Sun's Java Technology Takes Center Stage at ISA TECH/97; The Future of Process Control Technology Is Demonstrated in Java-based Solutions Across the Show Floor.

ANAHEIM, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 7, 1997--Sun Microsystems, Inc. and its associates will showcase cutting-edge Java(TM)-based manufacturing automation solutions for the automation and process control industry at the ISA TECH/97 show.

Java technology will be on display at Sun's booth (No. 2615, Networking Area) and at the ISA Innovators Center.

Continuing the momentum of the Java platform in the controls and automation market, Sun will demonstrate Java's cross-platform features, scalability, and security. Sun, along with its industry associates, including Cegelec, The Foxboro Company, Intuitive Technology, Schneider Automation, and Westinghouse Process Control Division (PCD), will show how the Java platform provides a competitive advantage to both developers and users of next-generation control products and applications.

"Java offers a superior route to factory and enterprise integration of varied platforms and applications, which means process data can flow seamlessly and securely anywhere in the enterprise," said Reed Hornberger, Director of Manufacturing Market Development at Sun. "Java technology enables the rapid development of flexible, cost-effective control systems for industrial operations, providing a competitive advantage to both developers and users."

Java in Control

Driven by the need for rapid application development, plant floor and enterprise integration, and secure network-centric applications -- capabilities which are nearly impossible to provide in a world of proprietary products and protocols -- the controls market is entering a major technology cycle based on the adoption of open technologies such as the Internet and Java.

For example, manufacturers are looking to integrate their plant floor data into a "virtual plant network," where all plant systems and devices interact seamlessly and securely to make critical operating data available throughout the enterprise. Java-based solutions and applications are proving to be the answer for many forward-thinking organizations in the process marketplace.

Java Applications: Leading the Way to the Future

Sun's booth will feature a range of process control applications and solutions that incorporate Java technology from both Sun and its industry associates. They include:

The Foxboro Company will demonstrate its Java-enabled Intelligent Automation.com family of products, which currently includes a set of five Java-based applications. The display will include FoxSPC.com and FoxDPM.com applications for statistical process control and dynamic performance monitoring, respectively.

Schneider Automation is demonstrating a Java-based HMI running on a Sun JavaStation(TM) network computer. The system provides a powerful, flexible environment for dealing with PLCs, and allows not only data viewing but control functionality as well.

Cegelec is demonstrating its Alspa P3200 SCADA supervisory and controls software, which is based on a flexible object-oriented design and is well-suited for applications such as power generation, transportation, and other long-distance SCADA systems.

Intuitive Technology is debuting its Web@aGlance Java Real-time Graphics tool running on a JavaStation network computer. The Web@aGlance application allows remote access to control screens over the Internet, showing, for example, how an engineering expert in the US can trouble-shoot plants in Europe or Asia.

Sun is highlighting Java Control and Automation Framework (JCAF) development efforts at two stations. The first demo, developed in cooperation with Schneider Automation, showcases interoperability and management of PLCs and devices through use of the Java(TM) Naming and Directory InterfaceTM API. In the other demo, Sun will show control console customizing with Java(TM) Studio(TM)and JavaBeans(TM) software components in the context of a nuclear power plant simulation.

Innovators Center: A Next-generation Open Control System

Sun and Cyberonics of Berkeley, Calif., are demonstrating a next-generation open control system based on Sun's Java platform at the Innovator's Center. After ISA, the system will be installed at the Richmond, California research center of Berlex Biosciences, a biotech firm based in New Jersey, for evaluation and pilot scale production of pharmaceutical compounds.

The installation in the Innovator's Center includes a batch fermenter controlled by a Siemens PLC, which in turn is controlled by a JavaStation network computer running a 100% Pure Java(TM) application that controls the temperature, ph, and dissolved oxygen content of the mixture inside the fermenter. The Siemens PLC has been modified to run standard TCP/IP, thus "opening up" the control system to one fully based on standard Internet protocols and Java, rather than proprietary technology.

Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision, "The Network Is The Computer(TM)," has propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc., (NASDAQ:SUNW), to its position as a leading provider of hardware, software and services for establishing enterprise-wide intranets and expanding the power of the Internet. With more than $8.5 billion in annual revenues, Sun can be found in more than 150 countries and on the WorldWide Web at http://www.sun.com. -0-

Note to Editors: Sun, the Sun logo, Sun Microsystems, Java, Java Naming and Directory Interface, JavaStation, JavaBeans, Java Studio, The Network Is The Computer, and 100% Pure Java are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

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