactoryTalk Security mechanisms built into FactoryTalk software freeing IT from supporting multiple configuration platforms.
I/O server: The new I/O server supports clustering and load balancing. Several FactoryTalk ProductionCentre I/O servers can be assigned a single IP address, so more servers can be added as the data load grows without impacting the application. Should an I/O server fail, a built-in failover capability will automatically switch data collection to another server in the cluster, helping to ensure high availability. The I/O server also provides store and forward services for controlled, real-time data exchange with remote or cloud-based databases.
Notification and Work Flow Flexibility: The FactoryTalk ProductionCentre R10 notification service now drives alerts based on work flow. Notifications are triggered by system-based events, such as an order start or out-of-spec quality event, letting operations know it is time to perform critical tasks, before, during or after production. Notifications can be tied to a specific work area, machine, equipment type or plant, and are sent to key stakeholders on a workstation or HMI via email or text, among other options.
by Gary Mintchell | Oct 8, 2014 | Automation, News, Operations Management, Process Control, Safety
The major press conference at this week’s Emerson Exchange focused on reliability. As a process control company, Emerson has historically focused on the “O” side of Operations & Maintenance.
But Steve Sonnenberg, president of Emerson Process Management, launched the discussion with the statement, “Reliability as a business strategy – a board-level activity. C-suite executives are seeing the need to better manage physical assets for improved profitability. With the right strategy, the typical $1 billion plant can save $12 million or more annually in maintenance costs.”
Jim Nyquist, group vice president PlantWeb Solutions, expressed the three factors of reliability as safety, availability, and profitability. Expressed as a formula, Nyquist explained “shareholder value = reducing safety incidents, improving availability, reducing maintenance costs.”
“Safety is job one,” Nyquist continued. “10% of time in transient conditions yield 50% of safety incidents. Marsh reports piping failures, startpup and shut down events continue to be significant causes of incidents.” As for availability, as much as 5% of production capacity is lost each year as a result of unplanned shutdown and as much as 43% of unplanned downtime is caused by equipment failure. A 1% gain in availability is worth $8.4 million of additional margin in a typical refinery.
Data leads to information which leads to knowledge and then finally action. For Emerson it begins with pervasive sensing and then asset management and control systems. The next step is to build reliability expertise. The company has been building services business, but it has also recently acquired Management Resources Group (MRG). Not only does this investment boost Emerson’s pervasive sensing solution, it also adds a number of experienced consultants. These consultants will help the company reach the next level of the progression–the “prescription” or the tools that allow customers to take prescription into action.
“If a company is not a top-quartile performer, it is losing millions in revenue and spending millions of dollars on unnecessary maintenance costs,” said Robert DiStefano, MRG’s founder and former CEO. “Every dollar not spent on maintenance goes directly to the bottom line. Our approach helps companies dramatically reduce downtime and enhance safety and compliance, increasing the stature and reputation of a company and ultimately providing better value for shareholders.”
Representative from three customer companies presented cases where monitoring and analysis drove improved business metrics. The companies were Corbion, PolyOne, and Lucite.
This new direction of Emerson’s is going to help manufacturers and producers complete the loop of design to operate to maintain. Plant, division and top managers will be provided a holistic view of operations and will therefore be poised to continually improve efficiency, asset utilization and profitability.
by Gary Mintchell | May 12, 2014 | Automation, News, Organizations, Security
With last week’s announcement that GE is acquiring Wurldtech, a march of consolidation in the industrial Cyber Security market continues. First Byres (Tofino) Security found itself at Belden. Then last month Industrial Defender announced acquisition by Lockheed Martin.
That is the way of the world for small companies. Sometimes you hit a market that can grow exponentially. But not so much in industrial technology. So, the exit is to find a good suitor.
That leaves exida standing, although it is considerably larger than the other three. And Waterfall. Both, though also are players in industrial safety, as well as security.
Here is the gist of the GE announcement.
GE announced a definitive agreement to acquire privately held Wurldtech, a Vancouver, British Columbia-based company and leader in cyber security solutions. This move is one of several by GE to help protect critical infrastructure and advance cyber security efforts globally for key industries. Wurldtech solutions and services are used in complex environments such as oil refineries, power transmission grids or for individual assets like medical devices or smart meters.
Traditional information technology (IT) approaches for securing systems and data are challenging when applied to the operations technology (OT) world. Wurldtech solutions offer a strategic approach to cyber security that help to better protect the OT that connects people, data and machines–maximizing system uptime and mitigating exposure to vulnerabilities. This acquisition will help to enhance the reliability of Industrial Internet operations, according to GE.
