Process plants and pipelines generate thousands of alarms from their automation systems every day — many of which are not serious. Control room operators must then quickly distinguish between routine process alarms and critical alarms that warn of operating problems or safety issues.
Honeywell has just unveiled its new DynAMo™ Alarm Suite, an advanced alarm management software that reduces the overall number of alarms while helping operators focus and respond to those most critical.
At issue is the sheer number of alarms, which range from day-to-day activities (known as nuisance alarms) such as the opening of an electrical switch room door, to notification of a critical equipment failure. According to the Abnormal Situation Management® (ASM®) Consortium, ineffective management of nuisance alarms can lead to incidents that cost the process industry billions of dollars, and pose an increased risk of fatigue and stress for operators who must constantly make instant decisions on how to respond when an alarm sounds.
DynAMo Alarm Suite leverages more than 20 years of alarm management experience in the process industries, and can help users reduce overall alarm count by as much as 80 percent, identify maintenance issues, and increase visibility of critical alarms that require urgent attention. Its customizable, role-based dashboard enables operators, engineers and managers to view the health of their alarm system at a glance. A key feature of the new software is that it is compatible with many mobile devices, enabling personnel to view alarm metrics at any time, from almost any location. This ease of access enables more frequent monitoring and faster corrective action, which helps alleviate a major fatigue factor of operators.
“When operators are forced to deal with hundreds of alarms at any given point in time, there is increased risk to safety not to mention process efficiency,” said Vimal Kapur, vice president and general manager of Honeywell Process Solutions Advanced Solutions business. “The DynAMo Alarm Suite is an effective tool for optimizing alarm management programs to prevent alarm floods and ‘chatter,’ and reduce operator stress. The software offers a layer of protection to minimize unplanned outages, safety incidents and environmental releases.”
DynAMo Alarm Suite can be integrated with Honeywell’s industry-leading Experion® Process Knowledge System (PKS), as well as any other control system. Honeywell also offers alarm management consulting, services and support, with worldwide coverage.
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