Welcome to Virtual SPACE UG

Digital Enterprise

The online SPACE UG community 

Between the annual SPACE UG User Group events you can tune into online content for industry expertise, insight and best practice. We hope to bring you a more regular selection of user stories and experience, as well as information on the technology roadmap and development of our SIMATIC DCS portfolio.

Register for the Virtual SPACE UG 2021 webinar series

Find out more

Virtual breakout session on demand - watch here!

Upgrading - the benefit of an out of the box approach 

Jeremy Hands of Actemium Automation Teeside and Steve Leech will discuss the considerations that should be taken when embarking on an upgrade, the functionality gains that are available and the benefit of taking the out of the box approach, both now and in the future.    

SIMATIC PCS myExpert – The system health and lifecycle dashboard for your SIMATIC PCS 7 plant

Hear from Steve Leech and Andreas Kappler about the motivation behind the solution, how it is helping SIMATIC PCS 7 users and also to see a demo of the solution in action.

SIMATIC PCS 7 - Securing the plants DCS future

Join Steve Leech and Dave Adams to hear about the SIMATIC PCS 7 support strategy, how the platform has evolved since its introduction to the market and also to see those key advances in the platform focused on added value to your operations, demonstrated live.

Expanding the boundaries of SIMIT using OPC

Join Rob Atkinson in this Virtual SPACE UG breakout session to hear how utilising the SIMIT OPC capability, with a third party model, enabled digital testing and proving of a new process before decisions were made on its ‘real world’ implementation in an agro-chem facility.

Process plant image

Staying Ahead of the Game – AkzoNobel’s world-class plant 

Join Russell Crane and Steve Leech of Siemens Digital Industries as they recap on AkzoNobel’s journey to world class manufacturing, the role that Siemens and the technology played in helping to deliver this and more importantly, what opportunities are available to keep them ahead of the game.

Kemira

Living with an integrated solution - Kemira in operation

Kemira selected a solution based on the SIMATIC PCS 7 DCS, Safety Matrix for their process safety requirements and Siemens digital instrumentation connected via Profibus PA. Join Dennis Chirayath of Kemira and Steve Leech of Siemens Digital Industries as they discuss the background to the project, the selection of the technology and the experiences of operating the plant over the last 3 years.

PCS neo

SIMATIC PCS roadmap session

Hear how SIMATIC PCS 7 and SIMATIC PCS neo will develop over the coming years and what is driving the innovation within our DCS product portfolio. There will be an open Q&A session to provide your feedback.

Profinet

Profinet for the Process Industries

Join Martin Coley, Steve Howes and Dominic Francis of Siemens as they discuss using Profinet to achieve flexible architectures in both standard and redundant network configurations. They will also demonstrate how to get more from smart instruments by connecting to IoT apps utilising 'Plug and Produce' functionality.

 

Chemical plant

Alarm Management

Join Steve Leech and Dave Adams as they give you a quick introduction to the alarm management guidelines, eemua 191 and discuss the role in which PCS 7 plays within the alarm management lifecycle. They will also demonstrate the alarm functionality within the platform and how this has evolved based on the guidelines and also demonstrate how app based solutions can provide a key part of the alarm optimisation process.

SIMATIC PCS neo

SIMATIC PCS neo

Join Dominic Francis and Dave Adams as they discuss and demonstrate how PCS neo tackles the complex environment, and requirements of the process industries. If you would like to know what is required to be future proof and cyber secure, this is an opportunity not to miss

SIMATIC PCS 7 V9.1 and the story so far...

April 2021 saw the release of the latest version of SIMATIC PCS 7, version 9.1. During this virtual breakout session we will give you an overview of the new functionality and opportunities that the release brings, from both a software and hardware perspective. We will also be including some of the things that may have passed you by as we have evolved the platform over the years.

Living with SIMATIC Management Console, a user story

At their site in Liverpool, Seqirus product egg-based influenza vaccines and SIMATIC PCS 7 has been at the heart of their process. After a recent upgrade, Seqirus started to utilise the SIMATIC Management Console to support their facility. This session will give you an overview of their operations, the SIMATIC PCS 7 system they have installed on site and their experiences of SIMATIC Management Console.

