Controls Upgrades

The control system is the brain of your pollution control equipment. It manages burner sequencing, temperature control, airflow regulation, safety interlocks, and alarm management. When the control system is outdated, unreliable, or unable to meet current operational requirements, the entire pollution control system suffers. Outdated PLCs run on discontinued hardware with diminishing spare parts. Legacy HMI panels display limited information on small, dim screens that operators struggle to read. Relay-based safety systems lack the diagnostics and self-testing capabilities of modern safety controllers. Falcon Environmental Solutions coordinates controls upgrade projects that bring your pollution control equipment's control system into the modern era, with all controls engineering and programming performed by our industry partners Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions.

Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions are our dedicated controls integration partners for pollution control equipment projects. Creekmist Controls specializes in PLC programming, HMI development, and SCADA integration for industrial environmental systems. MAK Solutions brings additional expertise in safety instrumented systems and burner management system programming. Falcon Environmental Solutions manages the overall project, provides the pollution control equipment expertise that informs the controls requirements, and coordinates between the controls partners and the facility's operations and maintenance teams. This partnership model works because each company focuses on its core expertise: Falcon knows the pollution control equipment, Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions know the controls engineering.

PLC modernization replaces obsolete controllers with current-generation hardware that is fully supported by the manufacturer with available spare parts, active firmware updates, and a long-term product roadmap. Many thermal oxidizers, RTOs, and scrubber systems installed in the 1990s and early 2000s are still running on Allen-Bradley PLC-5, SLC 500, or Siemens S5 controllers. These platforms are discontinued. Spare parts are increasingly difficult to source and expensive when available. A single failed processor module can shut down your pollution control equipment for days or weeks while you search for a replacement. Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions migrate these legacy controllers to modern platforms: Allen-Bradley ControlLogix or CompactLogix, Siemens S7-1500, or other platforms as appropriate for the application and the facility's standardization preferences.

The migration process preserves your existing control logic while improving it. The controls partners do not simply copy old ladder logic into a new controller. They review the existing program, identify logic that can be improved or simplified, update the programming to follow current best practices and structured coding standards, and add capabilities that the legacy controller could not support. This includes better diagnostic information for maintenance troubleshooting, improved alarm management with proper prioritization and documentation, enhanced data logging for compliance reporting, and communication capabilities for integration with SCADA systems and our FalconWatch remote monitoring platform.

HMI modernization replaces outdated operator interfaces with current technology that provides better visibility, more information, and improved usability. Legacy HMI panels on pollution control equipment are often small monochrome or early-color touchscreens running proprietary operating systems with limited graphics capabilities. Modern HMI systems use high-resolution widescreen displays, web-based interfaces that can be accessed from any device, and high-performance graphics designed per ISA-101 guidelines for optimal operator effectiveness. Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions develop HMI applications that show operators exactly what they need to see: equipment status, process values with normal operating ranges clearly indicated, active alarms with priority and required response, and trending displays that reveal how the process is behaving over time.

Legacy system migration from relay logic to PLC-based control is still a common requirement for older pollution control equipment. Some thermal oxidizers and boiler systems installed before the widespread adoption of PLCs are still controlled by relay panels with mechanical timers, electromechanical sequencers, and hardwired interlock circuits. These systems are increasingly difficult to maintain as the components age and the technicians who understand them retire. Migration to a PLC-based control system replaces the relay panel with a modern controller while preserving the proven control sequences. The PLC provides the same sequential logic with the added benefits of diagnostic indicators, alarm logging, parameter adjustment without hardware changes, and remote monitoring capability.

Operator interface improvements address the day-to-day usability issues that affect how effectively your operations team manages the pollution control equipment. This goes beyond replacing hardware to include redesigning the information architecture of the operator interface. Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions work with your operators to understand their workflow, identify the information they reference most frequently, and design screen layouts that support their actual operating practices. The result is an HMI that operators genuinely find useful rather than a technology upgrade that looks impressive but does not improve their ability to run the equipment.

Data logging and reporting integration addresses the growing need for automated compliance data collection and report generation. Modern regulatory programs require facilities to maintain continuous records of pollution control equipment operating parameters: combustion temperatures, residence times, pressure drops across catalyst beds, scrubber liquid flow rates, and other parameters that demonstrate ongoing compliance. Manually recording these parameters on paper logs is labor-intensive, error-prone, and increasingly unacceptable to regulatory agencies. Controls upgrades by Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions include automated data logging that captures all required parameters at the required frequency, stores them in a database, and generates the reports that satisfy permit conditions and regulatory reporting requirements.

Safety system upgrades bring your pollution control equipment's protective functions into compliance with current standards and best practices. NFPA 86 requirements for burner management systems have evolved significantly over the years, and equipment built to earlier editions of the standard may not meet current requirements. Safety instrumented system (SIS) technology has advanced from simple hardwired relay circuits to programmable safety controllers (Allen-Bradley GuardLogix, Siemens S7-1500F) that provide self-diagnostics, proof testing, and SIL-rated safety functions per IEC 61511. Creekmist Controls and MAK Solutions design and implement safety system upgrades that bring your equipment into compliance with current NFPA 86 burner management requirements and, where applicable, IEC 61511 safety instrumented system requirements.

Falcon Environmental Solutions coordinates the entire controls upgrade project. We develop the scope of work based on our assessment of the existing equipment and the facility's operational requirements. We manage the project schedule, coordinating between Creekmist Controls, MAK Solutions, and the facility's operations team to plan the cutover during an appropriate maintenance window. We provide the pollution control equipment expertise that the controls partners need to understand the process requirements and safety considerations specific to the equipment being upgraded. And we verify that the completed controls upgrade integrates properly with the mechanical equipment, confirming that all control loops, safety interlocks, and alarm functions operate correctly before the equipment is returned to service.