ISA Announces Co-located Events at ISA EXPO 2009

Posted by The Webmaster on July 20, 2009 under ISA News | Comments are off for this article

From ISA.org:

expo_09_with_cmyk_webThe International Society of Automation (ISA) announces the co-location of seven events throughout the week at ISA EXPO 2009, held 6-8 October at the Reliant Center in Houston, Texas. Co-locating organizations include ARC Advisory Group, Industry2Grid (I2G), MCAA, OpenO&M, Microsoft and the Microsoft Manufacturing User Group (MSMUG), Houston SmartPlant Instrumentation (LTUF), and WBF. The co-location of these events with the ISA Fall Training Institute, Industry Standards Forum, six technical conferences, and the exhibition brings an abundance of technical content, professional development, and networking opportunities to attendees. Details about each co-located event follow.

ARC Advisory Group will host an Asset Lifecycle Management (ALM) Knowledge Exchange and Technology Showcase that includes a series of educational workshops and presentations by ARC analysts, end users, and leading technology suppliers. Topics will cover recent ALM developments and best practices that enable asset-intensive organizations to reduce risk, reduce costs, reduce downtime, reduce energy use, and reduce the carbon footprint of complex capital facilities.

The Committee of the National Institute of Standards and Technology industry2Grid (I2G) Summit will provide an overview of NIST and I2G SmartGrid activities as well as a forum for identifying and discussing issues of importance to industry.

The Measurement, Control & Automation Association (MCAA), the industry’s trade association, will hold an Industry Breakfast. Jeff Dietrich, Senior Analyst with the Institute for Trend Research will update MCAA members on the economy and the business cycles of the key customer industries for MCAA products. Additionally, Paul Rasmusson and Mike Willey, principals of Global Foresight Group, will provide a mid-year update to their 2009-2011 market forecast, which is prepared exclusively for MCAA members.

The OpenO&M demonstration is a collaborative effort with POSC Caesar, FIATECH and key ISO Working Groups, as well as leading solutions suppliers. It will enable the needed sustainable IT and IS infrastructure spanning Engineering and Construction, Operations and Maintenance, Controls and Enterprise Business Systems. Rather than having isolated islands of activity linked by unsustainable proprietary integration solutions, the suppliers of all major classes of industrial systems are now adopting open standards based interfaces providing the needed levels of sustainable interoperability.

OpenO&M will also conduct an Executive Summit for those with strategic accountability for plant and platform performance. This summit is designed to help management understand the business value of ISA membership and ISA standards activities through an executive level discussion and private demonstration of the next generation of open standards-enabled plant and platform management solutions.

Microsoft and the Microsoft Manufacturing User Group (MSMUG) will hold their annual Worldwide Manufacturing Operations Forum. Microsoft will present its role and strategy in manufacturing operations, an updated roadmap of its key products and technologies, as well as the broader strategy to secure and manage IT assets in this area. The forum will also address how software enhances role-based productivity allowing for better collaboration and availability of information, and leading to faster and better decision making.

The Houston SmartPlant Instrumentation (LTUF), a group of Intergraph’s SmartPlant Instrumentation Automation Software users, will hold its fall meeting at ISA EXPO this year. LTUF is a group of professionals who are joined by a common interest in applying products to the field of Instrumentation Automation, Engineering, Design, Drafting, and Maintenance. “The LTUF chose ISA EXPO as a vehicle to host the LTUF Quarterly Instrumentation Automation Forum because of the leading edge instrument technology it offers that coincide with our focus in industry,” said John Dressel, Houston SPI LTUF Chair.

WBF, the Organization for Production Technology, will offer two seminars: Non-Stop 88 – Applying Batch Methods to Continuous and Discrete Processes and “Getting Real” with ISA-95 and B2MML: Implementation Case Studies. Dennis Brandl will conduct the two seminars, during which he will discuss real world examples of applying standards he has helped develop.

“Welcoming these technical organizations to co-locate their events at ISA EXPO 2009 will allow attendees an expanded opportunity to meet some of the most influential and preeminent professionals in industry. It’s a once a year opportunity to attend one event and network with your colleagues from various industries and organizations while keeping up with the latest standards and technology in the industry,” said Dale Lee, director, convention, education, and certification, ISA.

ISA EXPO is the meeting place for management, engineering, production, IT and R&D professionals responsible for automation, control systems, plant-wide communications/networks, plant operations and maintenance, and systems integration in a continuous or batch manufacturing environment. The annual event provides in-depth technical coverage of topics critical to automation and control success.

For more information about ISA EXPO 2009, visit www.isa.org/expo or call (919) 549-8411.

ISA99 and ISA100 Standards Included in the EPRI Interim Report

Posted by The Webmaster on July 11, 2009 under Automation Federation News, ISA News | Be the First to Comment

Automation Federation logo

The Automation Federation is pleased to announce a noteworthy recognition of their Founding Member, ISA. The ISA99 Manufacturing and Control Systems Security Standard and ISA100 Wireless Systems for Automation, the emerging standard for industrial wireless, have been identified for use in the Smart Grid Interoperability Standards Roadmap for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) by Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). This recognition is a result of Automation Federation efforts to drive home the message that automation standards and automation professionals are vital to the future of Smart Grid.

Under the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007, NIST has “primary responsibility to coordinate development of a framework that includes protocols and model standards for information management to achieve interoperability of smart grid devices and systems…” As a result, NIST awarded EPRI a contract to engage Smart Grid stakeholders and develop a draft interim standards roadmap. In addition, NIST has hosted a year-long planning effort to develop the Smart Grid interoperability framework—an effort in which the Automation Federation has taken part.

Through active engagement in NIST Domain Expert Working Group (DEWG) activities, EPRI led workshops, and other industry planning activities, Automation Federation representatives have stressed the importance of the use of recognized standards like ISA99 and ISA100 and the involvement of automation professionals in the successful implementation of Smart Grid. To learn more about ISA99, visit www.isa99.org; ISA100, www.isa100.org; and other ISA developed standards, www.isa.org/standards.

ISA Honors & Awards Honorees Announced

Posted by The Webmaster on under ISA News | Comments are off for this article

ISA logoHonorees for the 47th Annual ISA Honors & Awards Program and newly elected ISA Fellows were approved by the ISA Executive Board earlier this month during the Society’s annual Spring Leaders’ Meeting in Indianapolis, IN.

Nominations have arrived since early January and from a pool of well over 100 names, the Honors & Awards Committee recommended a slate that includes 34 individuals, three companies, two ISA Divisions, and six ISA Sections.

Awards and recognitions are divided into several categories which include recognitions for Society service, technical accomplishments, contributions to education, and individual achievements. ISA Fellow grade is granted to acknowledge outstanding technical achievements as recognized by peers.

For the complete list of honorees, visit the National ISA website.

Website maintenance July 10th & 11th

Posted by The Webmaster on July 10, 2009 under Website notices | Comments are off for this article

The ISAMichigan.org website will be unavailable from 5:00 p.m. Friday, July 10th to 8:00 a.m. Saturday, July 11th while the underlying site framework is updated to WordPress.

Thanks for your interest in ISA’s Southeastern Michigan Section. Please visit again on Saturday morning.

Tom Kephart, webmaster