Practitioners of Control engineering generally like things spelled out when they can get it, and those revising the ISA batch control standard believe their three-year revision clarifies quite a bit. And, they say, the standard continues to become more usable for applications outside of batch control.
        ISA88.01 Batch Control Part 1: Models and Terminology, originally passed in 1995, started revision mid-2006, went out for vote last month, and may be final by early 2010. Clarifications addressed drafting errors in the original standard and less-than-specific wording that left too much to interpretation. Discussions revisited the standard’s original intentwww.cechina.cn, and what it’s come to mean, as new technologies developed and were applied, bringing life to ISA88 concepts.
        No academic exercise, the debate reflected a microcosm of real-world circumstances and incorporated input from industries outside batch control. Users, system integrators, and vendors augment efficiency by integrating batch control with continuous control and discrete control. Real lifecycle savings result, as high as 50% by some estimates. When systems are based on standards and integrate in a standard wayCONTROL ENGINEERING China版权所有, they can be more easily modifiedwww.cechina.cn, upgraded, and replaced. Using a standard such as ISA88 avoids creation of a block of impenetrable automation, nearly impossible to maintain or adapt. Manufacturing needs flexibility, scalability, and adaptabilityCONTROL ENGINEERING China版权所有, and the enhanced ISA88 concepts can help provide that.
        ISA88 creates models and common termsCONTROL ENGINEERING China版权所有, in four parts approved by ANSI/ISA and IEC, to understand the real world of controls, equipment, processes, and information management. Standard designs can be changed more quickly and easily. Since engineering can be creative as everyone seeks a better wayCONTROL ENGINEERING China版权所有, the trick is to be flex