OPC Member Press Releases

SIGIT Fuels Electronic Flow Measurement With Kepware
Press Release from: Kepware Technologies, on April 24, 2013
RELEASE: Portland, ME, April 24, 2013 — Kepware Technologies, a software development company focused on communications for automation, announced today that SIGIT Automation Inc. is solving its connectivity and communications challenges with Kepware's communications platform. KEPServerEX® will serve as the backbone to SIGIT's e-SCADA™ solution, delivering historical Electronic Flow Measurement (EFM) data to its custody transfer accounting systems. View the complete case study here. SIGIT is a privately-owned Controls and Automation company founded in 2004 that serves the Petroleum and Energy industries. They provide a complete range of electrical, instrumentation, and regulatory services, including electrical design and drafting, instrumentation and programming, project management, and field services. As a vendor-neutral company, SIGIT delivers solutions that are designed to meet customer-specific automation and control challenges. "Our business is all about supporting customers with process-oriented methods for managing and measuring their complex petroleum, natural gas, and pipeline installation processes," said Sandy Munro, the General Manager of SIGIT Automation. "As a dedicated services company, we're helping customers manage a multitude of projects at one time. This means advanced communications across all our projects." SIGIT initially solved its database and communication challenges through an array of different in-house systems. Their inconsistencies created several critical problems: they did not comply with Canadian government regulations, they were unable to create secure connections, and they required a highly manual process for mapping and manipulating key drivers and connections. To make matters more complicated, SIGIT's customers use flow computers, Remote Terminal Units (RTU), and devices from various manufacturers, which increases the number of applications that users had to learn, manage, and maintain. "There were simply too many moving parts," stated Munro. "With little or no real-time visibility, we felt customer projects were at risk. Kepware gives us the data access and management necessary to ensure the successful completion of our customers' challenging petroleum and energy deployments. This creates levels of efficiency and cost-savings we didn't think possible," he concluded. ... [Full Story]

Kepware Technologies Announces Partnership with EnerSys Corporation
Press Release from: Kepware Technologies, on April 10, 2013
RELEASE: Portland, ME, April 10, 2013 — Kepware Technologies, a software development company focused on communications for automation, announced today that it has established a partnership with Houston, Texas–based EnerSys Corporation (EnerSys). Under the agreement, EnerSys is approved to promote, distribute, and sell licenses for Kepware's flagship product KEPServerEX® v5 Communications Platform, including all Electronic Flow Measurement (EFM) related products, as well as its LinkMaster and RedundancyMaster® solutions. "EnerSys has deep domain expertise in the Oil and Gas sector, particularly in pipeline management, making them an ideal partner for us as we continue to develop products for this key market," said Tony Paine, president and CEO of Kepware Technologies. "In field operations, custody transfer management, supervisory control and data acquisition, information systems, and systems development, EnerSys has a record of innovation and success that makes them a go—to source for Energy companies." Kepware established the partnership with EnerSys to better meet the growing demand for enterprise platform solutions for industrial automation applications in the Oil and Gas industry. With its proven record of helping energy companies establish centralized communications to connect disparate assets and devices, EnerSys is a logical choice to help Kepware meet this need. "By focusing on specific business operations, we understand the unique requirements of major energy companies and can determine and implement the best possible solutions for their operations," said Russel Treat, president of EnerSys. "Kepware offers flexible, scalable, and reliable connectivity solutions to help companies achieve greater efficiencies and profitability. Partnering with a technology leader like Kepware adds significant capability for EnerSys as we continue to serve our customers." ... [Full Story]

Wibu-Systems supports the standardization committee through its membership to the OPC Foundation
Press Release from: Wibu-Systems AG, on April 9, 2013
In December 2012 Wibu-Systems AG joined the OPC Foundation as a new active member. This is part of the strategy meant at delivering added value to the automation industry through Wibu-Systems security solutions. The unique values that Wibu-Systems bring to the table are: product and IP protection, protection from tampering and reverse-engineering, as well as business enablement and logistic simplification by means of flexible licensing models based on function driven software modules. ... [Full Story]

Kepware's EFM Exporter Software Gains Third-Party Validation
Press Release from: Kepware Technologies, on April 2, 2013
RELEASE: Portland, ME, April 2, 2013 — Kepware Technologies, a software development company focused on communications for automation, announced today that its flagship product KEPServerEX v5 has passed the functionality testing conducted in March by an internationally recognized, independent research laboratory located in San Antonio, TX. The testing focused on KEPServerEX v5's EFM Exporter functionality, which collects gas measurement custody transfer data from industry-leading flow computers and exports it into the specialized formats used in common industry measurement accounting solutions. "The accuracy of measurement data collection is critical in the Oil and Gas Industry because it is tied to major revenue for multiple stakeholders," said Tony Paine, president and CEO of Kepware Technologies. "Passing this test is a significant milestone for us, as it provides relevant Third-Party validation of applicability of KEPServerEX for critical custody transfer natural gas applications." The Oil and Gas Industry uses the Electronic Flow Measurement (EFM) data calculated and stored in flow computers as the commercial basis for the measurement of volume and energy: EFM data is the foundation of its financial transactions. KEPServerEX's EFM Exporter polls the flow computers for EFM data on user-defined intervals, and collects transactions involving the transportation of physical substances from one operator to another through a scheduled polling mechanism. It then prepares export files formatted for direct import into common industry accounting solutions or data editing software platforms. "KEPServerEX v5 is the next generation of Kepware's communications technology, and represents more than a decade of development," said Steve Sponseller, Product Manager at Kepware Technologies. "Independent laboratory validation confirms that KEPServerEX's EFM solution is suitable for the collection of EFM data and the delivery of that data to office measurement accounting systems. (In accordance with the requirements expressed in the American Petroleum Institute's Manual of Petroleum Measurement Standards; specifically, Chapter 21 - Flow Measurement using Electronic Flow Computers, Section 1 Electronic Gas Flow Measurement [API MPMS 21.1]). It also demonstrates Kepware's commitment to support the Energy Industry as it moves forward." ... [Full Story]

