Number 3
March 2010
INSIDER
It’s
now almost four years since what was then called Invensys Process
Systems (IPS) launched in InFusion what it claimed was the
world’s first Enterprise Control System or ECS at a spectacular
event in Boston’s John F Kennedy Memorial Library (INSIDER, May
2006, page 1). Much has changed at what is now called Invensys
Operations Management (IOM) in the interim, not least, as well as its
name, its CEO – twice - and its relationship with Wonderware.
Intriguingly, INSIDER’s May 2006 issue had IPS’ then CEO
Mike Calliel explaining the need for the continued separation of IPS
and Wonderware because of the potential danger to the latter of too
close an association with the former. Clearly his successor but one
takes a rather different view. To read the full story take
out
a subscription to Industrial Automation INSIDER.
their wires crossed
on to ARC’s turf . . .
IMS Research has followed up its shortly to be repeated 2008 study of the world DCS market (INSIDER, September 2008, page 1) with a report on the world market for flowmeters for industrial and upstream custody transfer applications which it estimates to have been worth a total of approaching $4bn in 2008. IMS claims to have been careful to distinguish between industrial and domestic metering and the technologies involved, with even ultrasonic and fluidic devices now being applied to domestic utility metering, an area where IMS has produced several reports. To read the full story take out a subscription to Industrial Automation INSIDER.
. . . while ARC takes a broader
view of refining
While IMS seeks to steal some of ARC’s instrumentation clothes, ARC itself seems to broadening the scope of its own research activities with initiatives such as its recently released “Automation Expenditures in Refining Worldwide Outlook” which, if the press release announcing its publication is anything to go by, attempts to place the specific focus on automation expenditure into the broader context of the prospects for the refining industry as a whole. To read the full story take out a subscription to Industrial Automation INSIDER.
Alarm management wins UK
government funding
Gerrards Cross, UK based Geometric Process Control (GPC) pioneer Curvaceous Software has won funding to support further development of its work on the management and control of alarm
Results show automation sector
still suffering . . .
With ABB, Emerson and Schneider, all reporting quarterly figures in February, some impression of how the recession has impacted the automation industry is beginning to emerge. What it tends to suggest is that, while the parent companies have weathered the storm and are showing signs of returning to growth, their process automation subsidiaries in particular are still feeling the effects. That is only to be expected. With the typically long life cycles of automation projects, process automation is more of a lagging than a leading indicator, even if some analysts have suggested that the industry might be “last in, first out.” Indeed by accelerating execution on their existing order backlog some vendors may have been improving the current picture only at the expense of what might happen later in the cycle. Certainly most vendors’ order books have yet to suggest that good times are just around the corner. To read the full story take out a subscription to Industrial Automation INSIDER.
. . . but analysts see light at
the end of the tunnel
Longbow Research, the Independence, Ohio based research group which tracks the performance of US automation vendors, reported increased optimism across the industry in its February survey. The majority of its contacts report improved demand and pricing, together with an increased level of quoting activity which they anticipate will translate into hard orders in the second half. “Survey results,” says Longbow, “lead us to believe that growth could be higher than current expectations but we would like to see another marker of improvement before raising estimates further.” Specific market sectors showing signs of pick up relative to other industries include food & beverage, power, utilities, water & wastewater, oil & gas, speciality chemicals and general OEMs, while those still clearly in the doldrums include electrical contractors, commercial construction and refining. To read the full story take out a subscription to Industrial Automation INSIDER
Shell takes new approach
to MAC agreements
Press releases from Emerson and Yokogawa arrived within days of each other at the beginning of February, revealing that Shell is extending the concept of Main Automation Contractor (MAC) through a new form of Global Framework Agreement or GFA. According to the Emerson version of the release which, like that from Yokogawa, has worked its way through the Shell approvals process, the approach expands the MAC strategy which Shell has followed in its downstream businesses for a number of years to make it the centre-point of an enterprise-wide automation strategy. To read the full story take out a subscription to Industrial Automation INSIDER.
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THEY
SAID IT
“We are confident that if we execute well, we will be ahead of the pack.”
Sudipta Bhattacharya,
President and CEO, Invensys Operations Management
“. . . attempts to rationalize the differences between the two standards appear to be dead.”
Gary Mintchell,
Editor in Chief,
Automation World
“For the first time in history, Emerson will have full and open access to all Shell business units . . . ”
Ronaldo Marques,
General Manager, Equipment,
Shell Enterprise Categories & Suppliers Division
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