Combustible gas detection capabilities.

Lower explosive limit monitoring over WirelessHART, for greater hazard visibility without added power or signal wiring

The capabilities of Emerson's Rosemount™ 928 Wireless Gas Monitor have been expanded by adding combustible gas detection, enabling percent lower explosive limit (%LEL) monitoring over the secure WirelessHART® platform. The update helps users monitor combustible hazards in remote or hard‑to‑wire locations without the need for additional power or costly signal wiring.

“Adding combustible gas detection to the Rosemount 928 gives customers more flexibility as safety requirements evolve,” said Dave Ruhland, global flame and gas product manager for Emerson’s measurement instrumentation business. “Facilities can extend their wireless gas detection strategy to include combustible hazards on existing WirelessHART platforms – simplifying installation and supporting reliable monitoring in more hard-to-reach areas across their facilities.”

The updated Rosemount 928 device supports measurements from 0% to 100% LEL, which gives users early warning and complete visibility into combustible gas hazards, helping them detect risks sooner and respond more effectively as conditions escalate.

The combustible sensing technology is also designed to help reduce maintenance over time. Because the sensor does not rely on consumable elements, such as catalytic beads, that can degrade with repeated gas exposure, it can support longer service intervals and reduce the need for frequent recalibration.

Secure WirelessHART communication transmits combustible gas data in real time, enabling deployment with no added power or signal wiring in hard-to-reach areas. The update is intended to complement existing gas detection programmes by helping teams add monitoring points in locations that may be logistically impractical or too costly to hardwire.

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@EmersonExchange  @EMR_Automation @Emerson_News @HHC_Lewis #PAuto #Safety

Plant of the Year for communications and connectivity.

FieldComm Group, the global industrial automation standards organisation defining open, interoperable standards for industrial communication, device management, and enterprise connectivity, has named SRF Limited’s Dahej facility as the recipient of its 2025 Plant of the Year Award. The recognition honors SRF’s outstanding achievements in digital transformation, operational excellence, and innovation using FieldComm Group technologies.

The Plant of the Year Award recognises end users that demonstrate exceptional use of Field-Comm Group techno-logies, including HART technologies, Foundation Fieldbus, FDI, FDT/DTM, PA-DIM, & Ethernet-APL, to improve operations, reduce costs, and increase availability. SRF Dahej joins an elite group of global facilities advancing the future of industrial automation.

Located in Gujarat (IND), SRF Dahej has become one of the world’s most advanced specialty chemical and fluorochemical complexes. By deploying HART®, WirelessHART®, and FOUNDATION™ Fieldbus technologies across its 300-acre site, SRF has integrated more than 40,000 smart field devices, enabling seamless communication, advanced diagnostics, and readiness for IIoT and Ethernet-APL connectivity.

“SRF’s digital transformation journey reflects their deep commitment to innovation and continuous improvement,” said Ted Masters, President and CEO of FieldComm Group. “Their systematic adoption of open communication standards has delivered measurable results, enhancing safety, improving reliability, and achieving multi-million-dollar savings. This exemplary use of FieldComm Group technologies to drive operational excellence is exactly what earned SRF Dahej the 2025 Plant of the Year Award.”

SRF’s modernisation began in 2010 with the adoption of HART technology and has since expanded into a comprehensive digital ecosystem built on FOUNDATION Fieldbus, WirelessHART, and Instrument Asset Management Systems (IAMS). These initiatives have delivered more than $10.7 million in cumulative savings through improved uptime, faster commissioning, and predictive maintenance strategies.

SRF’s adoption of open, interoperable standards has transformed its approach to lifecycle management, asset performance, and sustainability. The plant’s roadmap extends to 2030 with plans for AI-driven analytics, predictive maintenance, and full Ethernet-APL integration across greenfield and brownfield operations.

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@FieldCommGroup @srflimited #PAuto #Standard #India

First Native WirelessHART Non-Contacting Radar Level Transmitter.

Expands range of applications for automated measurements, helping to ensure safe, optimised operations.

The Rosemount™ 3408 Wireless Non-Contacting Radar Level Transmitter reduces the complexity, time and costs associated with installing cabling in automated measurement points. By eliminating measurement blind spots and the need for manual readings, the transmitter enhances plant safety, boosts operational efficiency, and enables more reliable, continuous level monitoring in industrial environments.

Based on 80 gigahertz frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) technology, the Rosemount 3408 Wireless, just launched by Emerson, reliably measures the level of liquids and solids, even in remote locations where access is challenging. This makes it suitable for use in a broad range of industries, including energy, chemical, metals and mining, pulp and paper, construction and marine.

“The Rosemount 3408 Wireless is a game-changing level transmitter, with reliable WirelessHART connectivity making it the ideal solution for efficient, hassle-free monitoring of remote assets,” said Rana Zangeneh, product manager for Emerson’s measurement solutions business. “The valuable insights gained through the delivery of secure, reliable, real-time process data and advanced diagnostics enable better-informed decisions, ultimately leading to enhanced operational efficiency and safety, minimised downtime, improved maintenance strategies, and increased profitability.”

In alignment with Emerson’s Boundless AutomationSM vision for seamless data mobility, real-time measurement and diagnostic data is transmitted via the WirelessHART communication protocol. The 3408 can also be easily integrated into any host monitoring and control system compliant with the HART® protocol and the Field Device Integration® (FDI) standard. This makes it easy for operations and maintenance teams to obtain clear visibility of data that may previously have been siloed, resulting in improved operational performance and inventory management.

