SCADA

How it is used

Said as a word: SKAY-duh (or SKAH-duh). Used in factories, water plants and energy systems. SCADA handles trends, alarms, reports and historian data, while the PLCs do the real-time control. Engineers talk about SCADA screens, the SCADA server and SCADA integration.

Example sentences

1. The night shift saw the pump alarm on SCADA and called maintenance.

2. We need to add the new line's energy data to the SCADA reports.

Common collocations

• SCADA system
• SCADA screen
• SCADA server
• SCADA integration
• historian

Related terms

• HMIShort for human-machine interface: the touch screen or panel operators use to see a machine's status, start and stop it, change settings and read alarms.
• PLCShort for programmable logic controller: a rugged industrial computer that reads inputs from sensors and switches, runs a control program and drives outputs such as motors, valves and lamps.
• alarmA message, light or sound from a control system that tells the operator something is wrong or needs attention, often with a number and a short text.
• tagA named variable in a PLC, HMI or SCADA system that holds a value such as an input, a setpoint or a motor status, for example Conveyor1_Running.
• Industry 4.0The idea of a connected, data-driven factory where machines, sensors and software share information through networks and the cloud to make production smarter and more flexible.

More terms: Industrial Automation and Production

• automation
• cycle time
• production line
• conveyor
• robot cell
• fixture
• fieldbus
• commissioning
• throughput