Product category:
Process Control and Monitoring Systems
News Release from: Emerson Process Management | Subject: PlantWeb at UMIST
Edited by the Processingtalk Editorial
Team on 07 February 2003
Automation system upgrades research
pilot plant
UMIST has chosen PlantWeb from Emerson to automate and control the CEMIST (Chemical Engineering Measurement by In-Situ Techniques) process plant within its Chemical Engineering Department
Automation system upgrades UMIST research The University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) has chosen Emerson Process Management to automate the CEMIST (Chemical Engineering Measurement by In-Situ Techniques) process plant within its Chemical Engineering Department Previously known as the "pilot plant", the CEMIST facility has 14 separate processing areas spread across five floors
This article was originally published on Processingtalk on 8 Aug 2008 at 8.00am (UK)
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This scale of plant operation within a university based research facility makes it unique worldwide.
The process area is run by industry-trained personnel.
The research equipment and all the utility equipment are also used to teach engineering students the principles of plant operation and design as well as running experimental projects.
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The pilot plant is seen as an important element in the undergraduate and post-graduate courses that are offered.
Postgraduate student Andrew Dell said "The pilot plant laboratory practice proved invaluable in helping to improve my understanding of lecture courses".
As part of the GBP 6.5 million grant-aided upgrade, PlantWeb digital plant architecture from Emerson Process Management will be installed.
The architecture will use the power of Foundation fieldbus and HART communications to control and manage the processes and field equipment.
Prof Peter Heggs, who led the team that put the proposal together, commented: "This investment is key to the advances in science needed to support the chemical industry in its new directions.
It means that we can continue to attract the best scientists from across the world, and lead in this field that is so important to the UK".
"The facility typically contains 12-14 separate processing areas.
Two or three of the areas are changed each year, as the research activities demand", said Brian Donohue, the UMIST project manager.
"As part of the specification we put forward to Jacobs Engineering, the management contractor, we asked for an industrial type control system that would be highly flexible as well as having a huge capacity to collect and analyse data".
John Townend, control and instrumentation manager from Jacobs explained that it needed to install a state of the art infra-structure that was capable of supporting the research requirements of today, and still be right for the future.
"We had to second guess the functionality that may be required over the next ten to 20 years", said Townend.
"It may be that future research will rely more heavily on Foundation fieldbus, and advanced or batch control".
Further, the chosen supplier had to put the right support structure in place to ensure the UMIST technicians were able to support the plant over its lifetime.
Emerson put forward an innovative approach to providing this support.
The PlantWeb digital plant architecture from Emerson will use its DeltaV digital automation system with two remote I/O modules on each of the five floors of the plant, giving a potential for 5000 I/O in total.
The DeltaV system will communicate with field devices using a combination of conventional signals, Foundation fieldbus and HART protocols.
"We were tasked with providing a flexible infrastructure for education and research rather than a fixed process plant", said Neil Burnside, the project manager from Jacobs Engineering.
"Although we did look at other options, we felt that the PlantWeb digital plant architecture from Emerson was most capable of providing us with the flexibility we required".
Travis Hesketh, the UK Systems Sales Director for Emerson Process Management said: "We are delighted to be selected by Jacobs and UMIST to supply the equipment for this project.
We feel that it is important that engineers of the future are fully conversant with the latest technology available, so that they can take and apply that knowledge within their workplaces.
It is by applying the latest technologies that our manufacturing industries will maintain their competitive edge".
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