Batch production continues to serve as a foundational operating model in a wide range of industries, including chemical processing, pharmaceutical manufacturing, food and beverage operations, cosmetics and specialty material production. In these environments, operators increasingly expect batch control software that offers broad adaptability and works seamlessly within the distributed control system (DCS) responsible for coordinating and automating plant activities.
Now, with the release of more advanced software for this purpose, the goal of setting up and simplifying recipe development without complex programming is closer at hand.
In batch processing, products are created by following a repeatable, recipe-like series of operations. Materials are measured and added in precise amounts, processing conditions such as temperature, mixing speed, pressure and timing are controlled according to established specifications, and the product moves through stages in a fixed order until the batch is finished.
After each batch is complete, the equipment can be cleaned, adjusted or reconfigured before starting the next batch, making the method well suited for products that require formulation changes, strict consistency or careful handling. It should be noted that even continuous processes may employ batch operations upstream or downstream for purification, blending or finishing.
One of the challenges with batch processing, is the communication and coordination between Units, a task that state-based control can only resolve with significant programming.
Many batch processes consist of a series of Units where the batch material is introduced in the first Unit and passed from Unit to Unit. Each Unit is designed to process the material in some way, for example, heating, cooling, adding other materials, blending, separating, etc.
Batch processing software is designed to simplify the collection of Unit tasks without requiring interactive, real-time user input. The work is organized into predefined batches, scheduled according to resource availability or priority rules, and run automatically. The software coordinates data movement, program execution and error handling so that large volumes of repetitive or complex operations can occur reliably and efficiently.
According to Mike Davis, senior manager, Product Management at Valmet, flexible batch control software was initially conceived to reduce the amount of programming required by recipe developers, in accordance with the ANSI/ISA88 standards first published in 1995 by the International Society of Automation.
The goal of S88-based software is to allow recipe creators or operators to modify recipe parameters, procedures, production schedules, batch start rules, equipment utilization or to scale batch amounts more easily and at any time.
“In the past, if you were responsible for creating recipes in a plant, you had to also know how to program the control system,” explains Davis. “With flexible batch software, you don’t need to be able to program a DCS.”
The only programming required is completed ahead of time and only for the lowest level of control tasks, such as opening and closing valves, increasing temperature, pH control, adding materials, etc. These fundamental building blocks are called Phases in S88.
A recipe developer can then group the Phases using a drag-and-drop interface to create an Operation. The order of Operations for a processing unit is defined in the Unit Recipe. All the Unit Recipes required to make the batch from start to finish are grouped in the Master Recipe.
Given the importance of batch processing software for many of its existing customers, Valmet has released Valmet FlexBatch 8, the latest version of its advanced batch automation and recipe management software.
The software enables operators to manage batch processes using intuitive drag-and-drop tools, without the need for programming.
“The new release, with the possibility to integrate with Valmet DNAe, is a significant step forward in expanding our automation portfolio in the process industries, especially in the chemical industry where our customers need to produce batches with consistent quality, quickly and cost-efficiently with secured traceability,” says Tiina Stenvik, director, Process Industries, Energy & Process Systems Automation, Valmet.
FlexBatch 8.0 retains many familiar features including the ability to draw up procedure charts using a drag-and-drop interface to establish the sequence of Phases and Operations that make up the Unit Recipes, which combined make up the Master Recipe.
“New recipes and even modifications require no programming. Operators can force transitions (with sufficient privileges), schedule batches and equipment allocations, and watch live recipe procedure charts for greater awareness of batch execution,” says Stenvik.
“By coordinating data flow, resource allocation, and task sequencing automatically, these platforms help ensure that complex, multistage processes run reliably and consistently,” says Davis. “The result is a more flexible, efficient, and user-friendly approach to batch processing that frees recipe developers from the burdens of complex programming and supports continuous improvement in both productivity and product quality.”
