Layer three: Information systems
Information systems help users get more value out of control systems by extracting intelligence from processes. They provide centralized data collection and storage, spanning across many areas of operation. If a company is considering adding information systems to its process, it typically starts with a process historian, which aggregates process data. A historian provides the ability to track processes over time, comparing different conditions and their influences on every process as well as productivity and quality. Historians allow users to trace process upsets to their sources and monitor them in the future. Beyond a historian, there are several options for expansion that enable correlation between process data, product quality, and maintenance.