SMMC and myExpert - How to manage your plant lifecycle centrally

Building on the Seqirus SIMATIC Management Console (SMMC) experiences, we will take you on a deep dive into its functionality and how it could add value to you as an end user and a Solution Partner. We will also discuss the role of SMMC in app-based solutions like SIMATIC PCS myExpert.

SIMATIC PCS 7, the Synthomer user story

At their site in Stallingborough, Synthomer have been a user of Siemens DCS systems for many years and it plays a key role in the production of aqueous polymers which are used in the coatings, constructions and textiles industries, to name a few. During this virtual breakout session, you will hear how Synthomer have been developing their PCS 7 solution and aligning with the Ready4Future strategy as they plan operations for the long term.

Evolution - what does this mean for you as a SIMATIC PCS 7 user?

Building on the Synthomer session, join Steve Leech and Martin Coley as they take a deep dive into the Ready4Future strategy and what it really means for you as a PCS 7 end user.

It's a matter of choice

Lianhetech chose a combination of Siemens and Actemium Automation Teesside to deliver a major site expansion at their site in Seal Sands. This created an excellent opportunity to look at the options available for the delivery of the SIMATIC PCS 7 hardware and software platform in a different way, taking advantage of technology choices such as Profinet, the Compact Field Unit and Control Module Types. This breakout session will explore these options and the decisions behind the selection and the impact on operations.

SIMATIC PCS 7 journeys

Join two of our longest SIMATIC PCS 7 users in Syngenta and Baker Hughes as they discuss their experiences with the platform, their challenges and their thoughts on the future development.

SIMATIC PCS neo V3.1

With the release of SIMATIC PCS neo V3.1, we will take you through the latest features of the release and look further into the future in terms of what the roadmap has in store.

*You will be redirected to the registration page if you have not signed up to the Virtual SPACE UG 2021 series already. Please register to watch all the webinars.

If you have any future session ideas

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Virtual SPACE UG Tech Talks

We've been running daily tech talks, which are free bitesize webinars around specific technology areas. Here is the best pick from our process control portfolio that we thought might be of interest.

Advance your knoweldge on PCS 7 with best practice from our technical experts and learn how you can get more from your control system.

The Cause and Effect Matrix

Tuesday 12 May

Creation of cause and effect tables for standard process control and safety systems is fairly standard, especially during the early engineering/automation design phase.  We will show you how these can be easily imported into PCS 7 Logic Matrix and Safety Matrix, as well as an introduction into these great toolsets.

 

The Cause & Effect Matrix

Live sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 12 May 

 

 

 

SIMATIC PCS 7 Through the Web 

Thursday 21 May

SIMATIC PCS 7 has had a 'Web' option since V6 nearly 20 years ago, but never has this appeared more relevant than today, in these days of Social Distancing and Working from Home. Join this session to see how easy it is to set up the Web Client, and just how fully featured the user experience has become since its launch in 2003.

 

SIMATIC PCS7 Through the Web

Live sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 21 May

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Performance Monitoring in Process Automation

Tuesday 2 June

Condition Monitoring of equipment or mechanical assets, and Performance Monitoring against key indicators, can be just two different views of the same object. We will demonstrate the functions within Siemens’ DCS library that assist in transparent diagnosis and prediction of problems, in order to contribute to efficient operation of process plants.

 

Performance Monitoring in Process Automation live sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 2 June.

 

 

To 'V' or not to 'V' - Virtualisation with PCS 7

Friday 5 June

In this session we will look at what options are available for using Virtualisation in a PCS 7 solution, and consider the Pros & Cons of Physical vs Virtual.

 

Visualisation with PCS7 sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 5 June.

 

 

Bulk Engineering with Process Automation Accelerator

Monday 8 June

Efficient engineering design for Electrical, Instrumentation and Control equipment in a Process Plant is already available in COMOS. Both COMOS integration layer and PCS 7 Process Automation Accelerator can instantiate all relevant equipment and instruments quickly within a  project.
We will walk you through hardware and software instantiation, and provide an insight into this great toolset.

