ARC consulting agency has released a world DCS market forecast report. The report predicts that the world DCS market will maintain a growth rate of 2.5% from 2002 to 2007, from $9.1 billion in 2003 to $10.3 billion. The main reason why the development speed of DCS is not high is due to the slowing economic growth rate of developed countries such as the United States. In recent years, the growth rate of DCS in China should be over 10%. Today’s DCS has undergone fundamental changes compared to the DCS of ten years ago.
DCS has entered the fourth generation
Affected by the development of information technology (such as network communication technology, computer hardware technology, embedded system technology, fieldbus technology, various configuration software technologies, database technology, etc.), as well as the increasing demand for advanced control and management functions from users, various DCS manufacturers (represented by Honeywell, Emerson, Foxboro, Yokogawa, ABB) have successively improved the technical level of DCS systems and continuously enriched their content. It can be said that a new generation of DCS marked by Honeywell’s latest Experion PKS (Process Knowledge System), Emerson’s PlantWeb (Emerson Process Management), Foxboro’s A2, Yokogawa’s R3 (PRM Plant Resource Management System), and ABB’s Industrial IT system has been formed.
If we consider Foxboro’s I/A Series back then as a milestone in the third generation DCS system, then the latest DCS of the above companies can be classified as the fourth generation. The main symbol of the fourth generation DCS is the two words starting with “I”: Information and Integration.
Technical characteristics of the fourth generation DCS
The architecture of the fourth generation DCS is mainly divided into four layers: on-site instrument layer, control device unit layer, factory (workshop) layer, and enterprise management layer. Generally, DCS manufacturers mainly provide three layers of functionality in addition to the enterprise management layer, while the enterprise management layer connects to third-party management software platforms (ERP, CRM, SCM, etc.) by providing open database interfaces. So, today’s DCS mainly provides all control and management functions at the factory (workshop) level, and integrates information management functions across the entire enterprise.

DCS fully embodies informatization and integration
Information and integration basically describe the changes that are happening in DCS systems today. Users can already collect information and data from the entire factory workshop and process, but they hope that this large amount of data can be reflected in an appropriate way and help the decision-making process, so that users can obtain the truly needed data in a convenient place in a way they understand.
Informationization is reflected in the fact that each DCS system is no longer a control system primarily focused on control functions, but a comprehensive platform system that fully utilizes information management functions. DCS provides the entire information channel from site to equipment, from equipment to workshop, from workshop to factory, and from factory to enterprise group. These information fully reflect comprehensiveness, accuracy, real-time, and systematicity.
Most DCS provides most of the functions of conventional DCS, SCADA (monitoring and data acquisition), and MES (manufacturing execution system) in the past. Unlike ERP, MES gathers relevant hardware or software components in the workshop for managing and optimizing the entire production process from order placement to finished products. It controls and utilizes real-time and accurate manufacturing information to guide, impart, respond to, and report on various activities that occur in the workshop. At the same time, it provides task evaluation information related to production activities to the enterprise’s decision support process. The functions of MES include functional models for workshop resource allocation, process management, quality control, maintenance management, data collection, performance analysis, and material management. The various functional modules related to DCS include Resource Allocation and Status, Dispatching Production Units, Document Control, Data Collection/Acquisition Labor Management, Quality Management, Maintenance Management, Product Tracking, and Performance Analysis.
The integration of DCS is reflected in two aspects: functional integration and product integration. In the past, DCS manufacturers mainly developed independently and provided their own systems. Today’s DCS manufacturers place greater emphasis on system integration and solution capabilities. In addition to retaining the process control functions implemented by traditional DCS, DCS also integrates PLC (programmable logic controller), RTU (acquisition transmitter), FCS, various multi loop regulators, and various intelligent acquisition or control units. In addition, various DCS manufacturers no longer consider developing configuration software or manufacturing various hardware units as core technologies, but instead adopt third-party integration or OEM methods for various components of DCS. For example, most DCS manufacturers no longer develop their own configuration software platforms, but instead switch to using generic configuration software platforms from sister companies (such as Foxboro based on Wonderware software), or software platforms provided by other companies (Emerson based on Intelligence software platforms). In addition, many DCS manufacturers even use OEM methods for I/O components (Foxboro uses EuroThem’s I/O modules, Yokogawa’s R3 uses Fuji Electric’s Processio as the I/O unit foundation, and Honeywell’s PKS system uses Rockwell’s PLC unit as the on-site control station).