OSI PI Batch Database (BatchDB) for biologics lab and plant - part 1

Biologics manufacturing is a batch process, which means that process steps have a defined starttime and endtime.

CIPs start and end. SIPs start and end. Equipment preparations start and end. Fermentation, Harvest, Chromatography, Filtration, Filling are all process steps that start and end.

Even the lab experiments are executed in a batch manner with defined starts and end.

Like the ModuleDB, OSIsoft has a data structure within PI that describes batch and it is called PI Batch Database (PI Batch). While it comes free, it does cost at least 1 tag per unit (PIUnit) to use.

The most important table is the UnitBatch table. The UnitBatch table contains the following fields:

• starttime
• endtime - when the batch happens
• unit - where the batch happened (with which equipment)
• batchid - who (name of the batch)
• product - what was produced?
• procedure - how was it produced?

In essence, the UnitBatch table describes everything there is to know about a process step that happens on a unit. Remember: units are defined in the PI ModuleDB, which means the PI BatchDB depends on a configured PI ModuleDB.

So why bother configuring yet another part of your PI server? The main reason is to increase the productivity of your PI users. In our experience, up to 50% of the time spent using PI ProcessBook inputting timestamps into the trend dialog. Configuring PI Batch makes it so that your users can change time-windows in ProcessBook with just a click.

We have seen power-users put eyeballs on more trends in even less time than without PI Batch; and the more trends your team seems, the more process experience they gain.

In this dismal economic environment, simply configuring PI Batch on your PI server can make your team up to 400% more productive. This particular modification takes less than a day to accomplish.