ISA adopts FDT 2.0 as American national standard

FDT Group and the International Society of Automation (ISA) have announced that FDT 2.0 technology has been fully adopted as an ISA/ANSI American standard. The standard will meet demands in the region for open, standardised device integration on an enterprise-wide basis. It will enhance the integration and application of various field buses and devices, in addition to promoting widespread implementation of standards-based automation solutions.

ISA 103 Chairman Ian Verhappen oversaw the ISA committee's unanimous approval by its voting member community. "I would like to thank our informational and voting members who were dedicated to reviewing and commenting on the ISA 103 standard, allowing the region to adopt modern automation technology integration solutions," he said.

FDT Group Managing Director Glenn Schulz commented, "I want to acknowledge Mr Verhappen and his service to ISA and thank the ISA 103 committee for its commitment to the advancement of the FDT 2.0 specification to ISA adoption. The United States is a key market for manufacturing for both suppliers and producers, who rely on standards-based technologies to improve automation efficiencies and bottom-line cost benefits. In addition to ISA/ANSI standardisation in the USA, FDT 2.0 has been adopted as IEC 62453 and China GB/T 29618–2017."

The FDT 2.0 standard addresses market requirements in the American market by defining the interfaces for both vertical and the horizontal data flow, called Function Control and Data Access, in the framework of a client-server architecture. It allows application software and configuration tools to interact with field devices in a unified way, while hiding the manufacturer-specific interaction with devices or sub-systems in a software module. Additionally, the standard allows any fieldbus-, device- or subsystem-specific software tool to be integrated as part of a universal lifecycle management tool within a plant automation system.

The FDT 2.0 specification employs an architecture based on Microsoft .NET technology and offers all the properties needed by modern software right up to web- and client/server-based systems.

For more information, visit the FDT Group website.

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