An object-oriented approach to plant configuration management information systems analysis

Plant configuration management systems address all phases of the plant's life cycle, from engineering design, redesign, maintenance, to operations. However, as yet little research has been reported on plant configuration management information systems analysis. During the past decade, the object-oriented approach has received much attention in information systems development. This paper describes an object structure for plant configuration management systems analysis. Three major aspects of configuration management (maintenance, re-design change, and business process) and fundamental types of objects engaged in configuration management are described. The association between these objects is then built through identifying the messages between the objects. Practical application of this framework shows that it is useful for the analysis and design of a plant configuration manage ment information system.