The new transmitter features a diagnostics suite, providing actionable insights into device and process health, leading to long-term measurement reliability, reduced lifecycle costs, and enhanced operational efficiency and safety. Emerson’s proprietary diagnostic software, Smart Meter Verification, provides in-situ performance validation without interrupting the process, while Signal Quality Metrics delivers continuous, real-time assessment of radar signal quality and early alerts of abnormal conditions. In addition, on-board data historian functionality enhances operational insight, streamlines troubleshooting and supports proactive maintenance by continuously recording and storing key measurement and diagnostic data.

The 3408 has a modular electronics cassette that can be quickly removed or replaced without disturbing the field wiring or process seal. The availability of different seals and antenna types increases the range of applications for which the transmitter is suitable. With two power modules, organisations can adjust the update rate to suit their needs and obtain extended battery life with a slower update rate.

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@EmersonExchange @Emerson_News @EMR_Automation @Rosemount_News @HHC_Lewis #PAuto

Functional WirelessHART gateway.

FieldGate SWG50 is a new WirelessHART gateway from Endress+Hauser, primed for secure communication from your field devices. FieldGate SWG50 is a compact and cost-effective ready for Netilion integration while providing an easy-to-use solution for multiple standard monitoring applications across various industries. Netilion is a cloud-based IIoT ecosystem designed for industrial processes, connecting the physical and digital worlds to send information from the field straight to a phone, tablet or another device.

The WirelessHART gateway FieldGate SWG50 enables users to monitor measurements and health statuses using WirelessHART connectivity. This offering is an economical alternative to complex and costly cable installations, reducing expenditure for process automation by up to 30%. It is a cost-effective concept that adapts to the process plant, both in greenfield and brownfield applications, giving customers simple access to digital communication.

With the launch of FieldGate SWG50, Endress+Hauser expands its WirelessHART portfolio focused on straightforward implementation, set-up and management of different monitoring applications.

Routinely used in monitoring applications, the WirelessHART network is a solution for standard level measurement, energy management or machinery performance monitoring.

As a gateway ready for digitalization, the integration of FieldGate SWG50 into Netilion is simple and transparent using EdgeDevice SGC500, which is only available for purchase by Netilion users and for those with WirelessHART networks. This launch is the first of many new features Fieldgate SWG50 will receive.

FieldGate SWG50 can be paired with their FieldPort SWA70 and SWA50 adapters. It also works and seamlessly integrates with any WirelessHART device on the market. Holistically, FieldGate SWG50 allows for:
•       Network migration: Change the network ID and join keys for the complete network after the network is running
•       A device list with color code for a simple understanding of the device status.
•       4 x RJ-45 connectors for easy access to the connection of plant and cloud networks as well as its web interface for configuration
•       Redundant power supply
•       Modbus TCP and HART-IP outputs
•       Indoor housing rated at IP20 with DIN rail mounting
•       Connection to 100 nodes
•       CommDTM to see and configure devices behind SWA50 and SWA70 in FieldCare

@Endress_Hauser @Endress_UK @Endress_US #PAuto #Communications

Investment to complement vision for wireless and the evolution IIoT portfolio.

A strategic investment has been made by Emerson, through its corporate venture capital arm Emerson Ventures,  in Spearix Technologies, whose adaptive, multi-core radio processor provides a system-level solution for Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) wireless communication.

Through the investment and Emerson Ventures’ value-add strategic investment approach, Emerson will support Spearix’s technology and early stage growth while expanding upon its own IIoT capabilities. Emerson Ventures is the first corporate or institutional investor to make an investment in Spearix. In conjunction with the investment, Emerson has also entered into an engineering collaboration agreement with Spearix.

“As the IIoT grows, billions of sensors and radio frequency (RF) transceivers will operate near others in low-cost, unlicensed RF bands. Wireless networks are increasingly challenged by a variety of RF aggressors, which can impact reliability and range,” said Thurston Cromwell, vice president of development and innovation, and head of Emerson Ventures. “We believe technologies like what Spearix is building have promise in overcoming the obstacles caused by interference and congestion. Emerson will realise even greater reliability and range through the implementation of Spearix technology into our robust industrial wireless mesh network portfolio and associated software products. Spearix technology also presents an enormous opportunity to significantly improve the performance of many other wireless communication protocols.”

“Emerson Ventures’ investment will enable Spearix to drive its advanced RF and Digital Signal Processor (DSP) architectures forward and continue to deliver solutions that resolve connectivity issues in harsh and congested RF environments,” said Laura Schafer, vice president and general manager, pervasive sensing and connectivity solutions at Emerson. “This technology offers a novel hardware and software approach that has the potential to significantly improve performance while preserving investments made in existing communication protocols.”

Based in Cedar Park, (TX USA), Spearix’s primary product offering is a multi-core radio processor and associated software that adapts to optimise performance and power based on measured environmental conditions. The technology has been shown to greatly improve the connection reliability of industrial protocols while operating under heavy interference induced by high-power, high-bandwidth pervasive Wi-Fi operation.

“At Spearix, we have ambitious plans and goals, and we are excited to partner with Emerson, which brings the same innovative thinking we rely on each day,” said Manas Behera, founder and chief executive officer at Spearix. “Emerson is an ideal fit for us, as they have the right people, technology, processes and market expertise. Together, we think we’re going to solve a tremendous challenge currently facing IIoT.”

Juan Conchas, vice president of sales and marketing at Spearix, added: “The Emerson partnership is a key step in commercialisation of Spearix technology unlocking many new use cases in high-value applications beyond industrial. The market is calling for industrial level reliability across many emerging applications, particularly in open spectrum bands like 2.4GHz where coexistence will be a challenge.”

