Product category:
Plantwide control
News Release from: Verano | Subject: Performux
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 23 December 2003
Software eases switch to Linux-based
control
Leading UK energy company RWE Innogy has installed Verano's Performux real-time plant intelligence software platform at three of its coal-fired power stations in the UK.
Leading UK energy company RWE Innogy has installed Verano's Performux, a real-time plant intelligence software platform, at three of its coal-fired power stations in the UK, which generate 4550MW of electricity - approximately half of the company's total capacity Based on Verano's Real-Time Applications Platform (RTAP), Performux is the first Linux-based, plant operations software platform to offer secure, Internet-enabled management of critical industrial operations
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 17 Jan 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
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This installation is the first step in transitioning all of RWE Innogy's APMS power generation control systems to Linux.
For the past eight years, RWE Innogy (formerly National Power) has relied on Verano's RTAP to provide a flexible and reliable Scada platform for its power generation control system as the core of the Advanced Plant Management System (APMS), developed by Innogy and Thales Information Systems in 1995.
An indispensable foundation for APMS, Verano's RTAP integrated the company's diverse control system, business and support data, delivered it to control desk operators in real-time and provided a solid core for future application enhancements.
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Performux will serve the same function, though now on the more portable, scalable and secure Linux operating system.
"Having the existing Verano RTAP solution in place made the move to Performux a natural progression and migration, allowing us to avoid expensive re-engineering costs associated with other control systems", said Andrew Lichnowski, Manager of the Process Control Systems Group at RWE Innogy.
"We are confident that the reliability and performance of Verano's RTAP system will be mirrored in Performux".
Performux and APMS are now installed on operator workstations at RWE Innogy's power stations at Didcot, Aberthaw and Tilbury, which run a total of 10 power generation units.
This transition to Linux will enable the company to lower capital and maintenance costs and simplify its hardware support.
"RWE Innogy's commitment to Performux is yet another indication of a general industry trend of Linux acceptance in mission-critical industrial operations", said Brian Ahern, President and CEO of Verano.
"Utility industries, such as electric power, are challenged with maintaining the highest levels of operational standards with limited capital budgets.
Verano's Performux platform is the mechanism by which customers can reduce plant automation operating and maintenance costs without compromising the most critical success factors of availability and reliability".
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