The Archestra framework from Wonderware and other
Invensys divisions is near completion. Some of the 'backbone' components such as
InSQL 8.0 are already released. But what is it? How does it affect you?
Archestra is an application framework. One of it's
main goals is to reduce your cost of ownership by reducing both development costs
and ongoing maintenance issues. It does this by making use of the idea of Templates
or Objects that can be re-used. During development, you define the main types of
motors, valves, and other controls as templates. Then everywhere you need one in
your control strategy, you just create an instance of the object from your template
or object library and tie it to the rest of the system.With a few more clicks, you
can setup alarming, trending, paging and other events as needed.
One of the other neat features of this type of system
is that the logic is separated from the physical strategy. This means that you can
develop without worrying about how the physical controllers and other devices are
going to be connected. When the Physical devices are installed, you configure them
into the system, then you 'assign' the associated logic and I/O points to the correct
controller and your system is configured.
Only time will tell if Archestra lives up to it's
promises. From our experience, the benefits that Archestra promises will only be
realized if the appropriate up front planning is done and local programming and
control strategy standards are adopted and adhered to. CAM has worked with two
systems in recent years that are similar in many ways to Archestra.
The Moore
(now Siemens) APACS DCS utilizes Wonderware's InTouch and InSQL as the HMI and
Historian software for an integrated system. DeltaV is a Fisher Rosemount DCS system
with Intellution's iFix platform as it's core. Both of these systems rely heavily on
HMI Scripting to 'glue' the hardware or I/O to the system. Both can reduce the
engineering effort to build a system. However, the way this is accomplished is by
learning and adhering to the standards that Moore and Fisher Rosemount used to
build these systems in the first place. We expect Archestra's benefits to be fully
realized if, and only if, standards and procedures are developed and any systems
built with Archestra follow those standards. Like any software, garbage in means
garbage out.
