DCS Engineering Studies PES has been involved with developing several engineering studies for Utilities to document

the existing system, identify deficiencies that need attention, and develop a plan for the future. At PES we have a wide background in control system design, hardware engineering, procurement, and installation design enabling us to execute projects from project conception through completion. We leverage all of our resources including 3rd party specialists to provide the best overall approach to DCS projects with regard to current technology, NERC/CIP security, flexibility, maintainability, budget and schedule requirements. Our approach to a DCS Engineering Study is to perform field studies where we analyze existing equipment and documentation, develop an I/O count by subsystem and area, prepare a preliminary installation plan, and map out the existing system architecture. Additionally, we interview key plant personnel so that we understand the technical, operational and performance issues that are currently affecting the operation of the plant. Our engineering study will help in developing upgrade and migration strategies, including a detailed risk and cost analysis, hardware and software requirements, assessment of support systems, schedule constraints, for each approach. As part of our deliverables for the engineering study our customers will receive at minimum the following in a detailed report.

Provide an upgrade schedule integrating with the plants planned outage schedule Provide a Cash Flow analysis for the DCS upgrade for use in project approvals Provide a System I/O summary by subsystem and by plant area Provide a product life cycle report for the existing equipment and new equipment which will allow proper decisions for control system approvals. Evaluate various control strategies and provide a recommended solution.