Recent upgrades expand the scope and features of the ControlWorks plantwide “virtual private network” (VPN) for monitoring and controlling all types of auxiliary equipment (blenders, silos, dryers, feeders, pumps, loaders, chillers, and robots). The modular, expandable system from Conair, Cranberry Township, Pa., uses Ethernet technology and a web-based interface. Since it was introduced two years ago, Conair has expanded ControlWorks to monitor TrueFeed gravimetric feeders and storage vessels such as silos and bins. Also new are customized screens that can display all equipment of a certain type—like blenders—on one screen or can display a particular processing cell. Screens are custom-made to reflect a plant’s layout using graphic icons or actual photos. In addition, ControlWorks now can monitor analog, RTD, or digital inputs from non-Conair equipment.