Blog
Blog & News
Current news on industrial automation, OPC technologies and the industry.
What is a DCS? Architecture, components and when you need one
A distributed control system (DCS) brings controllers, network, servers and operator stations together on one engineering…
Read More
PLC or DCS? Criteria for choosing the right control platform
The choice between PLC and DCS depends less on plant size than on process type, redundancy needs, engineering model and lifecycle…
Read More
Control system health check: 12 items for the annual maintenance review
Most unplanned stops do not come from nowhere; they grow out of small degradations nobody noticed. An annual health-check list…
Read More
Virtualizing DCS servers: when, how and with what risks
Virtualization reduces server count and speeds up recovery, but badly designed it creates new single points of failure. Design…
Read More
Secure remote access to control systems: design principles
Vendor support and remote intervention are unavoidable, but an uncontrolled VPN opens up the whole plant. Designing remote access…
Read More
Automation in geothermal power plants: monitoring and control from wellhead to generator
Geothermal plant automation carries challenges unlike a conventional power plant: corrosive fluid, scaling, remote wellfields and…
Read More
Control panel design: from requirements to commissioning
A good control panel is judged not on its first day of operation but on the first day it is maintained. A design guide to…
Read More
Moving from Advant Master to System 800xA: a planning roadmap
Moving a long-serving Advant Master system to 800xA is less a product change than a risk-management exercise. A roadmap through…
Read More
DCS project scope: decisions to make before a quotation
A DCS investment involves more than selecting controllers and software. Operations, maintenance and project teams need a shared…
Read More