The investment will complement Emerson’s vision for WirelessHART® and the evolution of its IIoT product portfolio. Emerson led the development of WirelessHART as an open standard in the 2000s, establishing it as the leading wireless protocol for industrial applications. Integration of Spearix technology offers a step-change in reliability and range that is fully compatibility with existing WirelessHART systems and will improve co-existence and spectral efficiency, provide larger network support to reduce total cost of ownership, offer higher data rates to accommodate data-rich devices, and provide redundancy for critical applications.

@Emerson_News @spearixtech @EMR_Automation@EmersonExchange @HHC_Lewis#PAuto #IIoT

Gas detector validated!

United Electric Controls has announced that its Vanguard WirelessHART Gas Detector is now HART Registered. This registration ensures that all WirelessHART users will be able to add Vanguard device drivers the next time they update their device descriptor (DD) libraries. It also assures users that they can add Vanguard systems to existing WirelessHART networks, seamlessly and securely.

"Vanguard WirelessHART gas leak detectors can be dropped into any WirelessHART network using a secured network I.D. and join key. The unit automatically detects the sensor type and configures it automatically. This saves additional setup time and effort and the HART certification gives our users one more layer of confidence that this plug-and-play interoperability will be achieved seamlessly,” said Chris Frail, Vanguard product manager for United Electric Controls.

The HART communication protocol is the largest digital communications technology deployed in the process industries with more than 40 million field instruments supporting HART technology installed worldwide. The FieldComm Group owns the HART specifications and provides specification development and training, as well as device registration.

Eliminating the need for a wired infrastructure can reduce gas leak detector installation costs by as much as 50 percent and installation time by almost 90 percent, making it much easier and affordable to extend safety coverage. Further contributing to economical safety coverage expansion is Vanguard lithium metal battery technology and intelligent power management circuitry, which extend battery life well beyond five years, establishing the Vanguard detection system as the benchmark in battery-operated wireless gas detection.

The Vanguard WirelessHART detector uses a system of field-interchangeable gas sensor modules to detect methane (CH4), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), carbon monoxide (CO), ammonia (NH3), and non-methane hydrocarbon gases.

#PAuto @UEControls @FieldCommGroup

Leak Detector for Ammonia and Hydrocarbons.

United Electric Controls has added ammonia and hydrocarbons sensors to its Vanguard WirelessHART Gas Detector. Wireless gas detection reduces compliance costs and improves safety by eliminating the need for wiring and terminations, reducing installation costs by as much as 80 percent and enabling greater coverage density. United Electric Controls WirelessHART gas leak detectors reduce costs and improve safety further because they can run on a single battery for five or more years.

“By adding ammonia and additional hydrocarbons to our popular Vanguard line, we extend the benefits of our WirelessHART solution to provide more flexibility for improving plant safety and complying with emissions regulations. Detection of toxic and combustible gases is critical to both plant safety and emissions monitoring. Wireless technology makes it much more affordable to install gas detectors in areas of the plant that are hard to reach or where running new power or communication wires is cost-prohibitive,” said Chris Frail, Vanguard product manager.

Monitoring ammonia gas leaks Ammonia leak detection is critical in chemical plants that produce or store it for use in their processes. A good example is temporary storage tanks, which must be monitored for the presence of fugitive vapors constantly, but for which wiring communications and power can be costly and labor-intensive. Wireless detectors make it easy and affordable to deploy or redeploy sensors where and when they are needed. Ammonia gas leaks in food and beverage plants and other settings where refrigeration is in use are increasingly common as federal regulations drive ammonia to replace fluorocarbons refrigerants. Ammonia is popular for this because it is readily available, has low Global Warming Potential (GWP) and Ozone Depletion (ODP) values and is a generally cost-effective solution, but it is also both toxic and combustible, which requires real-time monitoring. In the power industry, ammonia is used to reduce nitrogen oxide (NO) — the chemical that creates smog and acid rain (NOx) -- in flue gas in coal-plants before it enters the atmosphere. Leaks are possible during operation or in storage areas.

Monitoring hydrocarbons gas leaks Cost-effective leakage of non-methane hydrocarbon gases (NMHCs) such as butane (CH4H10), pentane (C5H12), and propane (C3H8) are also increasingly necessary for plant safety and regulatory compliance. In the power industry, for example, remote locations are increasingly moving to liquefied propane gas (LPG) as a power source over alternatives like diesel and fuel oil because it is more environmentally friendly. Storage tanks and transportation for these would require monitoring for leaks. Refineries, petrochemical plants, and other downstream operations produce hydrocarbon gases, such as propane, heptane, and butane for applications from primary fuel sources to byproducts of other chemical reactions. Each point of use or storage has the potential for leaks that can be toxic, flammable, explosive, or harm the environment.

Connecting to the network
WirelessHART Vanguard Gas Detectors interface with existing networks to provide continuous coverage while reducing the cost of detecting toxic and combustible gases. Vanguard gas detectors handle a broad ambient operating temperature range (-40°C to 65°C); feature enhanced zero stability, and are equipped with interchangeable firmware that enables measurement of additional gases without changing the base unit.

Sensor heads for hydrocarbons gases will be available in January of 2020. In addition to NH3 and hydrocarbons gas leak monitoring, Vanguard offers interchangeable sensor heads for methane (CH4) carbon monoxide (CO), and hydrogen sulfide (H2S.) Future Vanguard versions will detect other gases, including hydrogen from electric generators and battery rooms and oxygen that might be depleted in continuous emissions monitoring (CEM) shelters.

