Control Engineering

Diagram of a spray dryer system. Courtesy: McEnery Automation

System Integrators December 20, 2019

System integrator upgrades spray dryer controls

Control system upgrade of spray dryer improves product quality and profitability.

By Michael McEnery

Figure 1: Multivariable control matrix for an atmospheric crude distillation column, based on operation-driven design practice. The matrix is smaller than traditional crude column applications. It addresses primarily column pressure and product inferential quality control, which are often the most valuable objectives of this application – and often the ones found “unclamped” in existing large-matrix applications. Courtesy: APC Performance LLC

PID, APC December 2, 2019

Operation-driven matrix design

A multivariable control matrix has manipulated variables (MVs) on one axis, controlled variables (CVs) on the other axis, and models in the matrix that indicate a relationship between that MV/CV pair. Effective multivariable controllers use the right models for various control and optimization needs.

By Allan Kern

Figure 1: Data acquisition network connections. Courtesy: Maverick Technologies

Data Acquisition, DAQ November 26, 2019

Eight data acquisition best practices

To discover which real-time data adds value to improve operational efficiencies and increase competitive edge in the marketplace, first understand data acquisition systems and consider the eight essential best practices for data acquisition success

By Brian E. Bolton

Figure 2: Real-time dashboards provide the information required for each level of the plant’s organization. Courtesy: Yokogawa Electric Corp.

Process Manufacturing November 4, 2019

Profit-driven operations require IT/OT integration

Maximizing process plant profits requires close integration across all levels of an organization.

By Yasunori Kobayashi

A study from Flow Research projects the worldwide flowmeter market will grow to almost $9 billion by 2023. Courtesy: Flow Research Inc.

Sensors, Actuators November 2, 2019

Flowmeter market growth expected thanks to oil and gas industry recovery

A study from Flow Research projects the worldwide flowmeter market will grow from $7 billion to almost $9 billion by 2023 as the oil and gas industry continues recovering. Flow measurement technologies advance.

By Mark T. Hoske and Chris Vavra

Factory automation and process control tag-naming matters for consistency, understanding, and troubleshooting. Courtesy: Frank Lamb, Automation Consulting, Automation Primer

Discrete Manufacturing November 1, 2019

Control Engineering hot topics, October 2019

Control Engineering's most clicked articles in October 2019 included stories about the Engineers' Choice finalists, PLC naming conventions, digital engineering practices, RPC and model-based control, and more. Miss something? You can catch up here.

By Chris Vavra

Better control means getting useful information when needed to the right people, for smarter decisions. Intuitive dashboards showing plant parameters provide faster understanding, as shown at the 2019 Honeywell Users Group Americas meeting in June. Courtesy: Mark T. Hoske, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology

Process Manufacturing October 31, 2019

Opening your options: Control system migration

Inside Process: Aging process control systems (PCSs) create nine major problems. There are three good reasons to migrate distributed control systems before obsolescence.

By Satnam Bhogal

Figure: Rate-predictive control (RPC) is inherently adaptive (think naturally self-tuning) to changes in process gain. In the top graph, process gain is 1.0, while in the bottom graph, process gain is 2.0. Control performance remains “perfect,” with no change to RPC tuning parameters. Courtesy: APC Performance LLC

PID, APC October 7, 2019

Five advanced process control, data analytics connections

Are there connections between advanced process control (APC) and data analytics? Recent developments in the field of information technology (IT) and its use in the manufacturing world provide insights.

By Jim Ford, Ph.D.

Figure 1: In OOIP, the control design is built from objects which match those in the physical plant or equipment design. Courtesy: ControlSphere Engineering

PID, APC September 18, 2019

OOIP Part 3: interfaces and methods

Interfaces and methods used in object-oriented industrial programming (OOIP) help deliver productivity of object-oriented programming (OOP) without the complexity. Because plants and equipment are assembled from objects, it’s logical that their control programming should be, too.

By Gary L. Pratt, P.E.