An approach to Year 2000 compliance on a millwide basis

The Year 2000 presents a problem for all automated systems in any business or industry. Specifically, process control systems in pulp and paper mills critical to production demands can have catastrophic failures if the Year 2000 issue is not addressed. With the vast array of manufacturers and shear number of control systems in today´s automation environment, the solution methodology becomes imperative in order to effectively prevent production interruption. This paper outlines an approach to this solution methodology and offers suggestions and insights based on a plan implemented at Longview Fibre Company in Longview, WA. It also includes information about current compliance efforts and compliance status about control systems and devices specific to the Longview mill.