DuPont

DuPont's small-batch semiconductor cleaning solvent facility in Hayward, California relied on legacy batch control systems that had fallen out of vendor support. The plant produces dozens of solvent varieties critical to semiconductor fabrication — where purity standards are uncompromising. Manual operator intervention dominated most production steps, from material addition to blend timing to final transfer, introducing opportunities for product variation. A cluttered HMI generated pop-up alerts on every valve operation, and hard-coded alarm setpoints made troubleshooting slow and error-prone. When a key customer audit identified the absence of recipe-based quality control automation, the plant faced a direct ultimatum: modernize or lose thousands in monthly recurring business.

DuPont partnered with Rockwell Automation and system integrator TechKnowsion to execute a two-phase controls upgrade. Phase one replaced legacy PLCs and HMIs with the PlantPAx distributed control system (DCS), reverse-engineering existing code against functional requirements rather than simply porting it — incorporating the result into DuPont's customized process objects library. A new grayscale HMI replaced the cluttered multi-color interface, surfacing critical issues in red to reduce operator cognitive load. Phase two deployed FactoryTalk Batch software, implementing full ISA S88-compliant recipe control with reusable phase building blocks for mixing, addition, and sampling. IoT-connected tank monitoring replaced paper-based inventory logs and enabled automatic tank switching during addition phases. The entire cutover was completed within one week of scheduled downtime.

The modernization delivered measurable gains across throughput, quality, and engineering efficiency. Automating what had been a largely manual batch process improved production coordination across multiple units, enabling the plant to handle a sold-out product line with greater output. New quality-control functions satisfied the customer audit and retained the account.

• ~40% reduction in programming configuration time using the Rockwell Automation process objects library
• Throughput improvement through multi-unit train coordination, directly increasing monthly revenue
• Customer retention: recipe-based automation met the quality-control requirements that had been flagged as deficient
• Operational stability: elimination of disruptive pop-up alerts and hard-coded alarm setpoints reduced operator frustration and error risk

• Legacy batch systems without recipe-based automation are a liability in semiconductor chemical supply — customer audits increasingly treat this as a qualification requirement, not a nice-to-have.
• ISA S88-compliant phase management allows reuse of configured building blocks across recipes, compressing engineering time significantly versus writing bespoke controller code per product.
• Grayscale HMI design is a proven method for reducing alarm fatigue in batch environments where operators manage multiple simultaneous process states.
• Phasing upgrades — controls first, then batch automation — reduces cutover risk and allows teams to validate each layer before adding complexity.
• Process object libraries continue delivering value post-deployment through faster maintenance, in-HMI troubleshooting, and reduced reliance on engineering workstations.