Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition

As remote data acquistion systems and the hardware for GSM based SCADA systems become more cost effective we are seeing parallel developments in the way data is collected and presented and the clever money is on the web based data acquisition systems. The wonders of GPRS are making data transfer affordable and you can monitor something on the other side of the world in near real time - you can pretty much see a vehicle drive around the country on the web. The implications of web based data acquisition aren’t just about convenience, they are about practicality.

Source and more info: ITtoolbox

FreeWave Technologies, a designer and manufacturer of premium quality spread spectrum radios and wireless solutions for industrial, scientific, military and commercial applications, today announced the newest feature of their FGR series radios, Local Mode. An innovative software feature, Local Mode allows users to initiate a point-to-point link to a connected multipoint slave radio, from a vehicle with a laptop connection. After the data is collected, the slave links back to its original multi-point radio network.

From the safety of their own vehicles, technicians and engineers are now able to access data from SCADA without the inconvenience of inclement weather, sun-related computer screen wash out and the potential dangers of entering hazardous areas. This new Local Mode allows engineers and technicians the freedom to collect data without crossing into private property, climbing fences, opening gates or crossing streams. With the addition of Local Mode, Freewave customers will now be able to increase efficiency, productivity and take advantage of the simplicity of data collection.

Source and more info: Business Wire

ABB India has been awarded a turnkey order worth around Rs 430 crore to provide an enterprise-wide supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system for ONGC’s production and drilling facilities.

According to a release issued by ABB to the BSE today, the system will enable ONGC to integrate its basins, plants, forward base and other assets to the corporate data center facilitating anytime-anywhere access to data and real-time performance management.

The project, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2007, encompasses site survey, system design, engineering, supply, installation and commissioning of an integrated three-tier, SCADA system.

“The oil and gas industry spans a long process chain from exploration and drilling to consumer delivery - making it critical for companies to plan, manage and optimise their assets. ABB’s integrated automation solution will enable ONGC to monitor, control and manage vital data across locations and enable faster decision making. It will also help speed up emergency response and deliver enhanced efficiency, energy savings, quality and productivity improvements”, Ravi Uppal, vice chairman & managing director of ABB India, said.

Source: Business Standard

Bentek Systems, a pioneer in wireless I/O and telemetry systems, is continuing its work in the wireless I/O revolution. Bentek’s new SCADALink SMX900 radio is DIN rail mounted, and is ideal for transmitting both analog and digital signals. It utilizes FHSS (frequency hopping spread spectrum) technology, and allows bi-directional communications for point to multi-point wireless I/O systems.

The transceivers are powered by 12-30V DC and are quick and easy to install. I/O modules come in 4-point analog, 8-point discrete (digital) and combinations of both. With MODBUS and Allen Bradley DF1 addressable I/O, built in RS232/RS 485/RS-422 ports and support for up to 254 slaves, the user can easily set up complex SCADA systems.

The SMX900 can be configured as a Master, Slave or Repeater and is capable of transmitting signals up to 20 miles. It is Class 1 Division 2 certified and has an operating temperature range of –40 to + 85 Degrees Celsius.

More info: Bentek Systems

Simple, flexible and economical, Winlog is a real time SCADA/HMI software package for the supervision of industrial and civil plants. An integrated development environment provides different tools (Gate Builder, Template Builder, Code Builder) for the easy and intuitive creation of multilanguage applications. Communication with most available devices (PLCs, controllers, motor drives, data acquisition modules, etc.) is ensured by an extensive library of drivers; special functions can be developed and integrated directly by the user; export functions allow recorded data to be accessed from main software packages (Excel, Access, etc.). With Winlog it is possible to set up a distributed architecture based on Intranet/Internet and to use the fix and mobile (GSM) telephone network to communicate with remote devices or to send SMS.

More info at Sielco Sistemi web site.

In “Secure the US against bloodless terrorist warfare” the Christian Science Monitor talks about the effects of a “detonation of a nuclear weapon at high altitude, causing an electromagnetic pulse (EMP)“:

Systems running on large computer banks like Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) modules that manage electricity grids, power stations, air traffic control, electronic banking, railway directional indicators, dam doors, and water treatment plants, among others, would be severely affected. Any computer or microprocessor within a 200-mile radius of the blast would probably be destroyed, along with all its data. Cars and trucks wouldn’t start, making it impossible to move food, fuel, and other vital necessities of everyday life. Backup generators would be rendered useless, affecting primary care facilities like hospitals and clinics.

EMP effects would be magnified by the codependencies in our SCADA systems - power loss affecting telecommunications systems upon which banking transactions rely, for example. Vulnerability to these cascading effects was seen during hurricanes Katrina and Rita late last year where a major American city came to a virtual standstill. As we are now seeing, it would take years to rebuild.

Source and more info: The Christian Science Monitor

The President’s Critical Infrastructure Protection Board and the Office of Energy Assurance published a booklet titled “21 Steps to Improve Cyber Security of SCADA Networks“.

Get it in PDF format here.

Vector Graphics ActiveX is professional graphics solution for creating business and technical drawings and the most powerful for today (Freeware for noncommercial use). It provides 500+ methods, properties and events and is fully object oriented. Developers get full control of all objects at run time and can process graphic documents, analyze and visualize any kind of realistic processes, create interactive GIS-, CAD- and SCADA systems.

Top features of the ActiveX:

• Easy in use;
• Free for noncommercial use;
• Hardware acceleration;
• High-speed or high-quality rendering with bicubic filtration and antialiasing;
• Export drawings to BMP, JPG, PNG and EMF formats;
• Ability to establish connections between shapes and external data;
• Changing all attributes in design and runtime modes;
• All mouse events, mouse wheel, scroll and zoom;
• Bezier curves and Cardinal splines;
• Shapes with holes;
• Filling shapes with color, gradient, sketch or texture;
• Transparent contours and brushes;
• Patterns and shapes libraries;
• Flexible Printing.

Vector Graphics ActiveX helps you to save development time, increase productivity and extend possibilities of your applications.

More info and download: Script-Debugger

A system with a primary function of collecting information (data) and providing an interface to control specific equipment such as Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs), Remote Terminal Units (RTUs) etc.

CitectSCADA is a fully integrated Human Machine Interface (HMI) / SCADA solution that enables customers to increase return on assets by delivering a highly scalable, reliable control and monitoring system. Easy-to-use configuration tools and powerful features enable you to quickly develop and deploy solutions for any size application.

CitectSCADA V6.0 has a number of major new exciting features, including: an innovative tool for analyzing alarms and trends; zero-maintenance Web Client; support for true color; hundreds of new symbols; longer tag names, time-stamped data and custom alarm filters.

Source and more info: Citect

A blog about News and opinion on best practices, future trends, security standards, vendor offerings, and all other issues related to SCADA security. By Dale Peterson.

Read it here.