Activity

  • Ovation Advanced Condition Monitoring

    Jim Cahill
    Jason King Emerson’s Jason King shares an update on advanced condition monitoring in the Ovation distributed control system at last week’s 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference. This integrated machinery protection and condition monitoring module built directly into the Ovation system. It is capable of typical equipment protection functions, but also has condition monitoring technology built in, so no separate software…

  • Ovation Intelligence Framework

    Jim Cahill
    Alvin Faustino Azime Can-Cimino Emerson’s Alvin Faustino and Azime Can-Cimino discussed plant prognostics with the Ovation Intelligence Framework at the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference. Here’s a visual of the framework: Azime opened explaining that prognostic maintenance requires starting with data—sensor data and generated data. This data is pre-processed and used to develop a detection or prediction mode…

  • Electrical Generator Excitation Control

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Matt Musko shared the basics and installation best practices for generator excitation controls at the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference. Matt opened describing the fundamentals of generator excitation. Three things are necessary to generate electricity: current carrying conductors in the generator armature windings, a magnetic field created by DC current supplied to the field windings, and relative motion…

  • Ovation System Forward View

    Jim Cahill
    Rick Kephart rounds out the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference with a look into the future around architectures and algorithms. Rick opened with a discussion of Ovation Droplets. It is a lightweight controller that’s part of the 3.7 release. Any Compact Controller can be configured as a Droplet in the Dev Studio configuration software. These compact controllers, configured as standalone, can be adopted as Droplets into…

  • Suppressing Plant Alarms

    Jim Cahill
    Ben Poskie Since the early days of distributed control systems, much work has been done to improve alarm management and prevent alarms from flooding operators to prevent them from properly diagnosing and correcting abnormal situations. The ANSI/ISA 18.2 alarm management standard began development back in 2003 and built off of the work of other alarm management initiatives. It published as ANSI/ISA-18.2-2009 Management…

  • Suppressing Plant Alarms

    Jim Cahill
    Ben Poskie Since the early days of distributed control systems, much work has been done to improve alarm management and prevent alarms from flooding operators to prevent them from properly diagnosing and correcting abnormal situations. The ANSI/ISA 18.2 alarm management standard began development back in 2003 and built off of the work of other alarm management initiatives. It published as ANSI/ISA-18.2-2009 Management…

  • Ovation Compact Controller Update

    Jim Cahill
    Tom Snowdon As renewable energy supplied to electrical grids continues to grow, the need for more scalable options to control these additional sources of energy. In a 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference presentation on the Ovation Compact Controller (OCC) , Emerson’s Tom Snowdon shared an update on the OCC, the use of 3 rd party I/O and engineering tool options. Tom opened defining a standalone as one controller…

  • Gas Turbine Control Enhancements

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Laurence O’Toole and Felipe Londono were joined by Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS)’s Michael Glover to present on gas turbine control enhancements at the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference. MHPS and Emerson formed an alliance in 2008 to provide state of the art turbine and controls solutions. The solutions include balance of plant (BOP) controls, generator excitation, process control devices and…

  • Ovation Turbine Overspeed Protection

    Jim Cahill
    At the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference, Emerson’s Sam Onuska and Greg Lieb provided an update on turbine overspeed protection in Ovation distributed control systems. Sam opened discussing the purpose of turbine overspeed protection. It’s required for personnel safety and machinery protection against overspeed condition. Overspeed protection is applied to steam turbines, boiler feed pump turbines, combustion turbines…

  • Ovation Lifecycle Planning

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Mike Ames and Nick Koonce teamed up to discuss Ovation Lifecycle Planning and the need to think beyond periodic upgrades at the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference. Nick opened by defining lifecycle planning for the Ovation system: Ovation Lifecycle Planning provides a broader or more holistic approach to best align Ovation products and services to customers’ business drivers (KPI’s) and problem-solving needs…

  • Air Management and Emissions Control

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s James Bare shared how effective process control and tuning improves combustion air management and improves overall emissions control at the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference. James opened describing different types of boilers and their operation in different regions. The focus of the presentation was on coal-fired boilers. Combustion of coal with air creates steam from water which drives a steam turbine…

  • Cooling Tower Solutions

    Jim Cahill
    At the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference, Emerson Jason King provided an update on Ovation DCS solutions for cooling towers. Jason opened explaining that $450,000 USD can be saved using automated cooling tower monitoring and optimization solutions. Several challenges exist for cooling towers in the power generation industry. Cooling towers are used to condense the steam exiting the steam turbine. This helps complete…

  • Ovation Digital Twin Technology-Embedded Simulation Update

    Jim Cahill
    Some key ways simulation technology is used by manufacturers and producers for training, optimizing operating procedures and engineering to evaluate ways to improve overall performance. In a 2019 Ovation Users’ Group Conference presentation, Ovation Digital Twin Technology – Embedded Simulation Update & New Applications, Emerson’s James Thompson and Shen Zhang provides an overview of Digital Twin technology, how it integrates…

