Articles and News

By Bill Lydon, Editor At the recent Honeywell User Group (HUG) 2013 conference, Honeywell announced new services under the Assurance 360 program for owners of Honeywell systems. The overall goal of these programs is a reduction of unplanned events, faster problem resolution, and better plant performance.

Classes typically are a combination of classroom and hands-on training on either the Endress+Hauser Process Training Unit (PTU) or live instruments in training stands, both designed to simulate operating conditions.

By Bill Lydon, Editor The Honeywell system integrator initiative was launched in 2009 and has quickly become a solid program to serve small to midrange customers with Honeywell’s modular systems. There are 200 system integrators in the program with 55 of them located in the United States.

By Kevin L. Finnan The trend toward intelligent devices in remote SCADA installations would seem to put remote terminal units (RTUs) on the path to obsolescence. Instead, it illustrates the evolving value of RTUs in contemporary systems.

By Bill Lydon, Editor Over the last two years, Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) UK Petrochemicals has empowered users to create custom dashboards based on Excel spreadsheet data and calculations using software from Sabisu. The software enables people to organize their data around "Communities" related to areas of interest.

Monsanto engineers used the full capabilities of HART Communication to “get connected” and integrate the intelligent information from more than 600 HART-enabled devices into their control systems.

Catalog covers weighing solutions for the chemical, pharmaceutical and food industries with hazardous environments.

Honeywell will install an Experion Process Knowledge System (PKS) to modernize the integrated control room at the Tokuyama Refining and Petrochemical Complex in Japan.

PAC will supply laboratory analytical instruments for Petroleum Testing application to JAC, including instruments for gas chromatography, sulfur, nitrogen, halides, and elemental and physical properties.

Pradeep Metals manufactures closed-die forgings for the oil & gas, valve, instrumentation, petrochemical, and general engineering industries around the world.

By Hugh Davies, Optical Metrology Services How high precision laser profile measurement tools and video inspection equipment are helping companies verify the quality of CRA-lined pipes by detecting the presence of wrinkles or buckling.

Shipments for the U.S. industrial valve industry will grow to nearly $4.3 billion, according to figures released by the Valve Manufacturers Association (VMA). This exceeds the industry’s previous 10-year peak in 2008.

By Bill Lydon, Editor Siemens COMOS 10 is an enterprise platform for the process industry that integrates functions including automation design, plant engineering, operations, and enterprise interfaces.

Industrial Thinking’s Chronicle software connects to flowmeters using redundant Modbus and OPC protocols to report on Hydrocarbon and Co2 emissions from all facilities, including steam boilers, superheaters, furnaces and purge to flares.

Handbook provides expert advice on the design and application of load cells and weigh modules for tanks, silos, vessels, hoppers and conveyors.

The X3302 Multispectrum Infrared Hydrogen Flame Detector was certified as Safety Integrity Level 2 (SIL 2) capable by exida.

Automation.com, January 2013 By Bill Lydon, Editor The addition of an EtherNet/IP stack to the Siemens Sinamics drives offers another option and makes life easier for users and machine builders. The Sinamics S120 drive products now support Profibus DP, PROFINET, EtherNet/IP, and Ethernet TCP/IP.

By Bill Lydon, Editor The Tofino Security Appliance and its management software withstood a variety of sophisticated reverse engineering attacks conducted by Digital Bond, the world's most respected sources for control system security research.

After Emerson Process Management replaced existing valve positioners with Fisher digital valve controllers, the plant gained $40,000 in annual maintenance savings.

Automation.com, November 2012 By Bill Lydon, Editor Invensys Foxboro describes their Modernization Program as taking a holistic approach based on business requirements with four major goals - Reduce risk of failures, operational improvements, new & existing systems integration, and securing automation systems from cyber-attack.