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APC200

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APC200: Advanced Process Control, PID Tuning and Beyond

Contact Us Today: info@PiControlSolutions.com, Tel: (832) 495 6436

Duration: 3 Days Classroom or 21 hours Online
Audience: Process Control Engineers, Advanced Process Control Engineers, Instrument Engineers, Lab Technicians, DCS/PLC Technicians, Managers and Supervisors.
Prerequisites: PID100, 2-year or 4-year degree in engineering or operations. A few months of plant/ engineering experience is desirable, but not required.
Course Material: Software Products used in Course – Pitops, Simcet and Training Slides.

Course Description:
The DCS and PLC have many powerful features that still remain under-utilized. This course shows you how to tune PIDs and build powerful optimizing controllers inside the DCS or PLC. During the course, we use several industrial process control software products – Pitops, Simcet, Process Control CBT and ACSSI.

The course assumes that attendees have completed PID100 course (PID100 is a prerequisite for this APC200 course).

Attendees use real time-series plant data and identify multivariable closed-loop/open-loop dynamics. Then they build various control schemes all inside Pitops software – cascade, constraint override, maximizing and minimizing constraint controllers, selectors, model-based controllers, dead-time compensators and many others.

This course is designed more for engineers but also will offer tremendous value to operators, technicians and supervisors. PiControl software products used in this course are so very easy to use that the course can be comfortably followed by even new and inexperienced technicians. This course also covers advanced functions of PID controllers in more detail.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course, attendees will be able to study a process and its P&IDs and talk to the right people in the plant or control room and then design and build powerful controllers in the DCS/PLC. Attendees will become skilled in PID tuning, feedforward implementation, and parameter specification for all types of controllers in the DCS/PLC.

Further, using scientific process control methods and software products they will be able to calculate tuning and other DCS parameters precisely, thus eliminating guesswork and generating precise, optimized control action.

The course also trains attendees how to be careful while activating and commissioning new control schemes, avoiding mistakes and starting up a control chain in the right sequence.

This course is all you will ever need to use the full potential of the DCS or PLC and build powerful new controllers to stabilize plant operation, push against economic, market, process and equipment constraints. Attendees will also learn when to use traditional advanced control and when to use multivariable model- predictive control, a very practical and useful skill.  The following topics are covered in this course:

  • Process Control Hierarchy
  • Advanced Process Control (APC) Options and Strategies
  • Need for Automatic Process Control
  • Benefits of Process Control
  • How to Maximize Throughput and Minimize Utilities using APC
  • Feedforward Control Theory and Calculations
  • Feedforward Lab Session using Pitops
  • Decoupler Strategies
  • Advanced Cascade Control
  • Cascade Control Lab Session Illustrating an AC-TC Triple Cascade
  • Cascade Control Tuning Guidelines
  • Constraint Override Selector Control Procedures and Calculations
  • How to build correct DCS Configuration for Long Chain Control Schemes
  • Startup and Chain Activation Procedures in the DCS
  • Practical Rules and Tips for PID and APC Schemes
  • Model-based Control
  • Bias Update for Automatic Control
  • Closed-Loop Dynamics
  • GC-based Online Correction, PV Sample Hold
  • Using Rigorous Models for Closed-Loop
  • Advanced Control with PID Integration Dead-Time Compensation
  • Internal Model-Based Control and Lab Session
  • Internal Model-Based Control
  • Identifying Process Dynamics based on Operator Experience and Knowledge
  • Identifying Process Dynamics based on DCS Trends and Historical Data
  • Continue Lab (Practical) Sessions on System Identification and Tuning Optimization
  • Identification of SISO Closed-Loop Process Transfer Functions
  • Multi-Input Closed-Loop Transfer Function Identification
  • Identifying Process Dynamics based on analyzing actual Time-Sampled Data
  • Lab Session using Pitops to identify first and second order transfer functions using real plant data
  • Use Pitops to identify multivariable transfer functions using real plant data in closed-loop mode Model-Predictive Control
  • When to use PID, Cascade PID, Advanced Regulatory, DMC, RMPCT, Rule-Based Control Identifying, Debugging and Troubleshooting PID Tuning and Process Control Problems
  • Online PID/APC Control Quality Monitoring and Reporting
  • Online Oscillation Detection and Online Control Sluggishness Detection
  • PID Control Quality Alerting to Smartphones for Improved Proactive Maintenance

APC200 Question & Answers

The course lasts 3 days in a classroom or 21 hours online.

