Operational Excellence - The Control
Performance Monitoring End Game
Executive Summary
The economic challenges of the pulp and paper industry have been covered at length in the industry and technical
journals. Overcapacity, decreasing demand, shrinking prices, rising costs, increased regulatory requirements, tightened
capital availability, reduced staffing and difficulty attracting new talent into the industry. Clearly a challenging business
environment!
To tackle these challenges, many mills have begun implementing programs to drive down operating costs and improve
operating reliability. The limited availability of capital has required new approaches for these improvement efforts.
Leveraging existing electronic technology and existing process and equipment data is proven as a low-cost method to
change the competitive position of many mills. The final goal is to achieve operational excellence and maximize the
profitability of the mill.
Operational Excellence - The Control Performance Monitoring End Game
Table of Contents
Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................................................... 1
The End Game ............................................................................................................................................................................ 4
The Structured Approach .......................................................................................................................................................... 4
The Potential Benefits ................................................................................................................................................................ 5
Additional Benefits ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5
About the Author ........................................................................................................................................................................ 7
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Operational Excellence - The Control Performance Monitoring End Game
Table of Figures
Figure 1:
The Process Control Opportunity ......................................................................................................................... 4
Figure 2:
A Structured Approach to Optimization................................................................................................................ 5
Figure 3:
Three categories of a complete Asset Management programme ....................................................................... 5
Figure 4:
Three pillars of Operational Excellence ................................................................................................................ 6
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Operational Excellence - The Control Performance Monitoring End Game
The End Game
So let’s talk about what the end game would look like if you are successful in your efforts to apply the tools and methods available and
improve your plant performance. As everyone in the industry is aware by now, variation in all its forms has a very negative impact on
operating performance.
The objective is to keep the process running at optimum levels on a continuous basis. However, the sheer number of control loops in a
modern mill, excessive number of operator interventions, faulty instruments and actuators, equipment wear, unplanned downtime and
maintenance, all make the process of reducing variability a daunting task. So how do you get there?
Control Performance Monitoring is one of the new technologies being applied to help achieve this vision of operational excellence
both in terms of reducing process variation and improving reliability. Control Performance Monitor is Powered by Matrikon, which
represents vendor neutrality. This product works with third-party control systems and applications.
So where does this Control Performance Monitoring technology fit into your improvement programs? How do you go about
implementing it to get sustainable value? How much effort is required and what kind of talent is needed? What does it look like when
you’re done? What kind of improvements can you expect? All very relevant questions as you decide where to apply your very limited
resources. We’ll cover the last questions in this paper and address the implementation at another time.
The Structured Approach
A structured approach to these improvements helps by breaking a seemingly daunting effort into smaller, more manageable tasks.
Figure 1 shows a graphical approach to this effort. The first two steps are to identify and then reduce variability. This is where your
process control system comes in. Remember, the role of process control is to:

Reduce variation to run the process safely at its maximum rate and minimum cost.

Produce products that meet customer quality requirements consistently.

Make process changes as quickly as possible to reduce the amount of off-spec product.

Meet or exceed all environmental requirements of the mill.
In order to maximize process performance once variability has been reduced and the process stabilized, the operations team must
make the decision to move setpoints and push the process closer to its constraints. The role of E&I maintenance technicians, process
control engineers, and process engineers is to keep the process running at optimum levels on a continuous basis. However, it is
operations that must decide how the process changes are implemented.
Figure 1: The Process Control Opportunity
The value of a continuous control performance monitoring tool is to reduce the time required by your scarce technical resources to
achieve this objective of optimum performance on a continuous basis, and then to sustain this improved performance for long-term
benefits. It does not eliminate the need for sound engineering knowledge. Rather, the tool brings additional information to plant
personnel, allowing them to make better decisions faster.
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Operational Excellence - The Control Performance Monitoring End Game
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Successful optimization and sustained performance of the base layers (i.e.: instrumentation and regulatory control loops) now
enables you to apply more advanced controls to drive the process to its constraints and sustain that performance at this new higher
level. Figure 2 shows this structured approach to optimization.
Figure 2: A Structured Approach to Optimization
The Potential Benefits
The potential impact of improved process control on mill operating performance has been documented in many studies. A paper written
1
by M.L. Brisk from Monash University reviewed the available benefits. The conclusion was that best-in-class results delivered a 7–15%
reduction in operating costs through the effective application of process control. That is, without the need for capital upgrades or
capacity expansion. And 20% of these benefits can be expected from tackling the most basic control system performance issues. So
then the initial step in capturing this potential is at the instrumentation and regulatory control loop levels - the area served by Control
Performance Monitoring.
Additional Benefits
One additional area of benefit for this approach to instrument and control performance management is in its value in the reliability
arena. By the very nature of the tool, it is a condition‒based maintenance technology.
Figure 3: Three categories of a complete Asset Management program
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Brisk, M.L., Process Control: Potential Benefits and Wasted Opportunities, Invited Keynote Address, 5th Asian Control Conference,
Melbourne, Aust., (July 2004).
Operational Excellence - The Control Performance Monitoring End Game
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With the appropriate development of maintenance work practices, this tool is the first step in moving to a predictive maintenance
regime. Figure 3 shows the traditional components to a total reliability solution. The movement towards condition-based maintenance is
part of most efforts to improve reliability management. Simply put, Control Performance Monitoring is condition-based maintenance for
process control systems. Like all other revenue generating assets, your process control systems need maintenance if they are to meet
their goals and provide sustained financial payback.
Figure 4: Three pillars of Operational Excellence
For more information:
For more information about Control
Performance Monitor, visit our website
www.honeywell.com/ps or contact your
Honeywell account manager.
www.matrikon.com
[email protected]
Honeywell Process Solutions
1250 West Sam Houston Parkway South
Houston, TX 77042
Lovelace Road, Southern Industrial Estate
Bracknell, Berkshire, England RG12 8WD
Shanghai City Centre, 100 Junyi Road
Shanghai, China 20051
www.honeywell.com/ps
WP 725
August 2011
© 2011 Honeywell International Inc.