The OPC Foundation has announced that MDIS has selected OPC UA as the Master Control System (MCS) and Distributed Control System (DCS) protocol standard. The selection of OPC UA will provide secure and reliable data transfer for offshore oil and gas production.
MDIS is an international joint industry network group whose main mission is to optimize the MCS and DCS interface of topside systems in oil and gas production. MDIS defines and establishes a standard for the interface, in order to simplify implementation of data communication links, whilst increasing the data quality.
To streamline the Master Control System (MCS) and Distributed Control System (DCS) communications on topside systems, a standard interface needs to be developed, including a standard communication protocol. The MCS-DCS Interface Standardization (MDIS) network has formed with involvement from key industry players in the subsea controls area, topsides specialists and oil companies. Standardization of the interface simplifies implementation of data communication links, whilst increasing the data quality. Using the network group as a collaborative resource to the industry, it is able to facilitate information exchange in furthering development of the standard MCS-DCS interface.
“In looking for the MDIS protocol, the network considered a number of potential candidates for validation testing. The MDIS community has selected the OPC UA protocol for further investigation due to its flexibility and performance over a broad number of criteria such as scalability, reliability, object orientation and the amount of anticipated time spent in programming / design,” states the MDIS steering committee.
“The OPC Foundation is excited to collaborate with MDIS in providing the MCS-DCS interface standard,” said Tom Burke, OPC Foundation President and Executive Director. "OPC UA will allow secure and reliable information exchange for the topside systems within offshore production.”
MDIS selected OPC UA based on several requirements. Here is a sample of the requirements:
- MDIS Vendor Support
- Communication Integrity
- Robust Test Tool
- Communication Integrity
- Reliable Implementation
- Redundancy and Robustness
- Independent Organization Support
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