Eskom’s Plant Data System (PDS)
When Eskom faced the challenge of increasing its reliability and business performance efficiency, it identified two key imperatives that required execution and delivery - making real-time plant data accessible and making it available in a standardised, useable format to better understand the behaviour and status of its complex grid and generation facilities on a national level.
They embarked on an initiative known as the Plant Data System or PDS and invited proposals from the market for its development and implementation. As a result, the Wonderware solution was deemed to offer the best cost to functional performance ratio. Additionally, the ArchestrA framework was ideally suited to the rapid deployment of a standardised solution across all the power stations and web based viewing enabled a cost effective method of managing a large number of simultaneous users.
Eskom selected ArchestrA-certified system integrator, Bytes Systems Integration, because of our impeccable track record in the implementation of large and small PDS-like applications - on-time and within budget. Also in our favour was our existing knowledge of Eskom solutions and our numerous awards for the successful accomplishment of integrated ArchestrA-based Wonderware solutions.
For Eskom, the more effective use of plant information has ultimately resulted in more refined performance indicators, better optimisation of plant and better allocation of resources. Numerous applications are now using the PDS data and all the information is available at all times to local and remote users.
Eskom and Bytes Systems Integration won The Best Enterprise Manufacturing Intelligence (EM) Application Award for the Eskom PDS project which provides an unprecedented insight into the utility company’s geographically-distributed network performance and behaviour. The innovative use of System Platform on a wide area network and the collation of real-time, nationally-dispersed information resulted in accessible data that can be used to improve the bottom line.
PDS as a solution is a business enabler that improves the ability of people to conduct their business more effectively and achieve greater efficiencies.
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