Thomas Brown Controls
Services

Industrial control systems integration

Thomas Brown Controls provides industrial control systems integration, coordinating PLC, SCADA/HMI and electrical-control interfaces with switchgear, power-management functions, industrial networks and third-party equipment.

System integration

One working system, not a collection of separate interfaces.

A control system can contain equipment from several manufacturers and engineering disciplines. TBC defines how those parts exchange status, commands, permissives, alarms and control authority so the complete system can be developed and tested against an agreed operating philosophy.

  • PLC, HMI and SCADA applications
  • Electrical-control interfaces to switchgear, protection and metering
  • Generator and ATS controllers, drives, remote I/O and instrumentation interfaces
  • Packaged plant, OEM controllers and other third-party systems
Control authorityLocal, remote, automatic and supervisory commands given clear ownership and priority.
Signal exchangeStatus, commands, permissives, trips, alarms and diagnostics defined at each interface.
Failure behaviourLoss of equipment, communications or a permissive considered as part of the operating design.
Integration boundaryResponsibilities between TBC, switchgear or panel suppliers, package vendors, contractors and end-user systems made explicit.
PLC, SCADA & communications

Software and networks coordinated around the same equipment states.

PLC logic and operator interfaces are developed around defined equipment behaviour rather than separate tag lists. Communications are treated as functional interfaces, including what data is exchanged and what the system must do when that exchange is unavailable.

  • PLC logic, operating modes, sequences, interlocks and permissives
  • SCADA/HMI commands, alarms, trends, diagnostics and control status
  • Modbus TCP/RTU, Profinet, EtherNet/IP and OPC UA where required
  • Remote I/O, industrial Ethernet and packaged-equipment interfaces
PLC integrationControl logic coordinated with I/O, electrical interfaces, package equipment and supervisory systems.
SCADA integrationOperator control and diagnostic information derived from trustworthy PLC and equipment states.
Third-party integrationOEM and packaged systems incorporated through defined data, control and failure interfaces.
CommunicationsProtocol choice, data mapping and loss-of-comms behaviour treated as part of the functional design.
Electrical & power systems

Switchgear control and power management under defined operating authority.

Electrical control systems often span PLCs, breakers, protection relays, meters, generator controllers and other intelligent devices. TBC coordinates those interfaces so source selection, switching and power-management functions behave consistently from field equipment through to SCADA.

  • Circuit-breaker status, commands, interlocks and electrical permissives
  • Protection relays, power meters and generator-controller interfaces
  • ATS, synchronising, source transitions and restoration sequences
  • Load management, load shedding, PV and BESS integration where required
Switchgear integrationBreaker control, metering, protection and PLC interfaces coordinated with switchgear supplied by the project team.
Power managementMains, generators, load priorities and distributed energy resources coordinated through a defined philosophy.
Electrical controlsDrawings, I/O, control power and field interfaces kept aligned with the software implementation.
TestingNormal, degraded and failure scenarios proved across the complete electrical-control chain.
Brownfield & project lifecycle

Integration carried from functional requirement through commissioning.

Existing plants rarely offer a clean interface boundary. TBC can establish the installed condition, define what must change and manage the integration through design, software modification, testing and final handover.

  • Existing PLC and SCADA applications, legacy equipment and undocumented interfaces
  • Controlled modification, migration and recovery of legacy interfaces
  • FAT and SAT based on complete operating and failure scenarios
  • Commissioning, defect closeout and revision-controlled handover
DefineFunctional requirements, control philosophy, interfaces and acceptance criteria.
DevelopElectrical interfaces, PLC software, HMI/SCADA and communications against the same baseline.
ProveFAT, SAT and commissioning test the interaction between disciplines, not only individual I/O.
HandoverFinal software, drawings, backups and agreed evidence reflect the accepted system condition.
Related engineering

Systems integration ties the specialist disciplines together.

TBC can lead the systems-integration scope or support a defined part of it, coordinating responsibilities across PLC, SCADA/HMI, electrical controls, power management and testing.

PLC engineeringPLC architecture, programming, modification, simulation and controlled handover.
SCADA & HMIOperator control, alarms, diagnostics, trends and supervisory integration.
Electrical & control designSchematics, I/O and equipment interfaces aligned with the operating requirement.
Power-management systemsGenerator, switchgear, load-management, PV and BESS control coordination.
Process control engineeringPlant, instrumentation, package and brownfield control-system integration.
Functional designOperating modes, sequences, responsibilities and acceptance criteria defined before implementation.
FAT, SAT & commissioningIntegrated operating and failure scenarios proved through test and site delivery.

Need several control-system interfaces brought together?

Send the available specification, drawings, software information or interface schedule and TBC can define the integration boundary, responsibilities and practical route to delivery.

Discuss a project