Articles and News

The newly elected ODVA officers are: President: Doug McEldowney; Executive Director: Katherine Voss; Treasurer: Steve Freedman; Chief Technology Officer: Rich Harwell; and Secretary: Katherine Voss. Elected representatives for the Regular Membership include Dave Dodds and Steve Freedman on the ODVA Board of Directors and Jörgen Palmhager on the ODVA Technical Review Board.

Green Hills Software, Inc. announced that CMC Electronics Inc. has selected the Green Hills Software Platform for Avionics, including the INTEGRITY-178B real-time operating system (RTOS), GSTART Ravenscar compliant Ada kernel and AdaMULTI development environment, for CMC’s Flight Management Control and Display (FMCDU) system. The Green Hills Platform for Avionics will also be utilized for the development of a CMC Electronics Aircraft Management System product line, featuring PCI open system architecture.

Intermec Inc. has joined Intel, Cisco Systems, Panasonic and Accela as a sponsor of a Digital Communities initiative to help municipalities take advantage of mobile and wireless computing systems to improve efficiency and responsiveness. The initial focus of the group's work is on six segments of the public sector where technology can provide significant benefits: criminal justice, public service and logistics, education, health services, first-alert response and public safety.

The 2006 Canadian RFID Conference will be held in Markham, ON on April 4th and 5th, 2006, and will bring together some of the most experienced people in the industry, including R. Moroz Ltd. - RFID Canada, Intermec, TI, Philips, IBM, HP, Zebra, Datamax, Toshiba and many others.

Under the terms of the contract, Invensys is to supply its Triconex-brand TMR (triple modular redundant) TRICON controllers for safety instrumented system (SIS) applications on the new PE4, a Euro 200 million, 350,000 t/y linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) plant being built at Schwechat in Austria. LLDPE is used to manufacture plastic film products, such as packaging materials.

The recently approved IEEE 1650TM-2005 standard, known as “Standard Methods for Measurement of Electrical Properties of Carbon Nanotubes,” gives the burgeoning nanotechnology industry one uniform and common set of recommended testing and data reporting procedures for evaluating the electrical properties of carbon nanotubes. The Model 4200 is a core measurement platform for engineers involved in nanotech materials research.

The affiliation will allow both organizations to build on their respective strengths. The two organizations are working through the final stages of the arrangements that would result in WBF functioning as independent affiliate of ISA. Remaining steps should be completed in the first half of 2006.

The Automation Alliance will provide industry wide strategic analysis and coordination through its member organizations. The Alliance will provide technical management, administration, and integrated services such as seminars, web conferences, training, and conference services to be shared among participating organizations.

A variety of products from Agilent Technologies, Keithley Instruments, Inc., Rohde & Schwarz and Symmetricom were tested in key areas of the specification, including LAN functionality, Web interface, programming API and hardware triggering. The event, which took place Feb. 14-16 in Irvine, Calif., was attended by 46 members of the LXI Consortium.

Silchester is one of the European high quality solution providers in Automation and Industrial Information. Silchester delivers turn-key Automation, Control, SCADA and Industrial Information solutions to GAMP, ISO, 21CFR and TickIT standards. For over 18 years our highly experienced application engineers have had extensive experience partnering many of our blue-chip multinational customers. Citect Integration Partners offer the highest standards in Citect integration services. Accredited by Citect, Silchester has the support and training to meet, and exceed end-user's expectations. A world-wide network of project consultants and engineers are available to provide project support and to assist Citect Integrators like Silchester in all phases of implementation.

Three business units within SPC are initially included in the agreement – oil refining, chemicals and terylene polyester production. Invensys Process Systems China will provide a combination of remote and on-site services including online patrol site device check, annual on-site device check, emergency hardware replacement, emergency/routine hardware repairs, emergency site technical support, site training and other services.

The 190-page handbook covers the fundamentals of the switching function in test and measurement applications and is available for no charge on the Keithley website. The handbook is divided into seven sections and discusses topics such as: Switching components; Issues in switch system design; Hardware implementation; Applications

Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc., announced today that its 2006 Users Conference, the Siemens Automation Summit, has expanded its scope to join multiple Siemens automation business units Distributed Control Systems, Manufacturing Execution Systems, Discrete Automation and Production Machines into a comprehensive conference designed to bring Siemens unique integrated solutions to end users, prospects and partners. The new event, themed "Winning Together", affords a special opportunity for attendees to exchange information, network with their peers, attend educational seminars, and interact with partners and Siemens management. The 2006 Siemens Automation Summit will be held June 6-8, 2006 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nev.

