Fisher-Rosemount Announces the Addition of DeltaV Inspect to PlantWeb

Fisher-Rosemount Systems announced the availability of DeltaV Inspect as the newest addition to the Austin, TX-based company's growing suite of advanced control products that help plant engineers and instrument technicians to maximize plant profitability and process performance.

DeltaV Inspect continuously monitors and records the performance of analog and discrete measurement devices, control valve actuators and control loops. DeltaV Inspect interfaces with both fieldbus and conventional field devices and takes full advantage of the Foundation Fieldbus function block architecture used by the DeltaV system. Using a patent-pending architecture, intelligence is distributed within DeltaV and PlantWeb fieldbus devices. DeltaV Inspect is a standard feature with every DeltaV system and makes improving plant performance easy because the software can be used with zero configuration effort. As new measurements, actuators and control loops are added or modified, DeltaV Inspect automatically adapts to account for these changes.

According to Jim Hoffmaster, president of Fisher-Rosemount Systems, this product can help customers easily identify and resolve problems that impact plant performance. "DeltaV Inspect virtually eliminates the need for a plant to depend on outside experts or tools to identify control, measurement or actuator problems," he says.

"The performance of every control and measurement element is continuously examined with a time resolution that is just not possible using traditional technology, such as data collectors," adds Mike Reitzel, VP of marketing at Fisher-Rosemount Systems. "Since DeltaV Inspect automatically summarizes under-performing loops, measurements and actuators, users may examine process and control system performance remotely through intranets or Internet connections."

DeltaV Inspect automatically detects abnormal operating conditions that increase process variability. DeltaV Inspect continuously examines several process conditions; such as the percent time an input measurement is limited or has bad or uncertain status. For control loops, performance is determined based on standard deviation calculations. These calculations are performed as an integral part of DeltaV and fieldbus function block execution. Based on these calculations, the percent deviation from best possible control is reported as a variability index. These indicators of abnormal operation and control performance are used by DeltaV Inspect to highlight the measurements, actuators or control loops that require attention.

Fisher Rosemont Systems serves the process-control needs of industries such as pulp and paper, petroleum, food and beverages, pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals and municipal utilities such as water purification and power generation.