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by Mary Brandel, Contributing Editor Posted on Monday, November 28, 2005 10:30:00 AM   | Abstract: | By focusing on "standard operating posture" and screen readability, while keeping information clutter and sizzle to a minimum, manufacturers can make sure their supervisory control and data acquisition systems are intuitive for operators across the factory floor.
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Supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems are getting a lot of attention these days, primarily on the topics of security, integration with business applications and easy interoperability with large numbers of devices. What gets less attention is the front end of these systems -- the part that real, live operators interact with -- also known as the human-machine interface (HMI). And yet no matter how many devices feed into the SCADA system or how efficiently you route the production and process data they collect, the system is relatively worthless if it doesn't take care of the basics: effectively alerting operators when something goes wrong and enabling them to fix it quickly. Consider that a disruption or malfunction in the refineries, factories and utilities that SCADA systems monitor can be expensive, if not harmful or deadly. "It can end up costing both dollars and lives," says Chris Stearns, product manager at Honeywell International Inc., which makes SCADA systems. Stearns compares it to not being able to quickly find the brakes on a car. "You can't be flipping through graphics trying to figure out how to turn something off," he explains. [Click to continue] |