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New synapses for the plant's "brain"

Bridge from design to automation saves time and increases data quality

© AUCOTEC AG

With Aucotec's new DCS portal, the specifications from the plant design can be automated and transferred directly to the programming of common control systems – even to several at the same time (© AUCOTEC AG)

With the portal, the specifications from the plant design can be automated and transferred directly to the programming of common control systems (DCS: Distributed Control Systems).

One portal for all

This unique bridge leads to any automation system that is capable of communication, even in parallel with several of them. This makes the portal particularly useful for general contractors (EPCs) or for operators who have different control systems in use due to their history. Each has its own programming tools and uses different software modules ("Typicals").

Aucotec's Software Engineering Base (EB) can provide a corresponding container in the portal for all these "plant brains". Each container serves as a kind of "synapse" for the transmission of design information, which can thus be transferred simultaneously to different control systems with different configurations. This is also of benefit for manufacturers who build lots of similar plants but with other control systems.

Quick and error-free changes

With the many unavoidable changes during plant planning and operation, the new solution is also fast and free of the usual transmission errors. If a change, whenever and wherever it may occur in the process, has an effect on the sensor/actuator logic, the control system is informed instantly via the portal. The basis for this is the extraordinary consistency of EB.

The cooperative platform combines the core disciplines of basic engineering including FEED (front end engineering design), process design, instrumentation & control, and electrical engineering in a single, common data model. This means that change entries are only required at one point. They appear immediately in each additional representation of the object changed, so that all parties involved are always up to date.

Coordination between the plant designers, error-prone data transmissions, double entries and time-consuming cross-checks between the disciplines are eliminated by this central data management. EB also reduces the waiting time of the automation engineers for all relevant information from the various areas.