Wonderware Introduces Windows NT-based InBatch 4.0 System For Design,
Simulation & Automation of Batch-Oriented Processes

NEW YORK CITY, APRIL 23, 1996 -- Wonderware Corporation (NASDAQ Trading
Symbol: WNDR) today introduced the InBatch 4.0 Flexible Batch Management
System -- the newest member of the Wonderware Factory Suite of industrial
automation software, which is designed specifically for modeling and
automation of batch-oriented production processes for the chemical,
pharmaceutical and food processing industries.

The new Windows NT-based application generation tool is based on the former
Direktor product developed by Soft Systems Engineering, which was acquired
by Wonderware in 1995, thus it offers field-proven capabilities for
developing complete batch solutions - from conceptual design to factory
floor production. With its conversion from the UNIX to the Windows NT
operating system, it now provides plug-and-play integration with the
company's suite of industrial software tools: Wonderware InTouch for
handling supervisory control and data acquisition for plant operations and
Wonderware InTrack for manufacturing execution system (MES) tracking of
production resources.

The new batch management system is on display in Wonderware's booth (#359)
at the Interphex Show, which is being held at the Jacob Javits Convention
Center here, April 23-25. The bottom line value of the InBatch system is
that it changes the paradigm for batch production, enabling chemists and
food scientists to model batch processes and simulate their operation
before spending time and money on development of automated production
systems to implement them, noted Jeff Kissling, general manager of the
company's York Development Center.

"InBatch approaches the development of batch process methodology from a
completely different viewpoint than competitive products, working from the
top-down rather than the bottom-up," Kissling said. "It provides a
framework that allows system integrators and end users to agree on a
production automation strategy before any automation system has been
selected. This framework serves as a specification and a platform to
provide the utmost in reusability. The net result is that any errors made
in the modeling stage have no negative cost effect because no production
system has been set. It's a 'measure twice, cut once' scenario."

Building an InBatch application takes five basic steps in logical order: 1)
model the process; 2) build recipes; 3) simulate the recipes against the
model; 4) implement the process framework using the model as the refernce;
and 5) automate the system. "This is a completely different approach from
those suppliers who require users to first install automated systems for
controlling their production lines, then design batch management systems
to fit that defined production sequence," he explained.

"Instead, InBatch starts by abstracting the control system so that users
can first model their proposed process from a logical viewpoint," he
added. "They can simply define the process in terms of its processing
units and the relationships between those units. Next, they can build
recipes in an easy-to-use, object-oriented environment, which abstracts
the recipes from any processing units or unit-to-unit relationships. Then
they can 'test drive' the model in simulation without regard to the actual
equipment that might be used in production.

"Once the batch process template has been defined, only then do users
create the automation framework in which the end product will be made," he
said. "Developers don't have to specify equipment to be used in a process,
but can simply identify classes of production equipment -- and at
run-time, InBatch will help make decisions about specific equipment to be
used, based on availability, attribute differentials, capacities, trains
(cells) or other parameters."

Insulating the recipe generation from the automation framework provides
many benefits for batch producers. Because InBatch provides an
object-oriented approach to application development, users don't have to
be skilled programmers to create processes. InBatch provides better
reusability of application software so that identical processes can be
implemented in multiple plants or production facilities -- and products
can be brought to market faster. InBatch provides greater application
sustainability, such that processes can easily be modified over time
without major impact on production aspects - which can dramatically reduce
life cycle costs. Its sustainability features also mean producers can
change the implementation of their batch production operations as
necessary without affecting the underlying production control and data
acquisition operations -- so that regulatory compliance is not impacted by
procedural changes.

"This system provides what we call a 'beaker-to-batch' framework that lets
people be productive in a very short period of time," Kissling said.

"This means that if a chemist or food scientist comes up with a 'home- run'
product or enhancement, the time it takes to scale from the test tube to
full production is dramatically reduced. At the same time, it allows
corporate management to take the larger, more global view of determining
which facilities can best produce the new product and how it can be
brought to market more quickly."

In addition to this unique approach to application development, InBatch
provides all the operational features that producers seek in a
full-featured batch management system, he emphasized. "InBatch has the
most elegant and easy-to-use Recipe Management Tool in the business," he
said. "It has a built-in historian and structured query language (SQL)
reporting system that is capable of meeting the most rigorous regulatory
demands. It is also fully redundant. InBatch employs true client/server
architecture and its server engine integrates seamlessly with InTouch for
management of plant floor operations."

InBatch 4.0 is scheduled to begin shipments in May through the company's
worldwide network of more than 125 distributor offices.

Wonderware Corporation is the leading independent supplier of Windows-based
software for the industrial automation marketplace, providing the
Wonderware Factory Suite of integrated application generation tools for
use in a broad range of industries. Founded in 1987, the company is
headquartered in Irvine, CA, and has regional offices in the U.S., Europe
and Asia to provide support to its worldwide distributor channel. The
company reported record revenues of $55 million in 1995.

For more information, contact Don Allen, Director of Public/Investor
Relations, Wonderware Corporation, 100 Technology Drive, Irvine, Calif.
92718. Phone: (714) 727-3200. Fax: (714) 453-6693. E-mail:
dona@wonderware.com
 
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