Necessary Support - In order to operate a plant safely and reliably, the first prerequisite is to know exactly what shape it is in. It is essential for the plant documentation to reflect plant reality as accurately as possible. Here, instrumentation and control planning systems (I&C-CAE systems) provide the necessary support. In the classic process industry the plants involved are usually large production plants consisting of individual plant components which are mostly non-centrally organized. These individual components are often built up gradually. Depending on their date of construction, an I&C-CAE system may often not have been planned in originally. It would then have to be integrated into an already-existing IT environment.

Just over 10 years ago now, BASF also required an I&C-CAE system capable of working reliably with the software systems already installed there. This requirement was in itself a strong argument for using the I&C planning system Prodok (see Text Box 1) by Roesberg Engineering. In the meantime, 10 years on, not only BASF's Ludwigshafen site, but also the sites in Antwerp, Schwarzheide and Tarragona, as well as smaller BASF sites in Central and South America, are working with the tool developed by the automation experts from Karlsruhe.

Simplicity Of Integration

It isn't possible for everyone to do all tasks equally well. Thus, the automation experts concentrate on their core competence of instrumentation and control engineering, while ensuring that their I&C system provides interfaces to the software of other manufacturers. Where software is concerned, rather than: "Everything from one hand," the overriding philosophy is: "The Best of Everything!" - which also means independence from specific manufacturers. Interfaces are developed according to the user's requirements in each case.

Fig. 1 shows the interfaces in use at present at BASF: P&IDs are transmitted to Prodok via the PD-Explorer. There is an interface to SAP for transmission of data from the technical sites, i.e. the points where maintenance measures have to be carried out (SAP PM). These are automatically identified and updated if there are changes.

Via another interface, specifications for individual instrumentation and control devices are transmitted for ordering purposes (via SAP PS to SAP MM). To keep an eye on costs at all times, there is an export from the I&C-CAE-System to BASF's own cost estimation module Kelpro. Calculation data for valves and differential pressure transmitters pass to the calculation program Conval, from which the results are re-transmitted. Of course, there is also an interface to LiveDok (see Text Box 2) for the maintenance of digital plant documentation.

Standardization: Much in Demand

In addition to these, an NE-100 interface is used. Namur Recommendation 100 defines formulations that improve communication when purchasing I&C equipment and enables electronic data exchange (Fig. 2) . BASF uses this standard for inquiries and orders to external suppliers. But NE-100 is also used for internal ordering: When a device is requested from the central warehouse, a download of an NE100.xml document containing information about the device is activated at the same time. This information is integrated into Prodok and is then available for plant documentation. A similar system is used for configuration orders to the internal Automation Engineering Technical Center. Here the configuration order is issued in the form of precise specifications in an NE-100 document set.

The Center configures the devices that have been ordered in accordance with the specifications, adds further information to the NE-100 document if appropriate and then delivers the device together with the relevant NE-100 XML file, which can then be integrated into the plant documentation. Special forms are not only used to transmit the necessary information for ordering and bidding purposes; they can also be used to supply a wide range of information about a device, which can then form an input into plant documentation. Thanks to appropriate interfaces, data import is possible at the touch of a button and time-consuming, potentially inaccurate manual data entry is a thing of the past.

Regarding the depth of information made available for plant documentation, Endress+Hauser's W@M-Portal one step further. Here, at the touch of a button, details of devices from this manufacturer can be retrieved via an internet link, including stored master data, documentations, inspection certificates, ATEX certificates, product-specific spare parts lists and events occurring over the whole life cycle. For this purpose, too, an interface has been defined in Prodok.