OPCFailover 2-2 released
Press Release from: Jemmac Software Ltd., on March 27, 2013
OPCFailover is a simple and effective way of increasing the availability of data to your business benefiting OPC Client applications. OPCFailover delivers redundancy without proxy servers, avoiding the complexities they incur. ... [Full Story]

Kepware Expands KEPServerEX Interoperability
Press Release from: Kepware Technologies, on March 5, 2013
RELEASE: Portland, ME, March 05, 2013 — Kepware Technologies, a software development company focused on communications for automation, today announced new enhancements to its KEPServerEX platform, offering new solutions to simplify communications management. Today's announcement underscores the company's commitment in listening to customers' needs and developing relevant solutions for a variety of the vertical markets it serves. The new KEPServerEX 5.11 enhancements include support for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012, in addition to the following new products and features: IEC 61850 MMS Client Driver: This new driver utilizes the Manufacturing Messaging Specification (MMS) of the IEC 61850 specification for sending data from substation automation devices (like switches and circuit breakers) to SCADA and HMI applications for analysis and reporting. OPC XML-DA Client Driver: This new driver strengthens Kepware's OPC Connectivity Suite offering, and enables users to connect to any OPC XML-DA Server. The driver simplifies connectivity to other Third-Party servers and can circumvent proprietary protocols, thus enabling KEPServerEX to easily aggregate OPC data. EFM Simulator: This new feature is an easy-to-use, Flow Computer simulator within the EFM Suite. The driver simulates EFM historical data in order to confirm that the EFM Exporter Plug-In configuration works properly. The EFM Simulator saves users time and money by eliminating the need to physically connect to flow computers when evaluating the server and exporter configurations. "I'm excited to begin using Kepware's new IEC 61850 driver for the solar projects we will be working on in 2013 due to the ease of use and robustness I've come to expect with Kepware products," said Xavier Vallespi, the Technical Information Officer of Green Power Monitor. KEPServerEX is a flexible and scalable platform that connects, manages, monitors, and controls diverse automation devices and software applications. Kepware continues to evolve the platform's communication abilities to help companies improve their operations and decision-making by ensuring accurate and reliable data. "Kepware realizes that learning new communication protocols or spending time to understand new applications is inconvenient and often slows business processes," said Tony Paine, President and CEO of Kepware Technologies. "To address this situation, we have developed a single server communications platform that enables customers to simply add multiple drivers as needed. The KEPServerEX 5.11 enhancements expand our offering for the quickly-growing Smart Grid and wind farm markets, as well as help simplify the communication needs of Kepware's existing customers." ... [Full Story]

Kepware Takes Home "Engineers' Choice Award" from Control Engineering
Press Release from: Kepware Technologies, on February 20, 2013
RELEASE: Portland, ME, February 20, 2013 — Kepware Technologies, a software development company focused on communications for automation, today announced the company has secured another significant product award for its flagship KEPServerEX® solution. The centralized communications platform received high marks from the editors and readers of Control Engineering Magazine, elevating it to "Engineers' Choice" among control, instrumentation, and automation products. This is the fourth consecutive year KEPServerEX has been recognized with this award. Kepware was singled out for the honor across more than 100 product nominations from 65 companies. Readers voted on winners based on those products deemed exceptional, due to technological advancement, service to the industry and market impact. "It is innovative solutions like those from Kepware that drive all manufacturing and other control engineering applications to become more efficient. The continued investment in innovative, market leading products like KEPServerEX will help customers solve their most pressing challenges in automation, control, and instrumentation," said Mark T. Hoske, Control Engineering Content Manager. KEPServerEX is a highly flexible and scalable solution for connecting, managing, monitoring, and controlling diverse automation devices and software applications. Its industry-proven platform manages critical automation, facility, and infrastructure data. Providing improved operations and decision-making, the solution is managed through a robust platform supporting a wide array of open standards. "In order to operate an efficient business, industrial companies must address the complexities of automation and communications," said Tony Paine, President and CEO of Kepware Technologies. "Time and again, KEPServerEX has proven highly effective in overcoming issues associated with connecting and managing diverse industrial automation devices. We're pleased the readers of Control Engineering have chosen to honor us for these achievements." Part of CFE Media, Control Engineering awarded products in 30 categories across control, instrumentation, and automation introduced in 2012. This is the 26th year of product recognition for the publication, with all winners being chosen by print and online subscribers. Winners will be formally announced in the February 2013 issue of Control Engineering Magazine. ... [Full Story]