Wurldtech Services
Wurldtech’s technology and professional services are designed to Assess, Protect and Certify. This strategic approach to cyber security is performed using:
- Achilles Test products to discover operational vulnerabilities in products and critical infrastructure and then assess the root cause
- Achilles Threat Intelligence product to secure OT networks with an industrial firewall
- Achilles Communications and Practices Certifications to evaluate device communications and best practices
Wurldtech will retain its name and operate as a wholly owned subsidiary to continue providing the necessary focus on services to its broader customer base. Financial terms were not disclosed.
by Gary Mintchell | Mar 31, 2014 | News, Operations Management, Software
There is no doubt that Software as a Service and Platform as a Service (otherwise commonly known as the cloud) is a trend growing daily. This new development further hastens the trend into reality.
Cloud server provider Infinitely Virtual announced that it has aligned with BASIS International Ltd. to launch InfiniteERP, a new cloud-based enterprise resource planning suite tailored to manufacturing applications.
BASIS International’s Barista, an application framework, enables developers to build a GUI application quickly by simply defining the data and its interrelationships. AddonSoftware by Barista is a synergistic blend of a proven, long-standing ERP solution and a high-performance update. AddonSoftware offers a breadth of out-of-the-box features that are customizable to suit specific business needs while preserving all customizations through the upgrade cycle. InfiniteERP — which includes Addon’s Manufacturing Module, Accounting Module and Distribution Module — starts at $299 per month.
BASIS International provides more than 7,000 application software developers high- quality, innovative software tools to create reliable, scalable and cost-effective business applications. BASIS software products are the foundation of thousands of mission-critical systems with more than 1.7 million end users in industries that span from manufacturing to banking to health care.
“We’re delighted to welcome Infinitely Virtual to our software developer community,” said Nico Spence, Chairman and CEO, BASIS International. “That community consists of a worldwide network of partners for whom BASIS products form the foundation for proven and reliable software solutions, like InfiniteERP. We are a global software company — big and stable enough to be a reliable partner with thousands of companies all over the world, yet small and flexible enough to deliver customized solutions to meet today’s business challenges.”
“InfiniteERP, powered by BASIS International’s AddonSoftware, is exactly the right platform for manufacturers migrating to the cloud,” said Adam Stern, CEO, Infinitely Virtual. “As we surveyed the market for the most capable solution to offer manufacturers, BASIS was clearly our partner of choice. Manufacturers seeking the simplest way to implement an Enterprise ERP Solution can now look to our InfiniteERP Cloud plan — we install, manage, update, protect and support ERP software for a simple per-user fee. For those looking for a complete cloud solution, our InfiniteERP Dedicated plans enable organizations to host all of their applications in one place while fighting cloud sprawl.”
by Gary Mintchell | Mar 3, 2014 | Automation, Operator Interface, Process Control
Some of the most exciting technology companies have shown me during the past three years or so has involved deep work into providing better operator displays for industrial plant operations. In this case, “better” means working with the people who actually use the displays–maybe the entire team from operators to maintenance to engineering–in order to develop displays that show the state of the plant at a glance.
Those of you who were around in the late 80s, do you remember the beginnings of PC-based document design applications? PageMaker and Ventura Publisher were new. They offered lots of fonts. People designed brochures with six different fonts on one page–in patterns. Then we had the ability to draw really cool graphics on the screen. I had a customer with a waste water facility. They coded in pages to reflect the seasons of the year (I remember the frog croaking representing summer in the river at the end of the process.)
What I’m saying is that we had the technology and we used it as much as possible. Then we discovered that we were giving too much information in too confusing a format.
New Product
This latest announcement is from PAS Corp. in Houston. It has released PowerGraphiX 2.0, a high performance human-machine interface (HMI) package for the power generation industry. The company promises PowerGraphiX, “will revolutionize the way operators view information at power plants.”
PowerGraphiX is comprised of predesigned graphic templates, object libraries and best-practice guidelines for the design and implementation of operator interfaces at power generation plants. Companies choosing to implement the application can expect vastly improved graphics at significantly reduced costs when compared with traditional methods. (I’ve seen samples.)
According to PAS, the software was initially developed because Southern Company Services Inc. had a vision of consistent HMIs and improved situational awareness in control rooms across the operating fleet. PAS is now making the product commercially available for all utilities.
“Southern Company is committed to proprietary research and development in order to deliver solutions to our company and the industry,” said Harvey Ivey, Southern Company Manager of Instrumentation and Controls Design and Support. “This particular software was originally created to streamline information displayed in control rooms across our generating fleet, significantly improving operator effectiveness.”
The methodology behind developing PowerGraphiX was based on the industry-recognized book “The High Performance HMI Handbook” by Founder and CEO of PAS Eddie Habibi and Principal Consultant for High Performance HMI of PAS Bill Hollifield. It addresses the use of color, pattern recognition, standardization and other principles to transform data into actionable information, providing operators with a more holistic view of plant operating conditions.
“PAS is committed to empowering operators by delivering the precise information they need to improve plant safety and performance,” said PAS Vice President of Technology Mark Carrigan. “PowerGraphiX makes interpreting a plant’s current condition simply intuitive.”
Rockwell Automation product managers took me through a number of new software initiatives at Automation Fair November 19. Here is a description of the enhancements to its Manufacturing Execution System (MES) software.