#PAuto @UEControls

Gas detector for offshore platform operations.

United Electric Controls, a leading producer of safety, alarm and shutdown technology, is demonstrating the latest version of its Vanguard WirelessHART gas detector, with new features of value for offshore platforms.

Magnetic mounting and adjustable pipe clamp options enable offshore operations teams to increase detection of toxic and combustible gases. High stability and high-resolution offerings improve reliability and accuracy of detection and the addition of carbon monoxide (CO) detection to existing wireless hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and methane CH4 detection reduces cost of compliance with air pollution regulations.

"By eliminating the need to install and locate wiring, wireless technology reduces installation cost by as much as 90 percent and preserves valuable platform space. The new capabilities of the Vanguard WirelessHART detector make it even easier for platforms to benefit from wireless gas detection by giving them more flexibility to locate detectors on the platform, and the CO detection capability helps control one of the largest sources of offshore air pollution,” said Andrew Liptak, United Electric Controls Product Manager for Gas Detection.

The new Vanguard WirelessHART gas detector version also features its new FLEXmountTM installation, which augments Vanguard standard mounting with magnetic and universal options. The magnetic option enables installation on I-beams without drilling. The universal option uses adjustable clamps that enable installation on pipes from 3” to 12” in diameter, without a hot work permit.

Among the locations in which gas detection might be located on a platform are mud logging units, mud pit room, drilling derrick and mud gas separator, and well-test areas, or wellheads, where H2S is prevalent. Locating near gas flaring locations, venting storage tanks, dehydrators, and pig launchers can detect CH4 releases, and locating near burners can detect CO emissions.

Vanguard WirelessHART version 1.2 also includes the following new features:

• New WiHART communication accessories, which enable users to extend system range, get more out of their installed HART instruments by receiving WirelessHART data via 4-20 mA inputs, and further extend range with powered repeaters.
• A new touchscreen configurator, which streamlines onboarding of the gas monitor to a WirelessHART network.
• Upgraded diagnostic software, which detects and pre-warns of system faults, providing more visibility into sensor messages, more ways to code the status of the signals and fewer false alarms.

The Vanguard WirelessHART Gas Detector version 1.2 is available immediately, supporting interchangeable detection heads for hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and methane (CH4) as well as carbon monoxide (CO). Beta testing is now underway for ammonia (NH3) detection heads.

Toxic gas monitoring by wireless.

In response to the critical need for monitoring of toxic hydrogen sulphide gas in wellheads, tank farms, and other remote locations, Emerson has introduced its first fully integrated wireless gas monitor. The Rosemount™ 928 Wireless Gas Monitor is a fully integrated WirelessHART® toxic gas monitoring solution. The Rosemount 928 significantly improves safety in areas and applications that were previously considered to be too expensive and difficult to monitor due to remote or difficult-to-access locations, challenging topology, and other issues.

Sean McLeskey, product manager, flame and gas detection, Emerson Automation Solutions says “The need for hydrogen sulphide monitoring at these challenging locations is critical. The fact that companies can now so easily solve what has been such a challenging problem is a testament to the power of wireless technology. For current users of wireless solutions – or those considering a move to wireless – the Rosemount 928 is another step in their commitment to increasing safety at their facilities.”

Workers approaching sites like wellheads and remote tank batteries for maintenance are constantly in danger of exposure to unplanned releases of toxic gas. Monitoring these sites with conventional wired gas detection systems is often cost-prohibitive or logistically impossible. The installation, wiring, and commissioning costs for each additional wired device can add tens of thousands of euros to the instrument’s total installed cost. As a result, operators have been forced to rely on portable gas monitoring devices which provide no early warning or personnel safety, or even worse, carry on with no gas monitoring at all.

The Rosemount 928 gas monitor integrates into a WirelessHART network, eliminating wiring and dramatically reducing installation, commissioning, and maintenance costs. Once integrated into the wireless network, personnel simply check the status of the remote monitoring system to know if a maintenance trip is safe.

In addition, the Rosemount 928 gas monitor includes a power module and the Rosemount 628 toxic gas sensor module that are both intrinsically safe and can be replaced in the field in minutes without the need for tools. The Rosemount 628 is a ‘smart’ sensor module, meaning that calibration information is stored within the sensor not the transmitter. This allows users to calibrate the sensor in a non-hazardous location and carry it into the field for quick exchanges with installed sensors. This further enhances personnel safety by minimising their time spent in potentially hazardous locations.

#wireless @EMR_Automation  #PAuto #Oil @Emerson_News

WirelessHART Gas Detectors.

United Electric Controls has announced availability of discounted Beta test versions of its Vanguard WirelessHART gas sensors for ammonia (NH³) and carbon monoxide (CO). The new capability is delivered as interchangeable sensor heads for the WirelessHART Vanguard gas detector.

“Our power industry users have been using the Vanguard detectors primarily to reduce the cost of finding methane leaks in natural gas lines and eliminate explosions from accumulations in silos and bunkers. The addition of ammonia and carbon monoxide provides even more capability to monitor important assets and keep workers safe,” said Andrew Liptak, United Electric Controls Product Manager for Gas Detection.

WirelessHART Vanguard Gas Detectors interface with existing networks to provide continuous coverage while reducing the cost of detecting toxic and combustible gases. United Electric Controls has recently upgraded the Vanguard to handle a broader ambient operation temperature range (-40°C to 65°C); enhanced zero stability; and with interchangeable firmware that enables measurement of additional gases without changing the base unit. NH³ and CO are the first new gases to take advantage of this unique capability.

