Real-time data: OSIsoft partners with Rockwell, Yokogawa, Emerson

-- Control Engineering, 11/9/2006

OSIsoft is expanding the presence of its powerful operational data management framework—the Real-time Performance Management (RtPM) platform—through key alliances with a series of automation industry heavyweights targeting the process industries. Emerson Process Management announced continued support for the technology, which is said to "cross IT and process boundaries to incorporate and display operational information." Yokogawa Electric entered into a major partnership to better serve industrial automation markets throughout much of Asia. And Rockwell Automation said it will incorporate the OSIsoft PI System and related components into its FactoryTalk integrated production and performance suite.

In the first alliance, OSIsoft and Emerson announced continuation of their global value added reseller agreement of the last three years. Emerson will continue to incorporate OSIsoft's PI System into its automation projects that use PlantWeb digital automation architecture and services. The alliance has included joint product development, and resulted in integration of more than 7,000 of Emerson's DeltaV digital automation systems with the OSIsoft Real-time Performance Management Platform (RtPM). The resulting system crosses IT and process boundaries to incorporate and display operational information for timely analysis and the ability to make critical, informed, and profitable decisions.

The OSIsoft PI System data historian, the foundation of the Real-time Performance Platform, provides common data architecture for applications from the plant floor to the business level to make information available wherever needed. OSIsoft offerings that have been successfully integrated with Emerson products and services include Sigmafine mass balancing, maintenance applications, enterprise resource planning (ERP) connectivity to real-time plant floor information, batch management, inventory management, process workflow, real-time reporting, real-time portal view, plant IT monitoring, operator reports, oil and gas production monitoring, and integrated production and scheduling.

In its agreement with Yokogawa Electric Corp., OSIsoft Inc. announced the two companies have entered into a partnership "to better serve industrial automation markets throughout much of Asia." The arrangement gives Yokogawa use of OSIsoft technology for real time operational decision making and enterprise management, and expands OSIsoft strategic access in the fastest growing automation markets in the world.

Yokogawa Information Systems Corp. has been an OSIsoft distributor since 1993. The expanded partnership between its parent company and OSIsoft makes it possible for Yokogawa Electric to provide OSIsoft Real-time Performance Management (RtPM) Platform technology at the core of its Total Enterprise Technology Solutions (ETS). Yokogawa Electric plans to use Total ETS to expand its business beyond traditional industrial automation applications into the arena of enterprise performance management.

Under terms of the multi-year agreement, Yokogawa Electric will provide the enhanced Total ETS solutions to the industrial automation sector in Japan, China, Korea and Taiwan, and will cooperate with OSIsoft to enhance localization of RtPM Platform products in its core Japanese market. The companies will work closely to provide users with localized, first line technical support in Japan.

As part of its marketing strategy for the new partnership, Yokogawa Electric is expanding development and support of its Total ETS offerings with an Intelligent Manufacturing Laboratory, an ETS Strategic Planning and Marketing group, and an ETS Market Development effort. An RtPM/PI support group will provide presales and technical support, training, and quality assurance to Yokogawa customers. To promote its strategy and support sales of the RtPM Platform and the OSIsoft PI System, Yokogawa is establishing regional headquarters in Shanghai and Tokyo.

The agreement is a strategic initiative undertaken by OSIsoft to increase its presence in Asian markets, according to OSIsoft management. "This expanded partnership is part of a multi-year initiative to better serve our worldwide network of loyal customers and bring OSIsoft closer to our customers," noted C. S. Lui, vice-president of sales, Asia Pacific, OSIsoft. In the Pacific Rim, OSIsoft has offices in China (Shanghai), Singapore, Australia (Perth) and Japan (Tokyo).

Rockwell announced its intention to license and deliver OSIsoft technology within the FactoryTalk integrated production and performance suite at its annual Automation Fair conference last month. Under the agreement, Rockwell will incorporate the OSIsoft PI System and related components into the FactoryTalk suite, and leverage FactoryTalk service-oriented architecture to provide integration with Rockwell Automation Integrated Architecture.

The joint development and technology licensed through this agreement reportedly will serve as the platform for a tiered, distributed historian strategy that will leverage industry-focused applications. This approach is said to represent a highly scalable and cost-effective alternative for manufacturers who want to improve insight from each level of their manufacturing system, from embedded high-speed controls to machines and work cells to an entire plant or across the enterprise.

"This alliance significantly accelerates the depth and breadth of our historian-based offerings," said Kevin Roach, vice president of software, Rockwell Automation. "Combining the PI System with FactoryTalk services and connectivity to our Integrated Architecture, gives our customers access to world-class distributed historian capabilities that deliver seamless integration to Rockwell Automation control systems, as well as connectivity to third-party platforms."