 

 

Bulk Engineering with Process Automation Accelerator sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 8 June.

 

 

DCS Inventory Management  SIMATIC Management Console (SMMC)

Thursday 11 June

The rate of change in the Process Automation space seems to be constantly accelerating - presenting challenges to users in terms of keeping track of their installed base, how to recognize the need for updates, and ultimately how to efficiently manage the roll out of new software. This sessions looks at how using the SIMATIC Management Console (SMMC) addresses this challenge.

 

DCS Inventory Management  SIMATIC Management Console (SMMC) sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 11 June.

 

 

Supporting High Performance Operations - Advanced Process Graphics

Thursday 18 June

Complex process plants pose an enormous challenge to operating personnel. In most cases today, plant operators are much more than just classic process operators. To fulfill all their tasks reliably the operator requires optimised information presentation. In this talk we will look at the challenges faced by Operators, and show how Advanced Process Graphics, the integrated solution for PCS 7 helps to them to rise to them.

 

Supporting High Performance Operations - Advanced Process Graphics sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 18 June.

 

 

Discover how PCS neo could be right for you with an expert led demonstration  of our control system.

System Access and Usability – Discover how with SIMATIC PCS neo 

Wednesday 27 May

The process industry currently operates in a very complex environment, and the requirements for its control technology are equally as demanding. SIMATIC PCS neo is the intelligent response to this challenge: a fully web-based process control system with object-oriented data management. In this session discover the future of System Access and Usability with SIMATIC PCS neo.

System Access and Usability – Discover how with SIMATIC PCS neo sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 27 May.

 

 

Collaboration and Scalability – Discover how with SIMATIC PCS neo

Friday 29 May

The process industry currently operates in a very complex environment, and the requirements for its control technology are equally as demanding. SIMATIC PCS neo is the intelligent response to this challenge: a fully web-based process control system with object-oriented data management. In this session discover the future of Global Collaboration and System Scalability with SIMATIC PCS neo.

 

Collaboration and Scalability – Discover how with SIMATIC PCS neo sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 29 May.

 

 

Get more value from your instruments by following the latest industry methodolgies and trends explained by our specialists

Remote Asset Management for Greenfield Sites

Monday 11 May

Profinet has arrived for process automation. While Profinet has many benefits for plant automation and simplified connectivity, what are the real advantages with regards to instrumentation connectivity?  We look at a live TIA Portal project with HART and CFU remote IO. See how this data can be modelled in SIMATIC PDM Maintenance Station for use in IOT applications such as SITRANS SAM IQ

Remote Asset Management for Greenfield Sites

Live sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 11 May 

 

 

 

Remote Asset Management for Brownfield Sites 

Monday 18 May

Like life, just because you are old doesn’t mean that you must miss out on the good things. The same is true for your plant. Without realising you have been installing smart instrumentation onto your site with digital communications. HART is vastly underutilised as a digital communication concept, with only 3% of the 80 million devices installed using more than just the 4-20mA signal. We look at remote connectivity with the RTU 3041 with HART IP and look at the new Namur Open Architecture (NOA) designed to connect standard HART devices to the IOT.

 

Remote Asset Management for Brownfield Sites

Live sessions tool place at 10am and 3pm on 18 May

 

 

Profinet - Making your Instruments Smarter 

Wednesday 10 June

Digitalisation starts in the field. Find out how you can get more from your smart instrumentation with a ProfiNet fieldbus using latest integrated HART functions and a decentralised approach enabling “plug and produce” functionality with Profibus PA devices.

 

Profinet - Making your Instruments Smarter sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 10 June.

 

 

DCS Inventory Management SIMATIC Management Console (SMMC)

Thursday 11 June

The rate of change in the Process Automation space seems to be constantly accelerating - presenting challenges to users in terms of keeping track of their installed base, how to recognize the need for updates, and ultimately how to efficiently manage the roll out of new software. This sessions looks at how using the SIMATIC Management Console (SMMC) addresses this challenge.

 

DCS Inventory Management  SIMATIC Management Console (SMMC) sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 11 June.

 

 

Process industries are rapidily digitalising, join our expert team to find out how Siemens can support you on this journey and apply it to your plant.