Power producers use ammonia to reduce nitrogen oxide (NO) — the chemical that creates smog and acid rain (NOx) in flue gas before it enters the atmosphere. CO results from incomplete combustion and can leak from boiler casings and smoldering coal. Undetected leaks of either can be toxic or result in explosions.

Future Vanguard versions will address other gases commonly found in the power industry, including hydrogen from electric generators and battery rooms and oxygen that might be depleted in continuous emissions monitoring (CEM) shelters.

Beta testers of the ammonia and carbon monoxide detectors receive up to fifty percent discount on the first three ammonia or carbon monoxide Vanguard detectors they purchase. They can also purchase additional sensor heads which will enable them to detect hydrogen sulfide (H²S) or methane (CH⁴) using the Vanguard base unit.

@UEControls  #PAuto #WirelessHART

Gas detector enhanced!

United Electric Controls has expanded the capabilities of its Vanguard WirelessHART gas detector. Highlights include an expanded temperature operating range, enhanced stability across temperature ranges, improved handling of WirelessHART commands, and capability for interchangeable sensors.

“As our customers begin to see return on investments in WirelessHART gas detection, they are looking to apply it in more diverse settings and applications. This latest Vanguard version meets customer demands for operation in more extreme climates and improved connectivity, while also providing a foundation on which they can add new capabilities in the future,” said Andrew Liptak, United Electric Controls Product Manager for Gas Detection.

The Vanguard Gas Detector interfaces with existing networks to provide continuous detection of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and methane (CH4) gases, which are among the most widely produced and most dangerous industrial gases. Among the highlights of the latest upgrade are expanded temperature range, improved zero stability over those ranges, and capability for interchangeable sensors.

• Broad operating temperature range. With new ambient operating temperatures from -40°C to 65°C, Vanguard sensors now have one of the highest operating ranges in the industry, making them suitable for extreme temperature ranges in areas such as India and Alaska.
• Enhanced zero stability. Minimal zero shift with changing ambient temperature reduces the chance of false alarms and provides faster connection to the gateway. Updated WirelessHART commands allow quicker connectivity to networks and commissioning of a gas detection system.
• Updated FlexSense firmware. New sensor interchangeable firmware will accept new sensors to measure additional gases without changing the base unit.

Additional upgrades include improvements in span repeatability over temperature, sensor stabilization time, and installation. United Electric Controls’ Vanguard Gas Detector Version 1.1 is available for immediate shipping.

@UEControls  #PAuto #HART

Dual-mode wireless gateway.

New gateway provides ISA100.11a users a path to industry-leading WirelessHART® portfolio

A new dual-mode wireless gateway which supports both IEC 62951 WirelessHART® and ISA100.11a industrial wireless communications standards has been announced. This latest addition expands Emerson’s wireless portfolio and provides customers an easy way to take advantage of WirelessHART technologies from many suppliers.

“With our new dual-mode gateway, we’re excited to give ISA100.11a users an easy path to the improved operating performance they are seeking,” said Bob Karschnia, vice president and general manager, wireless, Emerson Automation Solutions. “WirelessHART has proven in 10 years of successful deployments around the world to provide the highest reliability and most robust self-organising, self-healing network, for the lowest cost.”

With more than 31,000 WirelessHART installations worldwide and over 9.1 billion operating hours, Emerson leads the automation industry in wireless networking. Emerson’s wireless portfolio helps customers extend their automation ecosystem for improved operating reliability with sensing, monitoring and control technologies such as temperature, pressure, level, corrosion, flow, acoustic, gas and vibration, plus wireless adapters for valve positioners and digital valve controllers.

Serving as the backbone of a wireless infrastructure, wireless gateways and access points increase the amount of real-time information available to automation systems, applications and analytics tools to help organisations improve responsiveness and decision-making. Critically, they must possess robust, ‘always-on’ security to limit network vulnerability. When deployed efficiently, they can require the least hardware necessary to keep costs low while keeping operating reliability high. Lastly, customers consistently seek ease-of-deployment as a key consideration.

A future release of Emerson’s dual-mode wireless gateway will be integrated into the Cisco 1552WU, a combined WirelessHART and WiFi solution for industrial hardened wireless, and will seamlessly integrate into Emerson’s industry-leading security and network management tools, including Emerson’s Plantweb™ Insight applications for Industrial IoT, which help industrial facilities improve operations and maintenance by simplifying asset monitoring.

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• You may also find this account of the recent Emerson - NIBRT Life Sciences event in Dublin (IRL) of interest.

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@EMR_Automation #PAuto #Hart @ISA100WCI

Wireless gas detector with long life battery.

United Electric Controls has a WirelessHART gas detector that can monitor presence of harmful gases for more than five years without a battery replacement. The new Vanguard WirelessHART gas detector reduces monitoring costs and increases safety by eliminating the need for costly and fixed wiring.

Potential applications

Once on a wireless network, the Vanguard detector can serve many gas monitoring functions, including the following:
• Wireless remote and local gas detection, such as tank farms, oil and gas production facilities, refineries, pipelines, abandoned wells and waste treatment plants.
• Temporary situations in which the cost of setting up a wired solution is completely unfeasible, such as a maintenance turnaround, natural disaster, security breach or plant expansion.
• Asset management initiatives, where trending of emissions over time through the deployment of multiple wireless sensors can initiate the necessary predictive and preventive maintenance, or pollution control monitoring.

