A comprehensive solution built with Excel VBA, R, RStudio, and Quarto that analyses 1‑minute interval data collected over 3 to 7 days — providing a deep, statistically rigorous evaluation of your plant's operability, controllability, and loop performance.
IPA handles complex data sets that cannot be processed using simple plotting techniques, delivering insights that drive a measurable 3% to 5% improvement in production performance.
Each module applies a distinct statistical method to your historian data — together they form a complete picture of your plant's current state before any automation design work begins.
The first step in every IPA engagement. Raw historian data (1‑minute snapshots over 3–7 days) is collected, cleaned, and reconciled to ensure completeness and consistency before any analysis begins.
Missing values, sensor faults, and outliers are identified and handled systematically — creating a reliable analytical foundation for all subsequent modules.
Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is applied to all Analog Inputs (AI) and Analog Outputs (AO) simultaneously. The resulting components reveal how closely the plant is operating to its design envelope and identify correlated deviations across multiple variables.
This multi-variate approach captures interactions between process variables that are invisible when signals are examined individually.
Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) converts time-domain historian data into the frequency domain, exposing periodic oscillations that would be difficult to detect by visual inspection of trend plots.
The FFT results are clustered to identify shared oscillation frequencies across multiple loops — a strong indicator of plant-wide disturbances, valve stiction, or tuning problems propagating through the process.
Oscillation analysis is applied individually to every P, PI, and PID controller in the plant. Each controller is classified using CDL's proprietary indexing technology — producing a prioritised improvement list for the control engineering team.
IPA is not a simple spreadsheet tool. It is a professional-grade analytics package that combines the accessibility of Excel with the statistical power of R — packaged and delivered via Quarto for reproducible, publication-quality reports.
Two overview documents are available for review before purchase. Use the back arrow in your browser to return to this page after reading.
A more detailed presentation of the full IPA package is available. Send your company email to info@CtrlDesigner.com to request a session — we'll respond to set it up, typically within one business day.
IPA is available directly from CTRL Designer or through our online store. We recommend starting with a service engagement first — we work with your data together to deliver results, then you license the tool.