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ABB System 800xA registered as Foundation fieldbus host

ABB System 800xA registered as Foundation fieldbus host
04/20/2009

WICKLIFFE, Ohio, April 20, 2009 ---ABB announced today that its Extended Automation System 800xA was recently registered as an initial Foundation fieldbus host system after it passed the Fieldbus Foundation’s rigorous new Host Profile Registration Process. ABB is one of only two vendors that have received the new certificate according to the enforced registration rules.

Mark Taft, ABB’s group vice president, Global Sales & Marketing, Control Systems Business, Process Automation Division, commented, “Being among the first of the automation suppliers to complete the most recent Host Profile Registration Process is just one more indication to end users that ABB is serious about delivering products and solutions that the industrial users demand and can benefit from. As indicated by the statements from the foundation, this process was established by the End User Advisory Council (EUAC), not by the product manufacturers. Finally, the end users can reasonably evaluate solutions in a consistent way rather than trying to make sense of supported features and functions from the previous HIST methods.”

The Fieldbus Foundation established its Host Registration Program as a key initiative benefiting the global automation industry. Under the registration process, fieldbus hosts successfully completing the test requirements are authorized to bear the official Foundation product registration symbol. Hosts may include configuration tools, recording devices, alarm display panels, human-machine interfaces (HMIs) or systems with a combination of functionality. Under the new Host Profile Registration Process, the foundation conducts functional testing with a test device and specialized test device descriptions (DDs) and capabilities files (CFs). The host device or system under test must support a clear set of required features.