The cost of adding just one new gas measurement point, including obtaining ‘hot’ work permits, running conduits for wires, burying them, and so on, can be in the neighborhood of $10,000 for land-based systems and as much as five times that for offshore applications. "Wireless technology can reduce the cost of adding a monitoring point by up to 90 percent,”" said Wil Chin, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development, United Electric Controls.

They developed the Vanguard detector in response to the market need for a cost-effective way to add multiple gas measurement points. Vanguard field-interchangeable gas sensor modules detect and record hydrogen sulfide (H2S) or methane (CH4) gas in parts per million (PPM) or percent of lower explosive limits (LELs) respectively, along with network and battery status.

WirelessHART 7.2 technology carries signals to local 128 x 64 pixel digital displays or other IEC 62591 compatible connections — all of which integrate seamlessly with existing supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) or asset management (AMS) systems. The Vanguard detector has been designed and tested to interoperate with Emerson Smart Wireless Gateway 1410 and 1420.

Easy operation
The Vanguard detector can be mounted anywhere and dropped easily into any WirelessHART network by inputting the network I.D. and join key. The unit automatically senses the detector type and configures it automatically. Seamless, plug-and-play interoperability saves additional setup time and effort. Class 1, Div. 1&2 certification and an explosion-proof and intrinsically safe design help ensure trouble-free operation in hazardous environments. The unit also has ATEX and IECEx approvals.

@UEControls #Pauto 

Beta testers wanted for WirelessHART gas detector.

United Electric Controls has announced the availability of beta versions of its Vanguard WirelessHART gas detector. The new detector, which has a five-year battery life, is designed to maximize toxic or explosive gas detection points but eliminates the need for costly and fixed wiring. United Electric Controls is offering free beta trials to gain additional feedback on customer experience and product performance prior to the official product roll-out in early 2017.

“Our new Vanguard gas detector has received approvals from all relevant safety agencies, and we now want to utilize the time we have, before officially releasing the product next year, to learn as much as we can about how it performs in the field,” said Wil Chin, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development, United Electric Controls.

United Electric developed the Vanguard detector in response to the market need for a cost effective way to add multiple gas measurement points. The cost of adding one new gas measurement point, including the cost and labor of obtaining ‘hot’ work permits, running conduits for wires, and burying them, can exceed $10,000 per device for land-based systems and as much as five times more for offshore applications. Wireless technology can reduce that cost up to 90-percent while also making the plant much safer.

Vanguard field-interchangeable gas sensor modules detect and record hydrogen sulfide (H2S) or methane (CH4) gas in parts per million (PPM) or percent of lower explosive limits (LELs) respectively, along with network and battery status. WirelessHART 7.2 technology carries signals to local 128 x 64 pixel digital displays or other IEC 62591 compatible connections — all of which integrate seamlessly with existing supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) or asset management (AMS) systems.

Potential Applications
The Vanguard beta program will provide companies running operations that generate (H2S) or (CH4) an opportunity to try it out in various settings, including the following applications:

• Wireless remote and local gas detection, such as tank farms, oil and gas production facilities, refineries, pipelines, abandoned wells and waste treatment plants.
• Temporary situations in which the cost of setting up a wired solution is completely unfeasible, such as a maintenance turnaround, natural disaster, security breach or plant expansion.
• Asset management initiatives, where trending of emissions over time through the deployment of multiple wireless sensors can initiate the necessary predictive and preventive maintenance, or pollution control monitoring.

60-day beta period Companies who agree to complete feedback surveys, will get free use of a system for 60 days.  A United Electric Controls installation team will assist in the commissioning at the end users’ facility.  Those interested in being considered for participation in the beta program should contact our Directors of Functional Safety Technologies - Scott Pierce (spierce@ueonline.com) or Gregg Parsons (gparsons@ueonline.com) to find out more about becoming a beta partner.

WirelessHART Gateway made to fit.

Introducing an explosion-protection WirelessHART gateway series, R. Stahl now provides even more versatile solutions for over-the-air communication in the process industry. The new product complements the existing line-up to give users a complete package of interface options for signal transmission via 4... 20 mA with line-based HART or FF H1 fieldbus.

Wireless communication is an easy way to lay the groundwork for sophisticated automation concepts that are deployed to upgrade an extensive base of existing field devices e.g. in the chemical, pharmaceutical, or oil and gas industry. Advanced Industrial Internet implementations all but depend on such solutions. A series 7145 gateway connects up to 100 wireless field devices via Ethernet with the DCS or asset management system. The gateway is easy to install and can be comfortably parameterised via web server.

A robust stainless steel enclosure provides mechanical resistance and protection according to IP65. ATEX and IECEx certified for use in zones 2 and 22, the devices withstand temperatures in a range between -20 °C and +60 °C. Thanks to the flexible housing concept, the gateway can be combined with other components and optionally equipped with an intrinsically safe antenna interface (Ex ia) as well an Ethernet interface with Ex op type of protection.

Drawing on a wealth of expertise and engineering experience, R. Stahl offers to assist plant designers and system integrators to devise their custom network. For instance, special solutions for use in zone 1 and 21 can also be supplied if needed. Other customised components such as splice boxes for fibre-optic cables, media converters or terminals for Ethernet copper cables can be integrated as well.

• Stahl products are marketed in Ireland through Douglas Controls & Automation.

#Stahl #PAuto #WirelessHart

Wide-area plant network deployment simplified!

