Advanced Control

Multivariable Control.  Real-time Optimization.  Model Identification.  First-Principles Modeling. 

Collectively, Advanced Process Control & Optimization. 

A case study, if ever there was one.

Launched in 1980’s by innovations such as the constrained multivariable control patent by our very own super-genius.  A wondrous invention with the promise of increased production, tighter qualities and safer, more reliable operations.

And deliver it did.

A handful of companies set up shop to deliver the benefits of this great technology.  Engineers with an aptitude for linear algebra, computers and real-time process insights grew into experts to deliver premium projects the world over.

The combination of good technology and super-smart people proved very profitable as well.  Typical projects were priced at $500,000+, just for the advanced control part, with real-time optimization as an additional and pricier option over and above that. 

Soon enough the big bucks drew in the imitators.  And, over the years prices eroded by some 75%.  Despite increases delivery efficiencies, vendor profitability slowly decreased while labor costs continued to rise.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, customers started discovering that the once-wonderful control schemes required ever more maintenance as processes were upgraded, operating points moved and computer infrastructure enhanced.

The result?  Some 20 years after introduction, the technology has more or less fallen out of favor on many fronts.

What next?  Will it just die a slow death, or is there some next-generation innovation to rejuvenate the early successes?

I advocate that the latter is true.

There is a next-generation technology now being birthed.  And it's happening right here at PAS, led by the same super-genius who helped launch advanced control into the limelight.  Now, he's about to come back in a big way with another breakthrough invention to reclaim the market.

This time, the invention – code-named Galaxy – is set to deliver value without the  requirements for step-testing the process, without the need for ongoing maintenance as conditions change, and with the benefit of first-principles intelligence for optimization.

But that’s the subject of another blog at another time.  Just be encouraged that change is in the winds.