News & Knowledge

We’re your source for automation news. Keep up with the latest industry updates and E Tech employee spotlights, as well as tips and guidance from our manufacturing experts.  

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Understanding the S88 Standard: A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners

Authored By: Jakub Mocny, PhD, Group Engineering Manager In the world of industrial automation, the S88 standard, also known as ANSI/ISA-88 or Batch Control, plays a vital role in providing a universal framework for the control and automation of manufacturing processes. Developed by the International Society of Automation (ISA), the S88 standard offers a structured approach to designing, implementing, and maintaining batch processes. For those who are new to the S88 standard and want to delve into its applications across various industries, this article serves as a guide to understanding the fundamentals of the S88 standard, its benefits, and an overview of its working principles. What is the S88 Standard for Batch Control Systems? The S88 standard provides a comprehensive and modular methodology for designing, implementing and managing batch processes in industries such as: The S88 standard establishes a consistent and structured approach to defining the equipment, control strategies, procedural operations, and information systems required for effective batch process automation. Within the ISA-95 framework, batch systems adhering to S88 standard are identified as Level 2 systems. They are subordinate to Level 3 MES systems and achieve process control through interaction automation and control systems (ISA-95 Level 1 and 2).  In practical terms, a batch control application executes recipes. A recipe is a sequence of operations containing multiple recipe phases. Recipe phases interface with the physical plant equipment through equipment phases typically executed by PLCs. S88 sets guidelines for best practices that help industries self-regulate quality and consistency. Why S88 Matters for Modern Life Sciences In today’s life sciences environment, process consistency, regulatory compliance, and data integrity are more important than ever. The S88 standard provides a structured framework that ensures batch processes are repeatable, transparent, and traceable — critical factors for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and related industries. By standardizing procedures and … Continued

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Edge Series: Edge Computing Applications Webcast

Applications Engineering Manager, Jeff Allen, recently co-presented a webcast for Control Engineering covering how edge computing can be used for mission-critical, high-reliability automation and control applications. Applications demonstrate how edge computing can be used for mission-critical, high-reliability automation and control applications. See how system integrators have applied edge computing and see how it integrates in automation and control applications. Challenges and benefits will be discussed. Learning objectives: Why Edge Computing Matters for Manufacturers Edge computing brings data processing closer to the source of production, reducing latency, improving real-time decision-making, and enhancing the overall reliability of production systems. Manufacturers using edge solutions can: Integrating Edge Computing with Existing Automation Systems For manufacturers already operating advanced automation systems, edge computing can complement existing architectures without requiring a full overhaul by: Presented By:Jeffrey Allen, Applications Engineering Manager, E Tech GroupNate Kay, P.E., Control Systems Engineer, MartinCSI Moderated By:David Miller, Content Manager, CFE Media and Technology Click here to view the webcast.

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Shallow Labor Pool Forces Industrial Technology Change

This article was written by an engineering technician at E Tech Group, Bradly Wright, and originally appeared in Automation World.  Click here to view the original post. To maintain uptime, ensure compliance, and maximize the use of skilled labor, more facilities than ever are centralizing production control and monitoring. There’s a reason more and more facilities are changing the way their production floor has been operating for decades: the current labor shortage. When production floors were fully staffed, it wasn’t uncommon to find a worker stationed at each point in the manufacturing process, monitoring the HMI (human-machine interface) as the PLC (programmable logic controller) repeated its programmed task, ensuring consistency and efficiency at each step. PLCs were designed to function optimally by executing one line of code at a time—with nothing else running in the background. This was a completely viable solution when manpower was available to individually monitor each process. Even now, the PLC remains in wide use because of its flexibility and ease of programming. It’s still incredibly reliable, allowing the operator to make on-the-fly adjustments thanks to real-time information transmission. The big difference now is in how PLCs are being used, as more manufacturers are forced to implement a control system that will help centralize production control and monitoring. The use of a distributed control system (DCS) allows a central point of monitoring and operation that coordinates and supervises an entire plant, completing a variety of processes, and can be scaled facility-wide. A PLC, however, is isolated in its control and monitoring. Because the DCS allows full visibility and control into a plant’s production, it helps make it possible to run at full capacity with a limited staff. Impact of Labor Shortages on Industrial Technology The shrinking skilled labor pool is accelerating the adoption of industrial automation and … Continued

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Utilizing the AVEVA PI System for a Large Pharmaceutical Client

The generation, maintenance and use of historical process data is always an important part of the discussion in the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector where transparency and traceability throughout the automation system are key. It affects things such as regulatory compliance, process optimization, business strategy, and overall viability in the marketplace.  To enhance this aspect of their business, one of our clients chose to leverage the AVEVA PI Software Suite in their control system retrofit. The AVEVA PI system is one of the leaders in the industry and provides various architectures and licensing options to accommodate customers’ needs.  The AVEVA PI is a product of industry collaboration and incorporates OSISoft’s data management prowess with AVEVA’s engineering expertise. Utilizing this powerful automation platform enhances process visibility, decision-making, and optimization throughout the industrial value chain. Why Historical Data Matters in Pharma Manufacturing In pharmaceutical manufacturing, historical process data is essential. Regulatory agencies like the FDA and EMA require complete transparency and traceability across production systems, meaning every batch record, sensor reading, and deviation must be captured and stored securely. Beyond compliance, access to reliable data helps manufacturers optimize processes, reduce downtime, and make informed business decisions. Historical data also plays a key role in quality assurance, allowing teams to identify trends, investigate root causes, and maintain consistent product integrity. Without robust data management, achieving regulatory approval and maintaining competitiveness in the life sciences sector becomes far more challenging. Key Functionality of the AVEVA PI System The functionality of the AVEVA PI system can be broken down into the following subsections: collecting data, storing data, contextualizing data, and visualizing/accessing data. Redundant Data Collection Collecting data is the process of taking data from a source and sending it along the pipeline to be stored. In this use case, the data sources are PLCs and relational databases. … Continued

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Using the OSI PI System for a Large Pharmaceutical Customer

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Automated Warehousing Solutions Streamline Inventory, Orders, Efficiency, & More

Efficient warehouses are the backbone of the modern supply chain, and custom warehouse automation strategies are transforming how businesses track data, fulfill orders, manage inventory, and a host of other operational processes. Manual processes – especially in counting, sorting, and other tedious, repetitive tasks – are error-prone, and some inventory tasks are also physically taxing, if not dangerous. Automation technology like warehouse management systems, robotics automation, and material handling solutions can eliminate these bottlenecks and costly errors and free up your labor force for more complex, critical tasks. Companies gain real-time inventory and fulfillment tracking, automated fetch-and-retrieve systems, and access to continuous operational data, unlocking the door to data-driven decision making.