Most utilities employ a SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system or DCS (Distributed Control System) to operate and monitor their process plants. Extending the SCADA network into the field seems logical and almost obvious if new investment in remote monitoring is required. For many remotes sites, this is the best solution – particularly sites that need to be remotely controlled or where real-time mission critical data is required. However, other non-control, non-mission critical remote sites don’t need costly SCADA implementation; they can be monitored with a remote data acquisition system that offers superior cost effectiveness, reliability and versatility.
