Phasebuilder

Phasebuilder is a Control Engineering tool that enables a Process Control System (PCS) to be automated by an object oriented technique. The system is divided into Units (Vessels & Lines) and Devices (Instruments, Valves & Motors) from a Process & Instrumentation Drawing (P&ID). They are addressed, configured and detailed in the Phasebuilder tool. Phases are then generated incorporating the predefined Units and Devices. Conditions are declared, tasks are generated, Alarms are configured, Steps are developed and recipes parameterised.
The Phasebuilder tool checks the consistency of the developed system to avoid errors, conflicting configuration and redundant items. The information is then downloaded to a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) with Phasebuilder specifically written PLC software.
Associated documentation for the PCS is automatically generated i.e. Functional Design Specification (FDS), Factory Acceptance Test (FAT), Site Acceptance Test (SAT), Installation Qualification (IQ), Input/Output (I/O) Lists and many more. Documentation that comes directly from the PCS is 100% accurate. This is a useful tool for when it comes to validating the system to the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) and Good Automated Manufacturing Practices (GAMP) standards.
There is a powerful search and filter capability from the SQL Server Database which allows the interigator to search and cross reference any device, step, alarm, condition etc. The Phasebuilder tool can also poll information directly from the PLC i.e. parameters, device status, program status and much more.
The Human Machine Interface (HMI) is based on the SCADA platform on industrial PC's/Servers. Examples of SCADA are InTouch from Wonderware, WinCC from Siemens AG, RSView from Rockwell Automation, iFix from GE Fanuc etc. Phasebuilder has matching ActiveX controls that work harmoniously with the PLC and SQL (COP) Service. They are imported to the SCADA application and linked to the preconfigured PCS by clicking from a list box. Configuration is easy and made simple which speeds up the HMI development process considerably. Alarms, Trending, Device Faceplates, PID Controls, Program Controls, Multicontrols etc. are just some of the features.
To summarize, Phasebuilder is a control solution platform which allows a programmer to automate a process system graphically, protects him from making mistakes, tracks changes and automatically generates associated documentation. Costs for such a turnkey system are halved and development is in a quarter of the time when done conventionally. A Siemens PLC, SCADA application and IO Server are still required.

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