Design information for most Process Plant applications is locked in proprietary formats only accessible to the systems in which the data was created. This situation does not meet the business model of today where companies are working globally with many different systems.
Information created in any system is generally required in many other systems. This applies to information through all phases of the plant lifecycle and between collaborating companies. The requirement is integration or interoperability of information.
A recent Study by NIST estimates the cost to the US Capital projects industry of NOT being able to do this is $15.8 billion per year.
The fixed models used by STEP were shown not to work for process plant information due to the complexity, variability between different projects and types of plant.
ISO 15926 took a different approach in that it defined a flexible core model and the classes supported by this model are a separate ever changing library - Reference Data Library (RDL). The flexible data model is the key as it allows new classes to be handled with ease and the RDL means that there is a common definition of what any given class is.
XMpLant is technology that implements ISO 15926 - it uses a flexible data model and the classes of the standard (which now incorporates the geometry from ISO 10303-42) to deliver a neutral process plant model in XML. . There are interfaces to and from the major process plant applications enabling exchange and integration of information across these applications. The full geometric definition of plant models is included as part of the neutral model in XML, enabling its use for long term archive.
XMpLant is in effect a generic converter for intelligent process plant information mapping information from one proprietary system to the neutral model and then back out to another. It can thus convert information between any of the systems for which there are interfaces. Each interface is configured externally using XML files which drive a powerful mapping subsystem. XMpLant can be deployed as an integration engine between systems or to send and receive information as XML files with the classes of ISO 15926 .
XMpLant Development Environment (XMpDE) is the core technology which contains powerful manipulation functions and a comprehensive mapping engine to facilitate configuration of each interface and greatly speeds up the development of new interfaces.
XMpDE is an efficient and powerful development environment that can be used to develop new applications that are independent of any system, or need to operate across several systems. It also facilitates building new interfaces.
Noumenon Consulting Limited specialises in assisting companies and application vendors in the integration of systems to achieve business objectives.
So whether you need the XMpLant integration / conversion product, XMpDE for your own development or consultancy to help determine your integration needs - contact Noumenon Consulting Limited.