Bruce Brandt, PE

Is that light supposed to be blinking?

If finding an alarm on your HMI is like playing Where’s Waldo, you might want to reevaluate some of your operator display graphics. A process upset is no time to try and remember what a flashing light means.

If it ain’t broke, don’t automate it?

Maybe it is broke, and you just don’t recognize it. Sometimes problems and inefficiencies in our plants persist simply because nobody wants to take responsibility for finding a solution. Effective automation might be the key.

Flying by the seat of your pants?

If you want to fly without using appropriate instrumentation, I’ll walk, thank you. The same goes for your process.

Growing the next generation

Too many companies have lost their capacity to train inexperienced engineers. How can we hope to replace the practical knowledge lost to retirement?

The loop, the whole loop, and nothing but the loop

Sometimes we need to think about an individual control loop. Other times we need to consider the larger control system. You should be able to do either when appropriate.

The pace of technological innovation, or, where’s my flying car?

Each new technology is supposed to give us better lives. Why do industrial users adopt them so slowly?

Advancing control

Concepts of APC can be implemented a little bit at a time but still make big steps toward getting your process running better.

Making power more efficiently

Improving control of feedwater heaters improves heat transfer and reduces operating cost.