Mark J. Nixon – författare

Transform process data into actionable information using proven design principles Data-to-Information Handbook: Building Effective Display Systems for Refining Processes is a practical guide for designing human-machine interfaces that transform raw data into clear, actionable information. Written by experts with extensive experience in control systems and operator performance, the book is grounded in the IEC 63303 and ISA-101 standards and offers comprehensive guidance on creating effective display systems that enhance operator decision-making and reduce uncertainty in continuous process environments. The handbook explains display design principles and examples from continuous process plants across multiple industries. It specifies the information needed at each hierarchy level for major equipment and sections, with detailed representations for refinery processes. The book delivers three key applications: designing new systems, evaluating existing ones, and generating practical improvement concepts. The book also: Combines guidance from IEC 63303 and ISA-101 standards with practical strategies for building effective HMI displays in continuous process environments.Provides a complete hierarchical display system for an entire refinery with examples for different hierarchy levels.Specifies information requirements at each display level for major equipment and sections in process plants.Offers detailed representations of systems and equipment for major refinery processes with practical display examples.Includes proven concepts and techniques for modifying existing graphics to enhance operator perceptibility and confidence.The Data-to-Information Handbook is essential for project engineers, process automation engineers, display designers, and operators working in continuous process industries. Practitioners will learn to design displays that significantly improve operator confidence, reduce uncertainty, and support better decision-making in control rooms across refining, chemical, and related industries.

In this in-depth book, the authors address the concepts and terminology that are needed to work in the field of process control. The material is presented in a straightforward manner that is independent of the control system manufacturer. It is assumed that the reader may not have worked in a process plant environment and may be unfamiliar with the field devices and control systems. Much of the material on the practical aspects of control design and process applications is based on the authors personal experience gained in working with process control systems. Thus, the book is written to act as a guide for engineers, managers, technicians, and others that are new to process control or experienced control engineers who are unfamiliar with multi-loop control techniques. After the traditional single-loop and multi-loop techniques that are most often used in industry are covered, a brief introduction to advanced control techniques is provided. Whether the reader of this book is working as a process control engineer, working in a control group or working in an instrument department, the information will set the solid foundation needed to understand and work with existing control systems or to design new control applications. At various points in the chapters on process characterization and control design, the reader has an opportunity to apply what was learned using web-based workshops. The only items required to access these workshops are a high-speed Internet connection and a web browser. Dynamic process simulations are built into the workshops to give the reader a realistic hands-on experience. Also, one chapter of the book is dedicated to techniques that may be used to create process simulations using tools that are commonly available within most distributed control systems. As control techniques are introduced, simple process examples are used to illustrate how these techniques are applied in industry. The last chapter of the book, on process applications, contains several more complex examples from industry that illustrate how basic control techniques may be combined to meet a variety of application requirements.