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ABB Power Plant Automation recently announced the launch of its eBAT Internet Based Benefit Analysis Tool family. The tools estimate the financial benefits that result from implementing automation solutions in a specific plant.

eBAT can be used initially for fossil fuel power plants (http://ebat.us.abb.com/) and oil and gas well applications (http://www10.abb.de/apc/webat/login.asp), but will soon be expanded to include a host of other applications.

The eBAT models consider specific financial operating values, including fuel, operating costs, environmental costs, unit availability, production rates, and other inputs. The calculated financial benefits are analyzed across available solutions, and typical considerations of the customer's industry.

The eBAT tools were developed as a global and cooperative effort with ABB Corporate Research. According to William Bach, marketing manager for ABB power plant automation, the biggest effort involved gathering the expert know-how from its thousands of automation installations in the selected plant types.

"Experts from Germany, Switzerland, Canada and the U.S. participated in model development and checking," Bach said. "These experts will support eBAT, and modify it to reflect actual customer feedback from the use of the tool. Customers will be able to get support from their local account managers to use the tool on their project analyses. eBAT is an excellent example of how the customer can draw upon ABB's vast automation experience to determine which products and services can help them the most."

Efforts are underway to expand the family of tools to cover automation of other power plants, paper mills, and oil and gas units. The range of solution types will also be expanded to cover more of the ABB offerings. The Benefit Analysis Tools join other knowledge based engineering tools available on the web, such as load forecasts.

ABB ranks among the largest automation suppliers to the utility industries—power generation, electric utilities, and water. The company's automation business segment includes major product areas such as control products and systems, manufacturing execution systems, instrumentation, analytical devices, meters, robotics, drives, motors and machines.

Other major industry markets served are chemicals, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, food and beverage, pulp and paper, metals and minerals, manufacturing industries, and marine.

For more information, check out ABB Power Plant Automation's Power Online Storefront.

Edited by April C. Murelio, Managing Editor, Power Online