GE upgrades Automation Software products
GE Intelligent Platforms has announced upgrades to the company’s core Automation Software products, Proficy HMI/SCADA - iFIX and Proficy HMI/SCADA - CIMPLICITY, as well as new capabilities that deliver on the promise of the Industrial Internet. Upgrades to the company’s breakthrough Proficy Mobile software solution provide faster response with the right information in context to equipment, location and role.
Proficy Mobile is a proven mobile app with patented secure-by-design technology that requires no development and can be layered on top of existing systems. Upgrades to the solution allow managers to view and execute workflows, and facilitates a tight integration with SCADA systems for faster response on alarms. It also enables easy configuration for geo-intelligence capabilities which can be used now with Google Maps.
With Proficy Mobile Tasks, operators and technicians can develop a dynamic task list with interactive, step-by-step instructions. This capability drives plant teams to the right actions so companies can enforce compliance and quality as well as reduce time and waste. Wherever they are, operators can receive information about upcoming issues and see critical steps that they might need to initiate to prevent that issue from occurring, mitigating the threat of unplanned downtime.
With the solution’s Mobile Notes, managers can easily increase collaboration across teams and augment documentation with the latest changes to system parameters. Operators can enter comments, take and attach pictures, and include KPI details, and then, using filters, retrieve any of that information immediately.
“By using advanced mobile apps such as [Proficy Mobile] on the latest generation of mobile iOS and Android devices, companies can drive efficiencies and reduce downtime with real-time access to operational information,” said Mr Janice Abel, Principal Consultant for ARC Advisory Group in a recent ARC report. “The app is just the beginning of the new industrial revolution with functionality that leverages and builds upon other mobile capabilities.”
Based on decades of GE innovation, award winning Proficy HMI/SCADA – CIMPLICITY precisely monitors and controls every aspect of a company’s SCADA environment, equipment and resources.
Version 9.0 brings a set of new capabilities that enable companies to develop better applications, improve operators’ experience, extend the reach of existing systems, and take advantage of the latest OS and interoperability technologies. Proficy HMI/SCADA - CIMPLICITY 9.0 reduces time to value through richer context allowing users to improve structured databases quickly and easily, enabling Real-time Operation Intelligence (RtOI) providing the right information, anytime, anywhere.
New features of CIMPLICITY 9.0 include improved configuration capabilities, better interaction with new, richer protocols, and an improved operator experience with reduced alarm noise. There is also a new object library and long point names allow 256 characters for building a structured database quickly. GE Intelligent Platforms is also including Proficy Historian for SCADA in the new release.
Building on a track record of success and continual enhancements, the latest release of Proficy HMI/SCADA - iFIX enables companies to drive better analytics and leverage more reliability, flexibility and scalability across the enterprise. This proven real-time information management and SCADA solution includes latest-generation visualisation tools and a reliable control engine.
In its newest version, iFIX now supports dynamic resolution for graphics including more efficient rendering and reduced CPU footprint. This capability allows support for deploying iFIX graphics on widescreen monitors, LCD TVs and the ability to move graphics from one resolution to another.
“The Industrial Internet is all about access to information,” said Mr Matthew Wells, GE Intelligent Platforms’ General Manager for Automation Software. “Access to accurate, timely production and process data is critical and that is what these solutions deliver. We leverage the latest technologies and listen to the needs of our customers to make the Industrial Internet real for them and their businesses.”