Glossary · System coordination, integration and orchestration
Plant controller
Also known as: Line controller, Plant control system
German: Anlagensteuerung
In industrial automation, a plant controller is the control system at plant or line level that coordinates several machines, units or process cells, for example by distributing orders and recipes, synchronizing modes and states, and collecting data for higher-level systems.
- System integration
In one sentence
A plant controller coordinates machines or units at plant or line level, distributing orders and recipes and synchronizing modes and states.
Example
The plant controller of a dairy starts cleaning-in-place for a tank only after the filling machine connected to it has reported that production is finished.
How it applies
- Engineering: In ISA-88 terms, plant control often corresponds to process cell or area control; in ISA-95 terms, it sits at level 2 below the MES. Define which decisions the plant controller makes and which remain with each Machine controller.
- Commissioning: Commission the plant controller after the machines work standalone, and test failure cases such as a machine that does not respond.
- Operation: Operators typically work with a central SCADA or DCS operator station connected to the plant controller.
- Documentation: Plant-level documentation describes the overall operating concept, the start-up and shutdown sequences of the plant and the interaction of machines. Machine manuals from different suppliers need a plant-level document that ties them together.
Plant controller vs. supervisory controller
The terms overlap. "Plant controller" names the level (plant or line). "Supervisory controller" names the role: a controller that sets targets or commands for subordinate controllers rather than driving actuators directly. A plant controller usually acts as a supervisory controller.