How to Connect Honeywell EPKS and Uniformance PHD with GE Proficy Historian: A Practical Integration Guide
As industrial plants modernize their control and data infrastructure, the integration of distributed control systems (DCS) and data historians becomes increasingly important. One powerful use case is the connection between Honeywell EPKS with Uniformance PHD and GE Proficy Historian, enabling plants to consolidate, analyze, and share real-time and historical data across platforms.
This article guides you through the technical considerations, architecture, and best practices to successfully connect Honeywell Experion Process Knowledge System (EPKS) and Uniformance PHD with GE Proficy Historian, tailored for professionals in chemical, oil & gas, power, and industrial automation sectors.
🧠 Why Connect EPKS/Uniformance PHD with Proficy Historian?
| Objective | Benefit to the Plant |
|---|---|
| Centralize historian data | Unified view of process values from multiple sources |
| Enable enterprise-wide analytics | Feed PHD + Proficy data into dashboards, MES, and AI platforms |
| Support legacy modernization | Use Proficy as new historian while maintaining Uniformance connectivity |
| Improve cross-platform integration | Normalize Honeywell tag data for SCADA, MES, and cloud applications |
🔍 System Overview
🟡 Honeywell EPKS
- Distributed control system with C300 controllers, SCADA, HMI, and HIS
- Stores real-time process data via Uniformance PHD
🔵 Uniformance PHD (Process History Database)
- Honeywell’s historian platform for long-term storage and retrieval
- Communicates with EPKS via PHD interface nodes
🟢 GE Proficy Historian
- A scalable, high-speed data historian
- Accepts data via OPC DA, OPC UA, SDK/API, and CSV
- Used in enterprise-level analytics, MES, and hybrid cloud applications
🛠️ Step-by-Step: How to Connect EPKS/Uniformance PHD to GE Proficy Historian
✅ Option 1: Connect Proficy Historian to Uniformance PHD via OPC DA
Requirements:
- Uniformance PHD OPC DA Server enabled
- GE Proficy Historian OPC Collector
- DCOM configuration between nodes (if remote)
Architecture:
cssCopyEdit[EPKS / C300] → [PHD Node] → [PHD OPC DA Server] → [Proficy OPC Collector] → [Proficy Historian]
Configuration Steps:
- Install OPC DA Server on the Uniformance PHD node (if not already available).
- On the Proficy Historian node, install OPC Collector using the Proficy Historian Admin Console.
- Configure the OPC Collector:
- Set OPC DA server address (e.g.,
\\PHD-SERVER\Honeywell.OPCServer) - Define data polling rates and deadband settings
- Set OPC DA server address (e.g.,
- Import PHD tags into Proficy Historian
- Use tag browser or CSV import
- Test live data flow
- Verify via Proficy Historian Admin tools or Excel Add-In
✅ Option 2: CSV Export from PHD → Proficy Data Loader
When to Use:
- You need historical data migration or periodic sync
- OPC DA access is restricted due to cybersecurity policies
Steps:
- Export data from Uniformance PHD:
- Use Honeywell PHD Client Tools or scripting
- Format as CSV with timestamps, tag names, and values
- Use GE Proficy Historian Excel Add-In or Data Loader
- Configure import format and schedule
- Automate the script to run every shift or daily
✅ Option 3: Use OPC UA Server from Uniformance (if available)
Benefits:
- Secure, firewall-friendly communication
- Modern standard (no DCOM)
Steps:
- Enable OPC UA Server on Uniformance PHD (requires version 2019+)
- In GE Proficy Historian Admin Console:
- Add OPC UA Collector
- Provide endpoint URL (
opc.tcp://PHD-SERVER:4840) - Configure security policies (Basic256Sha256 recommended)
- Browse and map tags
- Start collector service and monitor connectivity
🔐 Cybersecurity Considerations
| Item | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| OPC DA (DCOM) | Use within secure LAN/VLAN, configure DCOM properly |
| OPC UA | Prefer for cloud/enterprise applications with encryption and auth |
| Tag-level access control | Configure read-only groups for collectors |
| Windows Firewall | Open ports: OPC DA (135, DCOM dynamic range), OPC UA (4840/port) |
| Antivirus / Whitelisting | Apply to OPC components, especially on Windows-based nodes |
📊 Use Case: Chemical Plant Integrating EPKS with GE Proficy Historian
Scenario:
- A chemical plant running EPKS with Uniformance PHD
- Corporate MES and analytics platform runs on Proficy
- Requirement: Unified historian for operations and enterprise KPIs
Solution:
- Deployed OPC DA collector from Proficy to Uniformance PHD OPC server
- Created a data map of 5,000 tags (reactor temperature, valve states, flows)
- Archived both real-time and 1-minute averages
- Configured redundancy and buffering for connection loss handling
Outcome:
- Plant-wide dashboards consolidated via GE Operations Hub
- Data exported to Azure for AI batch quality modeling
- Downtime reduced by 15% with better historical trend access
🧩 Integration Tips and Best Practices
| Tip | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Use descriptive tag naming | Avoids confusion when aggregating from multiple systems |
| Test data quality before importing | Prevents garbage-in/garbage-out in analytics |
| Buffer data on collector nodes | Ensures continuity during network issues |
| Monitor collector performance | Use Proficy tools to check queue lengths and dropped points |
| Time sync all systems | Ensure NTP configuration on EPKS, PHD, and Historian nodes |
🧰 Tools You’ll Need
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| GE Proficy Historian Admin Console | Manage collectors, tags, and data flows |
| Honeywell PHD OPC Client | Validate server status and tag output |
| Wireshark | Network diagnostics for OPC traffic |
| Excel Add-In | Data view and manual export/import testing |
| Firewall Config Tool | Check and open necessary OPC ports |
📚 Additional Resources for Engineers
| Topic | Resource |
|---|---|
| OPC DA to UA migration | OPC Foundation Guidelines |
| Proficy Historian Training | GE Digital Academy |
| Uniformance Configuration | Honeywell EPKS / PHD Administrator Manuals |
| Historian Integration Support | GE Digital Partner Network or Honeywell Service Teams |
✅ Key Takeaways
- Honeywell EPKS and Uniformance PHD can be connected to GE Proficy Historian using OPC DA, OPC UA, or CSV.
- Integration enables better data centralization, enterprise analytics, and system modernization.
- Carefully plan tag mapping, data security, and time synchronization to ensure a robust integration.
- Use Proficy tools like the OPC Collector, Excel Add-In, and Admin Console to validate data flow and performance.
- This integration future-proofs your plant’s data architecture, empowering better decision-making and operational efficiency.