Here are a few words from my colleague Alicia DuBay who has just returned from the spring meeting of the Center for Operator Performance (COP).

I have not been very deeply involved with the COP for the last few years due to a new job assignment.  However, it was fantastic to get back in touch, not only with the people, but with all of the existing and new research projects that we are funding.

Since I last attended a COP meeting, there have been quite a few new projects started or continued with additional phases.  These projects include a continuation of Event Prediction, Effectiveness of various Training Methods for process operators, Data to Information Handbook, Alarm Formatting and Presentation and perhaps most exciting - an update on our Overview Displays project.

While all of these projects are valuable and the research is providing some terrific insights into expertise, how operators learn and some guidance on grouping and visualizing data, the Overview Displays project is the one I am currently obsessed with.  This project is member run and is focused on taking some of the results from our completed research, combining that with member experience and developing a set of “best practices” for creating a plant overview display for use by operators in a control room.  

Of course such displays exist today, but little exists in the way of defining the best way to aggregate and display the necessary data.  We are currently part way through creating the best practices from the results of our research and from reviewing existing graphical displays to distill common mistakes and areas for improvement.  Once these guidelines are in place, a new Overview graphic will be implemented at one of our member company’s facilities. 

Once the operators become familiar with the new display, additional research testing will be done to measure the improvement in operator performance based on criteria like how long it takes to find critical information or reaction time to a critical alarm.  This project will provide a real world example of how to apply this research and will be supported by metrics quantifying the improvement in performance.  I can hardly wait to see the results.  I hope to have additional information to share after our fall meeting.

You can find additional information on the Center for Operator Performance at www.operatorperformance.org.  Check it out.  We are accepting new members.  As always, member or not, we would love to hear your thoughts on our Overview Display project.

This month we have a great article on remote optimization from our remote experts in Baden, Switzerland.  They will take a closer look at how to improve operations and maintenance utilizing remote optimization techniques.  Here is the first of five installments.  I hope you enjoy them.

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Early diagnosis of equipment problems and optimization of maintenance and operations are elements that are essential for efficient operation of plants in the power and water industries.

Plant managers are expected to maximize output while keeping costs at a minimum. Some may be tempted to sacrifice maintenance expenditures for an immediate improvement in profitability, but this strategy can adversely affect longer-term profitability: Spending less on maintenance degrades equipment, which leads to poorer performance and, ultimately, to reduced productivity and product quality. The inverse strategy yields the inverse result: increased production and improved quality. A purely reactive approach to service should be replaced by one that properly balances reactive and proactive behavior.

Stepwise optimization process

Companies in the power and water industries increasingly expect remote services that supplement internal and contractor on-site support and improve the effectiveness of their operation and maintenance programs. Remote services provide expertise to the customer in a cost-effective and efficient way. Having these services available 24/7 is very beneficial to customers who are facing the dual challenge of a lack of expertise and rapidly advancing technology.

Remote service involves a three-step optimization process. It usually begins with experts visiting the customer site to become familiar with the plant and the unique characteristics of the process. Data is collected so that an initial assessment can be performed and process problems identified. Then a root cause analysis is carried out and recommendations for corrective actions are made to the customer. Once the improvement recommendations have been implemented, subsequent periodic audits are performed to make certain that the desired results have been achieved and to ensure continuous improvement. Data for subsequent assessments is gathered automatically by data collection tools or with the assistance of field service personnel. Experts remotely analyze the data and provide status reports containing additional corrective action recommendations that will sustain the process improvements achieved and enable future improvements to be made.

This process can be summarized as follows:

– Diagnose: Identify existing system reliability issues.
− Implement: Deliver identified improvement services.
− Sustain: Manage and continue the improvement process.

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The next installment will explore the uses of remote for technical support, FAT and training, so check back soon for more.  Please let us know what you think and share your experiences on this topic.

I hope you have enjoyed this article by Roy Tanner of our System 800xA Product Group.  Please let us know what you think of the role of automation systems in management of change.

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Conclusion

Change is a necessary part of today’s operations in production facilities and therefore management of change is key in reducing risk to the process, business, environment and personnel. Though management of change is much more than features in an automation system, these features can help facilitate management of change in various ways.  Compiler checks, change verification reports, the use of libraries for step-wise change introduction, and simulation testing are all ways that most modern systems have available to help management of change process.  However, probably the best way to perform impact analysis involves comparing the modified application or program to the original using the actual live inputs in order to detect potentially hazardous changes to the process.  This is not commonly found but has been proved to be an invaluable asset for reducing risk as it detects possible differences in calculated outputs which cannot be found in any other testing scenario.  To quote a well known figure “Change ….good ;  Fire ..Bad”.   

To download the white paper, please click here  and don't forget to visit ABB’s Power of Integration Knowledge Center on Control Global.