Advant StepUp Project overview:
StepUp is program of ABB’s for upgrading older process control equipment to the latest Advant OCS solutions at particularly favorable terms.
The theme of the program varies from time to time; this time the turn has come to users of MasterPiece 200⁄1 controllers to upgrade to the latest Advant
Controller 400 series process controllers, at substantially reduced prices.
You gain performance; Count on three to five times the speed of your current machine(s) (vs. Advant Controller 450) and multiple amounts of more memory.
Higher processing speed and more memory means more work done faster, as well as more space for trend data storage.
You gain functionality; Advant Controller 400 series offers a number of important functional improvements
Support for a number of new, popular communication protocols, e.g.
Advant Fieldbus 100, Profibus DP, LONWorks and Allen-Bradley’s DF1.
These make your new controllers able to use ABB’s new S800 I⁄O system and easily able to communicate, with other external controllers, with ABB’s vari- able speed motor drives and with smart motor-control centers.

• More backup redundancy available,e.g.:
• Smarter solution to CPU redundancy, eliminating critical, common, components,
• Full dual redundancy, covering, media and communication in interfaces, for S100 I/O and Advant Fieldbus 100.
  A self-tuning, adaptive process controller (AC 450) that makes short work out of setting up control loops accurately and responsively, even in difficult applications.
  Fuzzy logic control, a control method based on degrees of truths as opposed to conventional binary logic that only recognizes two states: true or false.
  A control strategy that is often able to untangle elegantly control problems that are difficult to solve in other ways

Upgrade Benefits
Increased performance: Three to five times the processing speed of current devices (compared to the Advant Controller 450), more memory to do more work faster, and more space to store trend data.

Enhanced functionality: Supports a variety of new communication protocols, such as Advant Fieldbus 100, Profibus DP, etc., to use the new S800 I/O system and communicate with external devices; more backup redundancy, such as smarter CPU redundancy and full dual redundancy; advanced control methods, such as self-tuning, adaptive process controllers and fuzzy logic control; Windows NT-based engineering tools. Windows NT-based engineering tools.

Cost savings: The controller cabinet and the required hardware and software are attractively priced, and a subscription to the ABB Software Advancement Program (ASAP) provides savings on future software upgrades.

Upgrade process: The Advant Controller 400 series is compatible with legacy equipment, is based on a 19’ chassis, is compatible with existing S100 local I/O and S400 remote I/O, and can run AMPL programmes. To upgrade, simply disconnect the old controller, remove the rack, install the new controller, connect the cables, upload the software, and power up. Hundreds of upgrades have proved their simplicity, such as LKAB Malmberget Mining’s successful upgrade during a regular summer downtime.

ABB Software Upgrade Programme (ASAP): Subscribers receive new versions of the software to keep Advant OCS at the leading edge of functionality and performance, making full use of production equipment, reducing system maintenance costs and making it easier to manage budgets.
A win-win situation: The Advant StepUp programme benefits both parties, with users gaining performance and functionality improvements and cost savings, and ABB gaining a reputation in the marketplace and streamlining technical support.