The next phase in automation systems integration, the integration of automation
and business systems, began when industrial companies realized there were huge
amounts of data generated from the plant-floor operation contained in the plant
automation systems, which could be of value in running the business more effectively.
To get this data from the DCS to the business systems, DCS companies developed
computer gateway modules (Figure 17-4) designed to connect into a communication
port of one of the more common minicomputers of the day. Since these minicomputers
connected into business networks as part of the business computing infrastructure,
providing process data to these minicomputers made operations data available to the
business computing environment.
DCS suppliers typically developed data storage software for the minicomputer in
order to be able to store the plant data in an effective manner. This software stored
as much process data as possible on the limited bulk storage available with the
minicomputer. To accomplish this, the software in the minicomputer would request
transfer of the collection of process data once every minute, or over some other time
period, and would store the collected data set as a record in a file in the storage
system. The process data might either be collected values from field instruments or