  • The Industrial Cyber Threat Landscape

    Jim Cahill
    At the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group conference, Dragos CEO Robert M. Lee provided an update on the cyber threats facing manufacturers and producers. Emerson and Dragos yesterday announced an agreement, Emerson Selects Dragos to Collaborate on Cybersecurity Protection for Power and Water Industries . The news: Emerson and Dragos, Inc., developer of the Dragos Platform for industrial cybersecurity asset detection, threat…

  • Heat Recovery Steam Generator Purge Credit Success

    Jim Cahill
    At the 2019 Ovation Users’ Group Conference , a U.S. power producer shared their story about shrinking down to a 17-minute purge on their combustion turbine (CT) startup. A heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) purge removes combustible levels of fuel mixtures prior to startup. A purge credit allows credit for a prior purge for the next startup with a normal shutdown occurs or modified fuel systems for both CT and duct…

  • 5 Questions for Cybersecurity Expert Jaime Foose

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Jaime Foose joins our continuing podcast series, 5 Questions for an Emerson Expert . Jaime is an ICS cyber security expert, Director of Security Solutions and Lifecycle Shared Services. She helps power producers and water & wastewater utilities with programs and processes to improve their cyber defenses and the ongoing health of their distributed control systems & operational technology (OT). https://www…

  • 5 Questions for Cybersecurity Expert Jaime Foose

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Jaime Foose joins our continuing podcast series, 5 Questions for an Emerson Expert . Jaime is an ICS cyber security expert, Director of Security Solutions and Lifecycle Shared Services. She helps power producers and water & wastewater utilities with programs and processes to improve their cyber defenses and the ongoing health of their distributed control systems & operational technology (OT). https://www…

  • Improved Steam Temperature Control Strategies

    Jim Cahill
    As electrical power producers and cogeneration facilities must handle the load swings produced on the supply and demand side. Optimizing steam temperature control is one key way to improve the reliability of on boilers and heat recovery steam generators (HRSGs) caused by load swings. Jeffery Williams I caught up with Emerson’s Jeffery Williams who shared the details of a steam temperature optimization project with…

  • Enabling Seamless and Scalable Distributed Control and SCADA Solutions at Photovoltaic Power Stations

    Jim Cahill
    Authors: Tom Snowden , Greg Schirm Photovoltaic power stations (or solar parks) have traditionally used PLCs as their preferred control devices. Size, ruggedness, and cost are often cited as reasons for using PLCs. With the release of the Ovation Compact Controller , Emerson is merging the scalability of PLCs with the power of the Ovation distributed control system on photovoltaic (PV) solar projects. The compact…

  • Enabling Seamless and Scalable Distributed Control and SCADA Solutions at Photovoltaic Power Stations

    Jim Cahill
    Authors: Tom Snowden , Greg Schirm Photovoltaic power stations (or solar parks) have traditionally used PLCs as their preferred control devices. Size, ruggedness, and cost are often cited as reasons for using PLCs. With the release of the Ovation Compact Controller , Emerson is merging the scalability of PLCs with the power of the Ovation distributed control system on photovoltaic (PV) solar projects. The compact…

  • Avoiding Forced Outages from Rotating Equipment Issues

    Jim Cahill
    The reality for manufacturers and producers is that their plant assets continually degrade over time. Valves wear over time, electrical assets may experience intermittent faults, and rotating equipment imbalances may lead quickly to forced outages. In this 3-minute YouTube video, Alert Plant Operations When Rotating Equipment Problems Pose a Threat , Emerson’s Kevin Rossi shares ways to equip plant operators with insights…

  • Avoiding Forced Outages from Rotating Equipment Issues

    Jim Cahill
    The reality for manufacturers and producers is that their plant assets continually degrade over time. Valves wear over time, electrical assets may experience intermittent faults, and rotating equipment imbalances may lead quickly to forced outages. In this 3-minute YouTube video, Alert Plant Operations When Rotating Equipment Problems Pose a Threat , Emerson’s Kevin Rossi shares ways to equip plant operators with insights…

  • Handling Processes with Long Lag Times

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Mircea Lupu shared his thoughts on Ovation system algorithms for handling processes with long lag times—a control challenge that vexes many. Mircea opened noting that control algorithms are at the heart of any control system to provide stable and accurate response and robustness against disturbances and process changes. Tuning these algorithms to achieve the desired performance can be laborious. Proportional…

  • Handling Processes with Long Lag Times

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Mircea Lupu shared his thoughts on Ovation system algorithms for handling processes with long lag times—a control challenge that vexes many. Mircea opened noting that control algorithms are at the heart of any control system to provide stable and accurate response and robustness against disturbances and process changes. Tuning these algorithms to achieve the desired performance can be laborious. Proportional…

  • Trends toward Remote Turbine Operations

    Jim Cahill
    At the 2018 Ovation Users’ Group Conference, Emerson’ Brett Benson discussed the challenge of operating multiple plants with reduced staff levels and how centralized control for single or multiple plant sites is a viable solution. The latest developments in communication technology coupled with modern control hardware provides utilities the ability to monitor, analyze alarms and control their plants, remotely, from…

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