Emerson announces DCS update

Emerson has announced a new version of its DeltaV distributed control system (DCS). The company says Version 15 of the DeltaV DCS helps plants digitally transform operations through improved production optimisation and enhanced operator performance. New software designed to reduce the burden of IT support and modernisation spend coupled with expanded analytics will help increase flexibility and speed to market and drive operational improvements.

Market forces and public expectation are putting more pressure than ever on manufacturers to drive improved performance and sustainability. Meeting these goals, especially in an era of personnel shortages, means making the most of available data. DeltaV version 15 expands access to critical data to provide every operator with actionable decision support. Emerson says that its new infrastructure makes automation easier to set up and maintain while real-time analytics and an improved HMI help operators improve situational awareness.

“As the Purdue Model of control system engineering continues to flatten and more manufacturers need visibility across the enterprise, the control system plays an increasingly important role in providing real-time access to highly contextualised, democratised data,” said Claudio Fayad, vice president of technology for Emerson’s process systems and solutions business. “Version 15 continues our focus on intuitive, software-defined architectures to help operators and engineers meet the more sustainable, efficient future of process manufacturing.”

Project and operations teams rely on virtualisation to reduce the hardware and energy footprint of the automation system while simultaneously increasing its availability. DeltaV now supports a hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) virtualisation option that Emerson says can be deployed in half the time of a traditional virtualisation setup. DeltaV HCI is said to be easy to scale and maintain and delivers improved performance.

Users can also increase their speed to market through the new DeltaV Spectral Process Analytical Technology (PAT). DeltaV Spectral PAT integrates two analytics solutions with the DeltaV DCS for real-time closed-loop control. This tighter control helps reduce human error and increase speed to market of quality therapies by moving plants closer to continuous manufacturing of drugs.

Enhancements to DeltaV Live, a modern HTML5-based, built-for-purpose HMI, empower operators with easy access to expert insights for more effective, efficient decisions that drive better performance and help personnel of any skill level. Teams can also unlock access to digital twin simulations from across the globe with the new software-as-a-service DeltaV Simulation Cloud, saving time and money with subscription options and facilitating easier collaboration among experts.

Easier, more flexible I/O integration lowers capital costs and improves modernisations. Built-in cybersecurity remains a priority, with DeltaV version 15 being ISASecure SSA Level 1 certified, providing end-to-end cybersecurity across the whole system and at all levels.

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