Intelligent Digital Operations

Wednesday 6 May

We see deep process knowledge in the form of predictive models, that are closely integrated within the automation system, as key to the next wave of digitalisation of operations in the process industries. The economics of such digital twin applications benefit significantly from re-using models that evolve over the plant lifecycle, incorporating knowledge and delivering value at every stage.

Intelligent Data Operations sessions took place on 6 May at 10am and 3pm

 

 

Physics based modelling with SIMIT

Thursday 14 May

Using simulation for Virtual Commissioning and Operator Training with SIMIT is an effective mean to increase the overall project efficiency and profitability, and is therefore a decisive competitive driver. SIMIT provides a large number of physics based models in order to design faster and easier simulations. SIMIT FlowNet and ChemBasic allows the simulation of pipe networks and ensures the plausibility checks of typical physical measurements, e.g. pressure, temperature and flow.

 

Physics-based modelling with SIMIT sessions tool place on 14 May at 10am and 3pm

 

 

Best Practice - Profinet for the Process Industries

Tuesday 19 May

Learn about the flexibility of ProfiNet in both Standard and Redundant configurations and take a look at the tools at our disposal to improve Engineering and operational efficiency. We will also discover a ReThink approach to panel design.

 

Best Practice - Profinet for the Process Industries

Live sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 19 May

 

 

Live Demo of new SITRANS CC240 NOA Device and MindSphere Connectivity

Thursday 28 May

Take a “sneak peek” at the new SITRANS CC240 and Store IQ App from Siemens. See how intelligent HART data from your existing sensor can be connected to MindSphere all using the Namur Open Architecture (NOA).

 

Live Demo of new SITRANS CC240 NOA Device and MindSphere Connectivity sessions were held at 10am and 2pm on 28 May

Automated creation of the SIMIT simulation model

Wednesday 3 June

Automated creation of the SIMIT simulation model with COMOS planning and engineering data This TechTalks shows how to import COMOS planning data into SIMIT and automatically create your simulation model. This Optimized engineering workflow shortens commissioning times for new production lines and enables high-quality products on the market.

 

Automated creation of the SIMIT simulation model sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 3 June.

 

 

COMOS Document & Data Management Solution - A single source of the truth

Monday 15 June

Understand why COMOS DDMS is much more than just a Document storage system and how a "single source of truth" approach towards data can help you to manage your operations and be audit ready, anytime.

 

COMOS Document & Data Management Solution - A single source of truth sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 15 June.

 

 

PlantSight - increase asset performance and reduce operating costs

Tuesday 16 June

PlantSight allows you to make a better decision, enabling you to increase asset performance and reduce operating costs. One single and complete digital twin for everyone and for every discipline: maintenance, reliability, production, and more. Everything in real time, based on consolidated data from multiple sources. We will show you how this is possible.

 

PlantSight - increase asset performance and reduce operating costs sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 16 June.

 

 

Alarm Management for your DCS - The new, intuitive, cloud based solution

Wednesday 17 June

The alarm system plays the critical role of alerting the plant operator of abnormalities that are a risk to profitable production and helping to quickly provide information that help to resolve the problem in time before any other protection systems activate.

How well this quick de-escalation of risks works depends on the quality of the alarm system.

Badly configured alarm systems increase the risk of inefficient production, quality reduction, increased abrasion or even unexpected shutdowns.

Discover Process Event Analytics (PEA), a new, intuitive, cloud based application that monitors and assesses DCS alarm systems to enable gain-oriented and objective performance improvement decisions without the need for manuals or training.

PEA combines advanced data-analytics with the known IEC62682 and EEMUA 191 standards in a cost-efficient MindSphere application, available through a flexible pay-per-use business model to optimize your alarm system. Join this session to find out how.

 

Alarm Management for your DCS - The new, intuitive, cloud based solution sessions took place at 10am and 3pm on 17 June.

 

 

SIMATIC PCS 7 in action

Check out these customer stories to see how Kemira and AkzoNobel are using SIMATIC PCS 7 to improve their plant operations.  

Kemira
AkzoNobel