The Smart Wireless Gateway 1552WU, a Wi-Fi access point that connects WirelessHART® sensors to the control network has been introduced by Emerson.

Jointly developed as an integral part of Cisco’s IoT Systems, the 1552WU Gateway is a fully- featured mesh access point that simplifies Wi-Fi and WirelessHART installations, lowers costs and reduces deployment time. Users no longer have to run fibre optic cables for ethernet communication to every WirelessHART Gateway. The 1552WU seamlessly connects to neighboring access points allowing complete wireless coverage, with only local power wired to the 1552WU.

“Customers get the combined industry and technical expertise of Emerson and Cisco in a high-performing, secure, scalable gateway that safeguards data integrity,” said Alexandre Peixoto, industrial wireless manager, Emerson Process Management.

With this product, Cisco and Emerson have provided a solution that meets both the Operations Technology department and the Information Technology standards.

“We are pleased to continue our collaboration with Emerson,” stated Tony Shakib, vice president, IoE Vertical Solutions Engineering for Cisco. “By integrating Emerson's WirelessHART Gateway with Cisco's outdoor, hazardous-location-qualified access points, the 1552WU provides customers with the efficiency, scalability, and security of a single wireless network solution that can be utilised for multiple use-cases, including plant control, worker mobility, and safety. This solution extends to meet the demands from both Operational Technology and Information Technology, in industrial environments to realise the Internet of Things vision.”

The 1552WU is another example of how simplifying the installation with wireless technology enables customers to apply Pervasive Sensing™ strategies to improve plant performance and reliability. As obtaining data from hard to access locations becomes easier and more cost effective, process manufacturers are better able to address concerns such as corrosion, energy consumption, health and safety, and the environment.

Containing wireless in process applications!

An increased customer demand for equipment housings to contain wireless process monitoring equipment in outdoor environments has been remarked on by Intertec. The company attributes this partly to increased use of industrial wireless sensor network (WSN) technology, but mainly to the growing industry awareness that the glass-reinforced polymer (GRP) composite material it uses for all its protective enclosures is electromagnetically transparent.

Electromagnetically transparent GRP
 enclosures are ideal for field
protection of wireless process
 monitoring instruments such as
pressure, flow and level transmitters.

Until recently, process industry take-up of WSN technology has been relatively slow, possibly because competing wireless standards have made systems designers wary of making the wrong choice. However for mainstream industrial process applications, the field has now narrowed to just two standards – WirelessHART and ISA100.11a. Both standards define secure, self-healing wireless mesh technology operating in the 2.4 GHz ISM band, using IEEE 802.15.4 standard radios. ISA100.11a systems use Internet protocols and are designed for multiple wireless communications purposes, while the simpler WirelessHART systems are primarily intended only for use with process instruments; they are also backward compatible with wired HART devices, which are used extensively within the process sector for remote data acquisition.

Intertec has long been aware that one of the many benefits of its GRP composite material is electromagnetic transparency – it produces a wide range of frangible environmental protection cabinets and shelters for radar and instrument landing systems at airports which are designed not to reflect or interfere with radio signals. The housings are also used extensively for cellular and satellite communications applications, as well as satellite navigation systems; the GRP material causes no measurable loss of received or transmitted RF signals, so the equipment antennas can be contained within the enclosure. However until now, Intertec has not actively promoted the fact that the non-metallic construction of its products is also ideally suited to field-based 2.4 GHz wireless sensor networks, especially for applications where external antennas are inadvisable because of their susceptibility to accidental damage.

According to Intertec’s CEO, Martin Hess, “More and more process industries are starting to deploy wireless field instrumentation, although at this stage it’s only for monitoring and diagnostics – I think that it will still be a long time before wireless is used for process control purposes. Having said that, the technology offers huge benefits for companies with large remote data acquisition needs, completely eliminating the cost and inconvenience of cables. We believe that our GRP composite enclosures provide plant engineers with a future-proof path for WSN technology – even if they choose to install cabled instruments today, by selecting the right type of enclosure at the outset they will make it easy to deploy wireless instrumentation whenever they wish, without having to change the entire installation.”

A number of Intertec’s customers, as well as manufacturers of wireless process monitoring automation, have started to evaluate the electromagnetic performance of its GRP-based enclosures for housing field-based WSN equipment. Initial results are very promising: third-party tests involving a WirelessHART gateway and a WirelessHART field device, both with built-in antennas and sited in different rooms, found that when the field device was placed inside a standard Intertec instrumentation enclosure it continued to function properly, with no measurable loss of signal.

The tests were conducted using a model from Intertec’s Multibox range, but the same results are likely to be obtained from many of the company’s enclosures that use a similar form of construction, including its popular Diabox range. Both types of enclosure are moulded from hot-pressed GRP. They are optionally available in ATEX-compliant antistatic versions for use in hazardous environments and can also be fitted with an internal layer of polyurethane foam for additional thermal insulation – all of the materials are electromagnetically transparent and have no effect on signal reception or transmission.

Many of the leading wireless process monitoring instruments on the market, including a number of pressure, flow and level transmitters, offer the option of local (on-instrument) or remote antennas. However, if the instrument needs to be housed in some form of enclosure to protect it against a harsh environment, this choice will not be available if – as is commonly the case – the enclosure is made from a metal such as steel or aluminium; its RF shielding effect will necessitate use of a remote externally mounted antenna to secure adequate signal strength. Aside from incurring additional implementation costs, use of an external antenna also involves drilling an extra hole in the enclosure – probably in its top, which is potentially the worst place for leaks – and leaves a delicate structure open to physical impact.

