Batch Control System

Featured at InterPhex '98
The APACS batch control system is a flexible solution well-suited for specialty chemical, pharmaceutical, food & beverage, and pulp & paper applications. By combining S88.01-based batch management with IEC (6)1131-3-based configuration tools, the system alleviates the change management issues prevalent in batch processes-from quick product changeovers to frequent recipe adjustments.

Process modeling eliminates reliance on custom code for building, managing, and executing recipes and enables new recipe testing in a simulated runtime operation. Moreover, the system provides a flexible and intuitive method to schedule, initialize, and coordinate batch execution by dynamically configuring each phase with the appropriate formula parameters. In essence, the APACS batch control system interprets and enables logic in the process model by dispatching a batch, validating its recipe, and executing the master recipe according to model constraints.

With APACS, test recipes can run within the R&D environment in a mode simulating the process models of various production facilities, allowing operators to determine which lines are most effective for a particular product. Production delays are alleviated through automatic recipe scaling, which eliminates the need to redefine ingredients and formulas. Moreover, individual processes can be validated without necessitating revalidation of the overall process model or controller, making new recipes easy to create and maintain.

Moore Products, Sumneytown Pike, Spring House, PA 19477. Tel: 215-646-7400.