Distributed Control Systems (DCS) or Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC)
DCS or PLC ? Seven Questions to Help You... Select the Best Solution... Distributed Control Systems (DCS) or Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC) For manufacturers in the process industries, the procedure for selecting the best automation technology is not as easy as it once was. In the past it was fairly easy to determine whether a PLC or a DCS was right for your application, because their strengths and weaknesses were well understood. In recent years this has become more difficult, thanks primarily to the advancement of the microprocessor, which has allowed the technologies to merge. With the trend toward flexible manufacturing in industry, many of the applications in the process industries now share the requirements traditionally thought to be exclusive to either DCS or PLC. These hybrid applications typically require a process control system that can deliver both PLC and DCS capabilities. Thus understand-ing the merging of PLC and DCS functionality i...