Microsoft Excel‑Based Tools

Seven Tools.
One Complete
Workflow.

From initial plant assessment through to auto-generated DCS code — the CDL software suite covers every phase of the ISA‑106 procedural automation design process.

All products are available as a managed service or standalone purchase. We recommend starting as a service — we work together to generate results, then you can license the tool.

CDL Software Pipeline — P1 through P7
P1
Industrial Plant Assessment
IPA — Baseline & gap analysis
›
P2
Level of Automation
LOA — SBC/SqBC classification
›
P3
Operational Trend Builder
OTB — Historian visualization
›
P4
SOP Converter
SOP → p-Code → Step Actions
›
P5
URS Builder
URS → FRS (BPCS & SIS)
›
P6
FRS Engine
Full UM → CM → CCM design
›
P7
Automatic Code Maker
FRS → DCS Code — Flagship tool
›
Software Portfolio

Products in Detail

Each tool in the CDL suite maps to a specific phase of the ISA‑106 work process — use them individually or as an integrated pipeline.

P1 Phase 1 — Assessment

Industrial Plant Assessment™

IPA — Data-Driven Baseline Analysis

A set of R and Excel tools that analyse plant performance using historical data (1‑minute snapshots) to generate a comprehensive baseline — before any automation design work begins.

  • Data Reconciliation across analog inputs and outputs
  • Plant Operability Performance using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) applied to all AI and AO signals
  • Plant Oscillation detection via Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to identify oscillation clusters in frequency domain
  • Control Loop Performance classification — each P, PI, or PID controller rated as Requires Improvement, Normal, or Excellent using CDL indexing technology
View P1 details
IPA Outputs
Generated from 1-min historian snapshots
Analysis Results
Data Reconciliation Report
PCA Operability Performance Index
FFT Oscillation Cluster Map
Loop Performance Classifications
CDL Controller Index Rating
P2 Phase 2 — Classification

Level of Automation

LOA — SBC & SqBC Classification Matrix

Classify each operation and unit module across a defined Level of Automation matrix — from fully manual through to state-based or sequence-based control. A critical design decision tool before URS development.

  • Structured LOA matrix for Plant Area (PA) and Unit Modules (UM)
  • State-Based Control (SBC) vs Sequence-Based Control (SqBC) determination
  • Automation gap identification aligned to ISA‑106 classifications
  • Available as a managed service engagement
View P2 details
LOA Classification
Per unit module and operation
LOA Levels
Level 0 — Manual Operation
Level 1 — Operator Initiated
Level 2 — Semi-Automatic
Level 3 — State-Based Control
Level 4 — Fully Automatic
P3 Phase 3 — Visualization

Operational Trend Builder™

OTB — SBC Design Visualization

An Excel program to develop a structured visualization of the plant hierarchy — from Plant Area down to Control Modules — and share the State-Based Control design with operations teams in an accessible format.

  • Visualize Unit Modules (UM) within a Plant Area (PA)
  • Map Control Modules (CM) within each Unit Module
  • Communicate SBC design intent to operations and management
  • Generate an initial step list for State-Based Control implementation
View P3 details
OTB Deliverables
Historian-driven visual models
Outputs
PA → UM Hierarchy Diagram
UM → CM Control Module Map
Startup / Run / Shutdown Trend Views
Initial SBC Step List
P4 Phase 4 — Procedure Conversion

SOP Converter™

Standard Operating Procedure Analyzer

A set of Excel programs that take existing Standard Operating Procedures and convert them into structured ISA‑106-compliant pseudo-code — the critical bridge between written operations knowledge and formal control design.

  • Convert SOP narratives to CDL pseudo-code (p-Code)
  • Develop structured Steps and Transitions from p-Code
  • Convert p-Code to Step Actions for FRS input
  • Transfer results to Industrial IT XML format
View P4 details
SOP Conversion Flow
SOP narrative to structured code
Conversion Pipeline
SOP Narrative Input
CDL p-Code Generation
Steps & Transitions Extraction
Step Actions Output
Industrial IT XML Export
P5 Phase 5 — Requirements

URS Builder™

URS‑to‑FRS‑Builder‑for‑Excel

A comprehensive set of tools to design state-based control for a Plant Area and its associated Unit Modules — generating structured URS documents and automatically producing FRS files for each UM (BPCS and SIS).

A1 — Process Description
A2 — Control Objectives
A3 — Level of Automation
A4 — PA‑UM Process Diagram
A5 — Startup/Run/ShutDown
B1 — Instrumentation
B2 — PA‑UM Definition
B3 — UM Limits
View P5 details
URS Outputs
Auto-generated FRS per Unit Module
Generated Documents
URS Document (PA Level)
FRS File per UM (BPCS)
FRS File per UM (SIS)
IEC 63690 Aligned Output
P6 Phase 6 — Functional Design

FRS Engine™

FRS‑Engine‑for‑Excel

A comprehensive set of tools to design state-based control at the Unit Module level — mapping Control Modules (CM) and Compound Control Modules (CCM) through to full step, transition, and code design.

A1 — UM Description
A2 — UM Diagram
A3 — SOP
A4 — Issues Log
B1 — I/O List
B2 — Root Tags
B3 — Calculations
B4 — Alarms
C1 — Modes of Operation
C2 — Steps
C3 — Step Diagram
C4 — Step Transitions
View P6 details
FRS Engine Sections
UM through CM and CCM design
Module Groups
Section A — Definition (A1–A4)
Section B — Input/Output (B1–B5)
Section C — Steps (C1–C7)
P7 — Flagship

Automatic Code Maker™

ACM‑Engine‑for‑Excel

The crown jewel of the CDL suite. ACM converts completed FRS data directly into deployable DCS control code — eliminating manual transcription, reducing errors, and compressing project delivery timelines significantly.

  • Direct FRS‑to‑Code conversion, fully automated
  • Supports multiple DCS platforms from a single source
  • Eliminates manual code transcription and associated errors
  • Traceable output — every code block linked to FRS source
View P7 details
Supported DCS Platforms
FRS → production-ready code
Target Systems
Emerson
DeltaV
Honeywell
Experion / C300
ABB
800xA
Industrial IT
XML Format

Brain Dump Planner™ for Excel

A structured productivity tool that captures all ideas, tasks, and knowledge from your team into an organized Excel framework — then helps sort, prioritise, and plan. Designed for process control project kick-offs where structured thinking needs to happen fast. Reduces mental overload and gets engineering teams aligned before detailed design begins.

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Not Sure Which Product
Is Right for Your Project?

We recommend starting with a service engagement — we work with your team using the CDL tools to generate real results, then you decide what to license.

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