Emerson Exchange 365

Delta V Virtualization

Hi All,

Our plant will setup this new virtualization system. I would to know a little bit more about this Virtualization since this is the first installation in our country. Need opinion what are the benefit and problem if we upgrade to this version.

 

Thanks.

Raimi

• 8 Mar 2016 2:47 AM
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4 Replies

• scottjturner

  

  • 8 Mar 2016 4:56 AM

  Hi Raimi, virtualisation is a way of divorcing the operating system from the physical hardware allowing you to run a number of virtual workstations and servers in one physical server. In practice we use a few physical severs for domain controlling and processing power with a storage attached network device for storage. The sizing of this cluster really depends on how many virtual workstations and servers you plan to have. The benefits are that a virtual system requires a lot less room, is generally higher availability, it is easier to deploy new nodes and the total system lifecycle cost is less. If you have a small system the initial hardware costs can be more expensive and the new VRTX servers can be tricky to set up. It is worth asking your local Emerson sales office to perform a site survey so you can make a better informed decision. I am sure they would be happy to if they haven't already. Hope it all goes well.

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• scottjturner

  

  • 8 Mar 2016 5:04 AM

  It may also be worth taking a look at the Emerson channel on YouTube. John Caldwell does a two part video of DeltaV Virtual Studio. The videos are now below.

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• ELvin John

  

  • 8 Mar 2016 9:00 AM

  Hi Raimi,

  Emerson implements DeltaV Virtualization through the use of an integrated application called DeltaV Virtual Studio. DeltaV Virtual Studio takes out all the complexities of deploying a virtualized DeltaV control system and also allows for easy maintenance and management during the operational phase of the plant. Follow the link below to the Virtualization whitepaper to understand how Emerson implements Virtualization in the Process control world.

  http://www2.emersonprocess.com/siteadmincenter/PM%20DeltaV%20Documents/Whitepapers/DV_WP_Virtualization.pdf

  As Scott pointed out, the videos on the Emerson Youtube channel are also a good intro.

  Benefits of Virtualization are as listed below, All of these essentially translate into Reduced Capital Expenditure and Lower Operating Costs.

  1 Flexibility:
      - Easily Add and Remove workstations
      - Support of multiple systems/multiple software releases on same hardware
      - Ease of planning hardware and software upgrades
      - Allows Virtualization of Controller H/W
  2 Small Footprint:
      - Single VRTX chassis consists of the redundant switches and power, RAID storage, and small-form factor blade servers, thus taking up less cabinet space
      - Helps to reduce maintenance costs
      - Improved hardware utilization
  3 Availability:
      - Easy and quick recovery from workstation failures
  4 Reduced Energy
      - Power is required only for the VRTX chassis
      - Total power requirement is reduced as opposed to having multiple H/W components
      - Less Heat is generated
      - Reduced cooling requirements
      - Improves TCO
  5 Extended System Life:
      - Software Upgrade need not be planned and tied to Hardware Obsolence
      - This means, greater ROI on initial investment, thus improving the TCO
  6 Remote Access:
      - Easily supports remote access like a physical installation

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• connon.ryan

  

  • 8 Mar 2016 2:15 PM

  Word of advice, make sure you have a good computer science or full time IT guru with excellent networking skills on board (previous virtual experience is def a plus), then acclimate them to the controls and automation world. The new virtual systems require several more layers of configuration above the traditional DV network. Validating redundancy and switch over structure within the virtual world and allocating enough space for additional future blades are just a few topics that I've been working on with a "new to me" virtual DV system. I think its ideal for limited space installation, but if you don't have expertise or support on call to sort out virtual issues (separate from typical DV issues) then you may find the learning curve to be quite overwhelming. Lets face it, its a fairly new structure to the DV system and there are a lot of hotfix's being deployed right now to fix the nuances. You can find lots of terrific DV engineers in the world, but I have had a hard time finding ones that have specific experience setting up/testing/supporting/troubleshooting the virtual DV systems. I personally would consult towards utilizing the traditional network setup if you already have the hardware and infrastructure in place, because I like the tried & true design and know how to keep the plant running at all costs with that particular setup based on my experience. With that said, I am still new to supporting a virtual system and I'm on the front of the learning curve and seem to be fighting fires more and more on the computer management side of things vs polishing and standardizing our actual DV automation system. just my 2 cents.

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