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Expanding the notion of process variables
May 1, 2007
In various chats at INTERPHEX, at least two companies talked about expanding the reach of their control systems into facilities management. ABB and Rockwell Automation now extend their larger control systems to environmental regulation and monitoring, at least in production areas. Neither is interested in handling office and commercial space, but monitoring and controlling production and warehousing area conditions, particularly in the pharmaceutical industry, are critical to overall manufacturing practices. Both companies talked about it as a logical extension, sort of with the attitude that "we're already there anyway." Yes, it is logical and other companies either already or will likely follow in their footsteps.
The larger issue that seems interesting is the idea of what is a process variable? FDA regulations are understandably concerned with environmental conditions that pharma products encounter, so this one is a no-brainer. On another front, Siemens is expanding the concept by monitoring and controlling electrical consumption (e.g., running process pump motors, etc.) through its systems. With growing integration and broader control capabilities, this will continue to expand. What's next?Posted by Peter Welander on May 1, 2007 | Comments (0)