The course is designed for Process Control Engineers, Advanced Process Control Engineers, Instrument Engineers, Lab Technicians, DCS/PLC Technicians, Managers, and Supervisors.

Completion of PID100 is required. Additionally, a 2-year or 4-year degree in engineering or operations is recommended, along with some plant or engineering experience, though it is not mandatory.

The course utilizes Pitops, Simcet, Process Control CBT, and ACSSI for advanced process control tuning, optimization, and real-time simulation.

Attendees will learn how to leverage underutilized DCS and PLC features, optimize PID tuning, and build advanced control strategies within DCS/PLC systems.

Participants will develop expertise in multivariable process control, constraint override controllers, feedforward control, cascade control, dead-time compensation, and model-based control strategies.

By maximizing throughput, reducing utility consumption, and stabilizing plant operations, attendees will learn to push against economic, market, process, and equipment constraints

The curriculum includes advanced process control (APC) strategies, feedforward control, cascade control, constraint override selector control, model-based control, and predictive control techniques.

Yes, attendees will engage in real-time lab sessions using Pitops, applying concepts such as process dynamics identification, system tuning, and multivariable transfer function analysis using real plant data.

The software includes automated performance assessments, providing detailed reports on APC implementation, PID tuning effectiveness, and control quality monitoring.

The course covers decoupler strategies, cascade control, model-based control, dead-time compensation, and process optimization techniques to enhance DCS/PLC efficiency.

Yes, the training is system-agnostic, meaning the concepts apply to various DCS/PLC manufacturers and control environments.

Yes, it includes model-predictive control (MPC), advanced troubleshooting methods, online control quality monitoring, oscillation detection, and sluggishness diagnostics.

Instead of years of hands-on experience, participants gain deep knowledge of process control hierarchy, APC strategies, and control system optimization within three days.

You can register online through the official website, where you will find details on course dates, pricing, and scheduling options.

No, all course materials, including software licenses (temporary) and training slides, will be provided. You may bring your own plant data for practical exercises if pre-approved by your organization.

Yes. Upon completion, participants receive a PiControl Certified APC200 Completion Certificate, which can be added to their professional credentials and LinkedIn profile.

Yes. We offer custom corporate sessions where examples and labs are tailored to your plant’s control environment and industry-specific processes.

Yes, attendees receive trial licenses for Pitops and Simcet for further hands-on practice. For continued use, PiControl offers attractive post-training licensing packages.

Absolutely. We provide pre- and post-training assessment tools, plant-specific problem-solving tasks, and performance benchmarks to help quantify the value added by trained staff.

Yes. Many organizations and licensing boards accept APC200 training hours as PDH or CEU credits. Please check with your local authority or contact us for documentation support.

We provide recorded sessions for online participants. Missed sessions can be accessed with instructor approval, and 1:1 catch-up support is available in some cases.

Yes. The course introduces concepts progressively and provides toolkits and exercises that even lab technicians or operators can grasp — no advanced programming knowledge is required.

Yes. One of the major strengths of APC200 is hands-on design, implementation, parameter calculation and performance diagnostic using real-world cases.

APC200 is vendor-agnostic, deeply application-based, and focuses on real process data and industry dynamics, not just navigation of one specific DCS/PLC system.

Yes. Participants get invited to an exclusive PiControl alumni LinkedIn group where they can connect with other engineers, discuss control problems, and get peer support.

Yes. We regularly conduct on-site and private training for engineering teams across the globe. Contact us for a tailored quote based on group size and location.


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