Wireless Research wins Excellence in Automation Award.

The ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute announced today that it presented PETRONAS the “ISA100 Wireless Excellence in Automation Award”* for a recently completed research project that quantified the performance of an ISA100 Wireless™ based safety system at an offshore operational site.

The ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute presented PETRONAS the award at the 2016 ARC Industry Forum in Orlando, (FL USA) on Wednesday, 10 February during the “Minimizing Safety Risks with Asset Performance Management.” The session was hosted by Paula Hollywood.

PETRONAS is recognized for conducting rigorous testing and analysis of an ISA100 Wireless safety system operating on an offshore oil platform with remote wireless monitoring located on another platform 5 kilometers away. The key strategic goal of its research was to improve safety and reliability of asset management. In order to reach this key strategic goal, the PETRONAS team set two research objectives:

• To assess the stability and reliability of long-distance communication of an ISA100 Wireless safety system in a harsh offshore radio environment, and
• To confirm the performance and interoperability of an ISA100 Wireless safety system.

The team believes that its research has proven concrete benefits of ISA100 Wireless in safety applications, delivering cost reductions and operational flexibility; and that ISA100 Wireless, taken as a wireless standard, is able to deliver the full wireless functionality. The research team concluded that:

• ISA100 Wireless communication has been proven reliable over long distances.
• Interoperability has been proven to be simple plug and play of various vendor devices into the network.
• ISA100 Wireless is fully functional in a mesh, star, or a mixed topology.

* Details of the research study, findings and conclusions are available on the ISA100 WCI website at Petronas ISA100 Wireless Study.

 #PAuto @ARCWorldForum #ISAuto @Petronas

Wireless steam trap monitor certified!

The ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute announced today that wireless steam trap monitor has successfully achieved ISA100 Wireless certification.

The SmartWatchWeb™Radio Frequency (SWWRF40) Steam Trap Monitor is the wireless interface designed by BiTherm to provide an ISA100 Wireless compliant solution for the monitoring of gas and steam leaks, temperature, pressure and other relevant information related to valves and the steam system.

The SWWRF40 wirelessly transmits temperature, pressure and ultrasound data, which is analysed to determine the status of steam valves. The SWWRF40 enables fast response to undesirable events such as steam leaks. Paired with Bitherm’s Intensive Maintenance systems, the SWWRF40 significantly improves plant efficiency and reduces emissions of CO2 and other harmful gases.

Using ISA100 Wireless networks assures robust, secure and reliable transmission of critical asset condition information. ISA100 Wireless was purpose-built for industrial applications and includes support for high scalability, making it the perfect technology for replacing wired versions of the SWW monitoring system when scattered or isolated devices need to be monitored.

The ISA100 Wireless certification provides assurance that the SWWRF40 products interoperate in any ISA100 Wireless compliant network. View the ISA100 Wireless certification here.

“Adapting our products to ISA100 Wireless demonstrated to our customers that using a robust wireless infrastructure can only bring benefits to them,” said Roberto Paramo, who heads the Research and Development Department at BiThem SL. “Using ISA100 Wireless will also help us compete in this market, giving our products an extra boost and positioning them among the best available.”

“We are pleased to include SWWRF40 in the portfolio of certified ISA100 Wireless products and congratulate Bitherm for its release of another elegant steam and condensate network product,” remarked Andre Ristaino, ISA100 WCI Managing Director.

@bithermgroup @ISA100WCI #PAuto

Spanish company joins #wireless group!

Spain-based Bitherm SL has joined the ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute. Bitherm SA specializes in steam traps for steam and condensate networks. Bitherm SL was founded in 1977 in Spain and has since become a pioneer in the development of cutting-edge steam traps for steam and condensate networks. The company offers a variety of products including steam traps, a monitoring system, compact steam trap stations, manifolds and portable detection equipment.  The company also provides services, including a complete steam trap maintenance program, leak detection in steam traps and valves, energy audits, implementation of intensive maintenance systems, steam trap inspections, residual energy recovery installations, training, talks and seminars. Bitherm SL is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the ongoing trend of convergence between the remote sensing field and the industrial instrumentation field.  In order to best address this dynamic, Bitherm group is supporting ISA100 Wireless technology.  The ISA100 Wireless network meets all the requisites that the non-critical monitoring application of Bitherm group demands:  reliability, security, and scalability for data connectivity between limited power sensor nodes and the remote sensor. “With the deployment of ISA100 Wireless networks, the Bitherm Group will be able to offer its clients a flexible and complete monitoring system that increases the number of sensing nodes available for hard-to-reach locations,” said Vicente Blazquez, Founder and CEO of the Bitherm Group. “And the selection of ISA100 Wireless as a communication protocol standard guarantees interoperability with different providers, allowing Bitherm Group technology a smooth transition into existing markets.”

Japanese company Company recognised for significant research quantifying reliability wireless technology!

LtoR: Toshi Hasegawa, Yokogawa (ISA100 WCI), 

K. Minamizato, NSENGI and Hisashi Sasajima, Azbil (ISA100 WCI)

NIPPON STEEL & SUMIKIN ENGINEERING (NSENGI) has been awarded the “ISA100 Wireless Excellence in Automation Award” for a recently completed research project that quantified the reliability of ISA100 Wireless technology in a multi-vendor device configuration at an operational site.

The consortium was recognised for documenting findings and analysis based upon research conducted at an operational manufacturing site. The objective of the research was to quantify the reliability of communication in wireless networks, specifically ISA100 Wireless. The award is sponsored by the ISA 100 Wireless Compliance Institute.

Included below are some key details of the completed research project.

