SIMCA-online 18.1

Desktop client

Reference batches: Predictionset batches can be added as reference batches and, like workset batches, be added to plots to compare with active or historical batches.
Batches and metadata in unit overview: At a glance see which batch is active in a unit, when the phase started and where the unit is geographically located.
Troubleshooting: Project configuration wizard highlight changed pages and issues.
Project configuration report: The project configuration can be exported as a PDF report. The report can be customized using a XSLT template similar to notifications email.
Session workspace: Enable rapid opening of client with open last session workspace choice at login.
Configuration Audit Trail: Alarm traceability improved by adding reset_alarm comment to alarm_triggered event.
Control Advisor configuration: SIMCA-online 18 introduced automatic filling in of suggested manipulated variables (Xmv). In 18.1 re-trigger filling by first unselecting all variables, and then re-opening the dialog for selecting them.
Production overview: Display all triggered alarms for all phase iterations from context menu.

Fixed reported issues

Fixed: Pressing ENTER no longer closes configuration wizard while working with Alarms settings.
Fixed: Crash that could occur when importing a BCG file with project configuration settings for batch evolution alarms and then importing another BCG file with different settings. (Bug 56541)
Fixed: Control limits that are not standard were not saved in bcg (Bug 25252)
Fixed: Control limits higher other than +- 1,2,3 were colored asymmetrically (Bug 25240)
Fixed: Rare client crash that could occur on execution stop with open plots. (Bug 46828)
Fixed: 'Zoom in active phase' setting didn't work if there was a phase switch when the user was not logged in. (Bug 57411)
Fixed: Selected tags in Extract dialog didn't show tags. (Bug 58042)
Fixed: YPred introduced in title in batch level Y predicted plot. (Bug 56158)

Server | System

Server log: less verbose server logging from the WebAPI: there is no longer an extra [Error] level entry for each exception since these are also logged separately as [Warning] or [Error] but in a better way with full context.
Server log: when the data for the configured maturity tag is missing this is now logged as a [Warning] level entry instead of [Debug].
Write-back to data source of x- and y-variables and their limits. (User Story 58237)
- Write back vector contains XVar, XVarMean, XVarStdDev, YVar, YVarMean, YVarStdDev, that enables variables and their corresponding limits, including generated variables and Python preprocessing variables, for writeback.
- The added write back options are available for Batch evolution, Batch level and Continuous configurations.
Faster and more exact floating-point parsing. (User Story 58836)
Python has been upgraded to 3.13 with NumPy 2.1.3 and SciPy 1.14.1 Pandas 2.2.3.

Fixed reported issues

Fixed: Server did not catch up when falling behind for Control Advisor projects. Control Advisor predictions now temporarily disabled until the project configuration is back on track. (Bug 57562)
Fixed: Configuration running discrete data and out limits resulted in server crash and incorrect data (Bug 57869).
Fixed: T2Range Contribution performance, plots for projects with many workset batches could be very slow to open. (Bug 58603)
Fixed: Preprocessing on the batch level data in combination with phase iterations resulted in no batch level predictions. (Bug 61496)
Fixed: Memory leak in 'round' and 'isnan' genvar functions (Bug 61836)
Fixed: Process value "-99" not displayed in SIMCA-online. Reading -99 from a data source is now transformed into a value very close to -99 since it would otherwise be interpreted as missing. (Bug 59096)

For details, see 'SIMCA-online 18.1 Whats New.pdf' in the the zip file.

Learn what's new in SIMCA-online Web Client 18.1 that is bundled with SIMCA-online 18.1.

How to get SIMCA-online

Download and installation

Contact sales to get a download link.

How to install SIMCA-online

Follow the instructions in the Readme and Installation Guide.pdf included in the zip file and run the setup program.

Demo limitations

If you install SIMCA-online without a license it will run in demo mode. The demo mode includes all SIMCA-online features, but is restricted to only use the DBMaker SimApi which connects to the database simulation software DBMaker. SIMCA-online cannot connect to other data sources in demo mode. However, you can use SIMCA-online with real-world data without a SimApi (Q811).

Technical details

SIMCA-online 18.1 is a separate program and installation from the previous versions. SIMCA-online 18.1 can be installed in parallel with earlier versions on the same server computer. Different database directories and settings are used. Note however that we do not recommend running more than one Umetrics® Suite server per server computer in production. See the SIMCA-online Technical Guide (section 2.1.1) for more information.

SIMCA-online 18.1 is backwards compatible with the SIMCA-online 13.1 and later database formats. This means that a copy of the database for those versions can be used if you want to migrate a previous server to the most recent version and keep old data.

The application SIMCA-online Server Options is started automatically following the installation; If an earlier supported version is installed it will ask if you would like to import data and settings from that version. Follow the instructions on the screen.

To learn more about migration of databases and settings, refer to Supported migration of database and settings between SIMCA-online versions (Q801).

Licensing

SIMCA-online is licensed on the SIMCA-online server. Clients need no licenses and can be freely installed and used on many PCs. A server license is needed to connect to data sources other than the built-in data source simulation tool DBMaker (see above under Demo limitations).

SIMCA-online licensing works as follows:

You place an order with your sales representative.
You receive an email (delivery letter) with an Activation ID together with step-by-step instructions. Save a copy of the email as you might need it later if you reinstall the product or want to change the license.
Follow the instructions in the email to use the Activation ID to download and install a license on your server computer.

Learn more about licensing in About licensing of Umetrics Suite products (sartorius.com)

Release date

The version of this release is 18.1.0.408. Release date 2025-05-27.

Validation

SIMCA-online 18.1 and the SIMCA-online Web Client 18.1 have been partially validated. The short validation report and the validation package are available as downloads. To unzip the validation zip you need a password that you get from your sales representative.

System requirements

Any x64 computer hardware supported by the Windows versions listed below.
Supported versions of Microsoft Windows Server 2022, Windows Server 2019, Windows 11, Windows 10
Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.2 or later. The latest available version is recommended.
500 MB available hard disk space for a full installation.
Any graphics card. Performance is not improved with more advanced cards.
SIMCA projects built with SIMCA 13.0.3 or later. To use the latest features, we recommend SIMCA 18.1.

To learn more on installation guidance see the SIMCA-online Implementation Guide on the SIMCA-online download page and the SIMCA-online Technical Guide.

Third party software

SIMCA-online is bundled with ExamDiff, a freeware tool for visual comparison of configuration changes in the SIMCA-online audit trail for 21 CFR Part 11 (Electronic Records) compliance. For even more features, check out ExamDiff Pro.

"Python" is a registered trademark of the Python Software Foundation (python.org/psf-landing). Python is licensed under the Python Software License (opensource.org/licenses/PythonSoftFoundation.php).