A Standardised Modular Approach for Site SCADA Applications Within a Water Utility

Abstract

Any large water treatment/production utility that employs autonomous plant as part of its processes will utilize supervisory control and data acquisition systems. These systems will generally be isolated from each other and will exist solely to serve the site they control and visualize. More often, they are delivered and developed organically through cost driven maintenance regimes that prioritize on process risk rather than asset lifecycles. In some cases, this has led to variations in installed software and hardware applications, not only across a business enterprise, but also down to a site level. This is usually based on favored products at the time of supply, and in turn requires a broader range of engineering skills to maintain and update. The previous adoption of a “fit and forget”model has also led to large areas of unsupported computer assets within an organization that further introduces “data risk.”As regulatory bodies start to impose stricter compliance measures on the water industry, so to the suppliers become more reliant upon their process data. This paper presents how a water utility has employed a modular approach and has set to standardize its SCADA assets across all business sectors. It reviews the hardware the systems are installed on, the software applications used to deliver the integration, and discusses how the software devices have been modeled and tagged in search of a common information model. All in line with their respective field assets. It also discusses some of the human factors surrounding the replacement of control systems.

Keywords

• SCADA
• control systems
• human factors
• water utility
• regulators
• process