If there's any acronym that will be
more than familiar to those in such industries as water and waste control,
energy, oil and gas, telecommunications and transportation, it is SCADA,
referring to supervisory control and data acquisition. This is the term for a
computer system that gathers and analyses real time data from industrial
processes, as has such fundamental importance in the monitoring and control of
a plant or equipment. Certainly, Oriel Systems (http://www.orielsystems.com) is noted
for the high standard of its own AWAX SCADA software, which is
as cost-effective as it is cutting edge.
SCADA systems are types
of industrial control system (ICS) that have been historically distinguished
from other such systems by the large scale processes involved, potentially
encompassing very large distances and multiple sites. Examples can include
industrial processes like manufacturing, fabrication, production, refining and
power generation, or public or private infrastructure processes like wastewater
collection and treatment, oil and gas pipelines, large communication systems
and water treatment and distribution.
Also potentially covered by SCADA systems are
facility processes in various public and private buildings, ships, airports and
space stations, with the likes of ventilation, heating and air conditioning
systems being monitored and controlled. There are various subsystems that tend
to make up a SCADA system, including the human-machine interface or HMI that
presents the human operator with processed data, which enables the monitoring
and control of the process. Other subsystems include a supervisory (computer)
system that acquires data and sends demands, as well as the remote terminal
units (RTUs) that connect to sensors, converting sensor signals into digital
data that is then sent to the supervisory system.
When people talk about SCADA, they
are generally referring to centralised systems for the monitoring and control
of entire sites, if not complexes of systems of a large geographical spread. So
the term could refer to the processes of one industrial plant, or an entire
nation. It is the RTU at which the remote monitoring systems begin
acquiring data, with the resultant meter readings or equipment status reports
being communicated to SCADA as required. This is followed by the compilation
and formatting of the data in such a way that supervisory decisions to override
or adjust normal RTU controls can be made by a control room operator making use
of the HMI.
Those with an interest in the most
reliable, scalable and powerful telemetry
systems - of which AWAX SCADA software can be a key part - are advised to
get in touch with Oriel Systems' (http://www.orielsystems.com)
technical team. The company's own SCADA software connects to its own range of
remote units, as well as to most programmable logic controllers (PLCs)and
various other hardware types, including the remote units of other vendors.
Continual program development has seen the introduction of greater
functionality to the software, so that it embraces the most recent
technological advances and remains absolutely relevant to current needs.
Editor’s Note: Oriel Systems (http://www.orielsystems.com) are represented by the search engine advertising and digital marketing
specialists Jumping Spider Media. Email: info@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk
or call: +44
(0)20 3070 1959 / +34
952 783 637.
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