• Type of manufacturing facility: Waste recycling plant
• Number of devices included in the research project: 22 devices
• Number of different suppliers included in the configuration: Three companies
• Companies represented: Azbil, Fuji Electric and Yokogawa
• Duration of the research trials: July 2013 – January 2014

The team identified engineering techniques to optimise performance of the wireless network in response to various adverse conditions present at the plant site. It set out to confirm that:

1. The wireless network successfully supports a multi-vendor device configuration
2. Field test results are confirmed independently of supplier claims

The team also set out to increase subject matter knowledge through first-hand experience with wireless instruments and confirming:

1. Interoperability among diverse suppliers of wireless devices
2. Characteristics for wireless propagation in a multi-vendor device configuration

In general, the team sought first-hand data about the reliability and stability of wireless technology. As part of its study objective, the team recognized that it would be useful to evaluate performance characteristics at an operating plant site to document and quantify factors such as distance, density of obstructions, types of obstructions, and other factors. The team experimented with system and site engineering alternatives to identify methods to ensure reliability and interoperability.

“For example, the team implemented variations on the installation design, publication period of wireless transmissions (configurable in ISA100 Wireless), number of publication retries and other adjustments,” explained K. Minamizato, Manager, Technology Headquarters, NSENGI.

While detailed results of the study have not yet been made publicly available, the team concluded that ISA100 Wireless network reliability was practical for actual industrial applications.

Looking forward, the team expects that the capability of any ISA100 Wireless certified device to interoperate in the same wireless network will:

1. Expand the portfolio of wireless devices from a variety of suppliers
2. Drive down costs/prices of wireless instruments

The team also predicts that with greater availability of wireless instruments and costs trending downward, selecting wireless instrument technology will become easier to justify, and the industry will witness more widespread adoption of wireless technology.

Indian integrator evaluates market and joins wireless body!

Agiliad, an India-based integrator focused on collaborative innovation, has joined the ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute.

Agiliad Technologies is a highly focused R&D and Product Engineering Services Company lead by seasoned industry professionals. The company is collaborating with some of the leading global technology and engineering companies in contributing to their product roadmaps. The company’s differentiation emanates from the core tenets of its strategy built on high impact experienced teams, innovation from and for new markets, flexible collaboration frameworks and importantly, its passionate and self-driven engineers. Agiliad specializes in industrial and medical product and software engineering and design services and offers turnkey solutions involving complex electronics and software design.

Agiliad helps product companies succeed by enabling collaborative innovation across the boundaries of domain, geography, and expertise. Agiliad’s team of engineers and scientists have vast experience working on and designing complex Industrial automation systems and bring expertise from a cross section of industries to build a strong, collaborative, innovation-driven engineering services outsourcing company.

“Agiliad’s focus is on engineering innovation,” said Deepak Handoo, Vice President Strategy and Marketing at Agiliad. “ISA100 Wireless provides the foundation to broaden the technology base of our customers’ products to include wireless offerings.”

“We are excited to add a global technology integrator to the ISA100 Wireless supplier ecosystem,” said Andre Ristaino, Managing Director, ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute. “We welcome Agiliad and look forward to working with them in industrial automation.”

Global leader in gas detection and monitoring supports ISA100 Wireless!

Riken Keiki has joined the ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute. Founded in 1939, Riken Keiki has been specialising in developing gas detection and monitoring solutions to help ensure safety in industrial sites for almost a decade.

Riken Keiki was founded through a research initiative with the Private Research Foundation Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, currently known as the Independent Administrative Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, based in in Japan. To this day, Riken Keiki’s products benefit from scientific insight provided by its partnership with the Institute.

“Riken Keiki continually refines the technologies established throughout our history while investigating and improving the quality and technical capabilities of the products we provide,” said Masaru Ishibashi, Deputy General Manager Engineering Department, Riken Keiki.  “By joining ISA100 Wireless, we open a new chapter in our product evolution, one that will lead to stronger products and better systems.”
“We welcome Riken Keiki to ISA100 WCI,” said Andre Ristaino, Managing Director, ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute. “Riken Keiki’s products will greatly expand the ISA100 Wireless selection of gas detection offerings.”

Riken Keiki offers over 100 different models of gas detection and environmental measurement products, including toxic gas detectors, gas detectors for preventing accidents resulting from oxygen deficiency, gas detectors for preventing gas explosions, environmental monitoring instruments, radiation monitors and more. Each product is designed to respond to diverse industrial requirements and broad applications.

Global system & service provider backs wireless standard!

NEXCOM has joined the ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute. NEXCOM is a global company headquartered in Taiwan with decades of experience delivering cutting-edge industrial computing solutions to the process automation industry. NEXCOM will be part of the ISA100 Wireless display at the eChemExpo Solutions Marketplace, which will take place tomorrow at the Meadowview Convention Center in Kingsport, Tennessee.

NEXCOM provides a broad range of industrial computing solutions for demanding industrial environments. Operations are organized into five Nexcom global businesses, including Multi-Media Solutions (MMS), Mobile Computing Solutions (MCS), Industrial Computing Solutions (ICS), Intelligent Digital Security (IDS) and Network and Communication Solutions (NCS).  This organizational approach enables NEXCOM to offer superior time-to-market, time-to-solution products and better service without compromising cost.

“NEXCOM is always seeking ways to improve support for its partners and customers through continuous innovation,” said Steve Chen, Nexcom Director. “Supporting ISA100 Wireless will help give our customers and partners the edge they need to stay competitive using industrial wireless communications.”

“NEXCOM develops cutting-edge solutions for its customers and demonstrates thought leadership in its industrial communication product offerings,” said Andre Ristaino, Managing Director, ISA100 Wireless Compliance Institute. “Nexcom displayed an impressive array of industrial communication products at Hannover Messe 2014, including an ISA100 Wireless gateway.”