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Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference: GR/R64605/01
Title: Procedural control toolbox
Principal Investigator: Macchietto, Professor S
Other Investigators:
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:
ABB Group ABB Power Grids UK Limited Eli Lilly and Company
GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) Health and Safety Executive Imperial College London
Department: Process Systems Engineering (IRC)
Organisation: Imperial College London
Scheme: LINK
Starts: 01 April 2003 Ends: 30 September 2006 Value (£): 554,289
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:
Design of Process systems
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:
Manufacturing Chemicals
Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
Related Grants:
Panel History:  
Summary on Grant Application Form
A preliminary assessment project was performed on a typical batch control application, as part of a previous PRESTO (ProcessConcept Studio) project. The results indicated that the use of formal methodologies for control logic synthesis and implementationhave a very large potential in industrial practice. The benefits and performance metrics sought are summarised as follows: a major reduction in the design, Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT), Site Acceptance Testing (SAT) and commissioning ~cle time, of the order of 80-90% with respect to current best practice, which results in: a dramatic improvement in the efficiency of the design-implementation teams and departments within automation and system integration companies, and a major impact on cost effectiveness of sequential automation projects to manufacturing companies a significant improvement in the quality, safety, portability and maintainability of the resulting control codes a competitive advantages for the companies that take up this technology, measured in terms of the ability to quickly reconfigure processes and production systems.The expected beneficiary are automation vendors, system integrators and engineering departments of consulting firms or in-housewithin manufacturing companies. Ultimately, the benefits of safer, faster development, portability across platform, demonstrablecompliance with regulatory bodies, ease of maintenance and change, etc. will accrue to manufacturing companies.Techniques for formal specification and synthesis of sequential controllers are not available to the process industry. There is a clear need for the development of innovative methodologies in close collaboration with industrial partners for a substantial leap forward. The UK has presently a leading edge capability in this area both in academic research and industrial practice, that need to be affirmed and consolidated, with the potential to establish a commanding technological position. The proposed consortium format will significantly leverage both the knowledge and experience, and the R&D investment of individual participating members. The expected result is to aid the transformation of emerging research into leading edge technology for the control of discrete-event activities in a flexible manufacturing environment.
Key Findings
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Potential use in non-academic contexts
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Summary
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Organisation Website: http://www.imperial.ac.uk