The first contract is for System 800xA Extended Automation; other future contracts may include instrumentation, motors, drives and low voltage products. Tetra Pak is a leader in providing preferred solutions for food processing and packaging to food manufacturers. The first countries to implement the purchase agreement are Sweden, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands. The cooperation between ABB and Tetra Pak will also include implementation in the rapidly growing markets in Asia, particularly in China.

One year after affiliating with ISA, OMAC's outlook is brighter than ever. OMAC is reporting renewed strength in the development and use of open, interoperable control and automation systems technologies for end users, technology providers, and OEMs. OMAC reported on progress made in a number of packaging, manufacturing infrastructure and machine tool initiatives at its annual meeting. The meeting was held in concert with the ARC Next Generation Manufacturing Forum in Orlando, FL.

xCouplers modules install into factory floor PLCs to provide a simple way to exchange factory floor and enterprise server data. They provide a seamless and secure method to provide real time information flow between the plant floor control systems and business systems than conventional HMI- or PC-based custom software methods.

The Understanding Direct Part Mark Identification half-day events cover the most important factors to consider when implementing DPM ID for part traceability in the automotive, aerospace, healthcare, electronics and defense industries. Anyone with a DPM application in the assembly and parts supply chain will appreciate this highly informative seminar. Participants will learn how to implement a reliable DPM traceability program that includes marking, reading, verification and process control. The program contains valuable information to help manufacturers achieve DPM ID requirements and traceability goals.

Invensys Process Systems joined BP, Chevron, and Shell in a presentation and panel discussion on PRODML, PRODuction xML, a new open standard for digital technology for production optimization in the oil and gas industry. This presentation was part of the two-day conference “Digital Energy 2006: Bytes and Barrels, Applying Digital DNA to Meet the Business Performance Challenge”, sponsored by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).

The ISA Foundation is gearing up to give scholarships, encourage student development, and support standards development in 2006. Through the Foundation, ISA awards educational scholarships each year. Scholarships for tuition and research activities are given to graduate and undergraduate students. Students must demonstrate outstanding potential for long-range contribution to the automation profession. Since 2001, ISA has awarded over $135,000 in scholarships to 53 well-deserving students.

Funded by the Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency (DHS/HSARPA), the PCSF provides an open, collaborative environment for representatives from industry, academia, standards bodies, vendors and government. The PCSF is a neutral entity managed by a public/private collaborative (interim) Governing Board and facilitated by Mitretek Systems.

FKI Logistex has begun manufacturing a model of its Maestro™ crane in St. Louis as part of a large order for one of its US-based customers. The model has undergone an engineering conversion for local manufacture. The rest of the FKI Logistex crane product line, including all of the company's Condor™ units, will still be manufactured in the United Kingdom.

Azure has received orders from five automation and materials handling OEMs and control systems integrators for its Universal Wireless Gateway. Under the contracts, the Gateway will be used to provide communications over Wi-Fi wireless networks for flexible manufacturing control systems and automated guided vehicles.

The 6th Annual Fugitive Emissions - LDAR Symposium will be held 13-15 June 2006 in Houston, Texas. The symposium covers leak detection and repair (LDAR) methods and fugitive emissions management systems. The event is designed to create a forum in which paper presentations, tutorials, and speaker panels transfer information from the world's leading experts on fugitive emissions and LDAR to industry professionals.

National Instruments Business and Technology Fellow Mike Santori will deliver the industrial automation keynote address to an audience of industry experts at National Manufacturing Week on March 21 in Chicago. In his keynote address, “Automation: How to Compete in a Global Economy,” Santori examines the critical technologies and architectures that create improved efficiency in next-generation production facilities.

Cisco Systems and RedPrairie have joined Intermec Inc. and Cascade Corp to create a concept for a forklift that will build RFID and real-time location capabilities into the equipment of the future.

Schneider Electric has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of the Italian Group OVA G. Bargellini SpA. OVA operates in the emergency lighting market, with leading positions in Italy and a strong presence across the rest of Europe. The company is also active in the wiring devices business, through electrical components such as portable socket-outlets, plugs and adapters.

Puma rear-projection Advanced Performance Liquid Crystal Displays (AP/LCD™) have been selected by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to provide a large-scale visualization capability in its Integrated Energy Operations Center (IEOC) at Richland, Wash.