Intertec manufactures all its protective enclosures for field instrumentation from proprietary GRP, either in the form of a single layer or a multi-layer composite containing one or more cores of special insulating and/or fire resistant materials. As well as being electromagnetically transparent and an excellent electrical insulator, the material has multiple advantages for plant designers seeking to protect field instrumentation against environmental effects, especially for long lifecycle applications and where harsh media or severe local climatic conditions might be encountered. GRP is inherently inert and immune to damage from most common chemicals and petrochemicals. It has a similar strength to steel, but weighs about four times less, and will not corrode in the presence of salt – which is why it is increasingly becoming the enclosure material of choice for offshore and coastal oil and gas applications. GRP also has low flammability and is self-extinguishing, as well as having a very low thermal conductivity that makes it easier to implement efficient, condensation-free enclosures.

Enhancements to FF technical specs!

The Fieldbus Foundation has announced the latest updates to its open, non-proprietary FOUNDATION^™ fieldbus technical specifications. The specification updates (Version 2014.1) will further enhance FOUNDATION for Remote Operations Management (ROM) and the usability of FOUNDATION technology.

FOUNDATION for ROM specification-related updates, along with an update to the Common File Format (CFF) specification, have improved coverage of ROM communication profiles under existing specifications in preparation for the first official ROM device registrations. Additionally, there is expanded specifications support for complex, mixed conventional I/O points.

The first development of its kind, FOUNDATION for ROM integrates remote input/output (I/O), ISA 100.11a, WirelessHART^®, wired HART, and FOUNDATION fieldbus H1 protocols into a single, open-standard data management environment. With Modbus incorporation under development, FOUNDATION for ROM allows full integration of field connected assets into the FOUNDATION fieldbus infrastructure. These enhancements further extend the capabilities of FOUNDATION fieldbus to wired and wireless devices installed in some of the world's harshest and most remote locations. This open, non-proprietary solution provides a unified digital infrastructure for asset management in applications ranging from tank farms and terminals to pipelines, offshore platforms, and even original equipment manufacturer (OEM) skids.

As part of this new technical specifications release, a fixed set of Device Description (DD) Symbol IDs was added to technical note 16 in order to improve interoperability between backwards-compatible devices and host systems. This provides a more reliable way for a host to properly take advantage of the backwards compatibility of a device. In 2013, the foundation created a continuous improvement process initiative with the ultimate goal of making the end users' experience with FOUNDATION technology easier than with conventional analog control systems. Since then, the Usability Initiative has resulted in four immediate objectives toward this common goal: backwards compatibility, pre-defined device templates, automated device replacement, and process value (PV) interchangeability. Backwards compatibility simplifies device replacement.

Latest in wireless covered in latest edition of bestseller!

The International Society of Automation (ISA) has published a fourth edition of its highly popular book on wireless networks for industrial automation, updated with an extensive analysis of today’s newest wireless technologies.

Wireless Networks for Industrial Automation, Fourth Edition by Dick Caro, ISA Life Fellow and industrial automation consultant at CMC Associates, provides a clear, unbiased view of the emerging wireless communications market, and closely examines the latest advances in wireless technologies for process control, such as ISA100 Wireless (ANSI/ISA-100.11a), WirelessHART, WIA-PA and WiFi, including IEEE 802.11n and 802.11ac. He is also a member of the Process Automation Hall of Fame (Control Magazine) and has acted as co-chair of ISA100.12.

Dick Caro

“A lot has changed in the marketplace since the third edition of my book was published,” notes Caro, a widely recognized expert in industrial networking and current chair of two ISA100 Wireless standards subcommittees. “At that time, ISA100 Wireless was just being developed and WirelessHART had just been announced. This new edition covers their transition to well-established, proven standards, and provides guidance to those seeking a comparison of the two."

Since both ISA100 Wireless and WirelessHART have well-documented field experience and installation success, Caro says that both can be utilized without trepidation of any kind.

“Today, both are absolutely reliable, secure and simple to install, and since their batteries seem to last forever, fears of battery replacement have disappeared,” he asserts. “At the same time, they both have differences.”

ISA100 Wireless, he explains, is particularly valuable to “those forward-thinking process control users who can visualize a control system architecture that includes plant-wide wireless control networks. WirelessHART has been important to some users who have urgent needs for measurements or status detection in areas that have been too costly or unable to connect wired instruments or sensors.”
WIA-PA, Caro indicates, was developed at a Chinese university and it is not known if there are any commercial applications within China, and, to date, none have been offered for export.

He says that IEEE 802.11, on the other hand, has been in active development for many years, and is widely installed in many manufacturing locations where wired or fiber optic Ethernet may have been used.

“Wireless offers installed cost advantages,” Caro points out. “When the third edition of my book was released, IEEE 802.11n had not yet been ratified, but vendors were already selling product. Now, IEEE 802.11n is the Wi-Fi market leader with many installations of the MIMO (Multiple-Input Multiple-Output) form with dual frequencies to provide spatial diversity. Today, IEEE 802.11ac is nearing ratification and suppliers are already selling product. As improvements to IEEE 802.11 are made, the speed increases to the point that IEEE 802.11ac will achieve speed parity with wired gigabit Ethernet.”

Caro says some vendors of wireless process control systems, instruments and network devices tend to “over market” their products, making claims for features that are not incorporated or sometimes not even planned for the future.

“I hope that this updated edition can help users make intelligent decisions that will enable them to plan future process control networks and control system architectures in which wireless is certain to play a major role,” he concludes.