Frost & Sullivan says SCADA systems competitive with DCSes

Frost & Sullivan阐述SCADA系统与DCS竞争

August 4, 2010 - Frost & Sullivan's World Distributed Control System (DCS) Market report says DCS manufacturers will have to be wary of competition from supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems, which use PC-based software to integrate programmable logic controllers (PLC) on a network to replicate the functions of DCS.

8月4日消息 - Frost＆Sullivan的全球分布式控制系统（DCS）市场报告表示，分布式控制系统制造商将不得不提防来自监视控制与数据采集（SCADA）系统的竞争，后者使用基于PC的软件与可编程逻辑控制器（PLC）在同一网络上整合，复制DCS的功能。

Functions such as redundancy and high fault tolerance, that are conventionally associated with DCS systems, are being increasingly offered by SCADA systems, often at a fraction of the price. While traditional DCS users such as chemical plants and oil refineries are unlikely to switch to SCADA technology, these developments are placing DCS suppliers under pressure to reduce costs.

例如冗余和高容错等传统上与DCS系统相关的功能，正越来越多地通过SCADA系统提供，价格通常仅是DCS的一小部分。而化工厂和炼油厂等传统的DCS用户，也可能切换到SCADA技术，这些事态发展使得DCS供应商置于降低成本的压力之下。

Market participants are looking to offset this issue by incorporating new features in their products. "New DCS increasingly offers added functionality, that clearly differentiates it from other controllers as well as enhances value addition for its end-users," notes the analyst. "Additionally, manufacturers have developed powerful software to allow scheduling, monitoring, device calibration, and maintenance alarms, giving further impetus to the uptake of DCS."

市场参与者正在寻求通过在其产品增加新功能来解决这一问题。 “新的DCS提供额外的功能越来越多，这显然是区别于其他控制器以及提高其对最终用户的附加价值，”分析师表示。 “此外，制造商已经开发强大的软件，实现调度、监控、设备校准和维护警报，从而进一步推动DCS系统的采用。”

The report also says investments in power industry controls will sustain DCS Revenues.

该报告还表示，在电力控制领域的投资将维持DCS系统的营收。

The DCS market is relying heavily on retrofit orders from developed economies, which are looking to replace their outdated and inefficient control systems to sustain the percent of nuclear power generation to the overall power-generation capacity. DCS manufacturers can also look to cash in on the capacity expansion drives in the power industries in India and China. Application of DCS reduces downtime and also aids improved production using optimal resources. These obvious benefits, along with a robust migration strategy, are expected to appeal to even the customers that are unwilling to change their functioning legacy systems.

DCS市场高度依赖于发达经济体的改造订单，这些国家正在考虑更换他们过时、低效率的控制系统，以维持核能发电占其整体发电总量的百分比。DCS系统制造商也可以期望乘机利用印度和中国电力产能扩张带来的机会。DCS的应用有助于降低停机时间，也可以实现资源的最优利用，帮助提高生产。这些显而易见的好处，以及一个强大的迁移策略，预计将吸引甚至是不愿改变其正在运行的老化系统的客户。

Apart from power, the oil and gas industry is also emerging as a lucrative end-user segment, especially with the rise in exploration activities. This industry has invested significantly in automation of processes and DCS being a vital component of automation systems, stands to gain substantially. Global climate-control initiatives, the pressure to meet regulatory requirements, and the moves to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and imported energy have given considerable impetus to the market. "Optimizing decision making processes is the top priority of every company. The company cannot afford a decrease in productivity, due to the flexibility demanded in production," says the analyst of this research service. "A DCS system has adequate features that collect data from the process and disseminate the information in a way that enhances understanding of the productivity metrics."

除了电力，石油和天然气行业也正在成为一个利润丰厚的最终用户领域，特别是伴随着勘探行动的增多。这个行业已经大量投资于过程自动化，而DCS作为自动化系统的重要组成部分，大大受惠。全球气候控制措施、满足监管要求的压力、减少对化石燃料和进口能源依赖的举措已大大推动了这个市场。 “优化决策过程，是每个公司的首要任务。由于生产的灵活性要求，公司无法承担生产力的下降，”该研究服务分析师说。 “一套DCS系统拥有足够的从过程中收集数据的功能，并通过增强对生产力标准理解的方式传播信息。”