Difference between Dcs and Plc

Dcs vs Plc
In the manufacturing process, there are two types of control that can be
employed. One is the Programmed Logic Controller, otherwise commonly
referred to as PLC, and the other is the DCS, or the Distributed Control
System. The Programmed Logic Control  system  is a standalone control
and is developed to perform a specific task. The DCS, on the other hand,
functions as a control system that can work through various levels for the
end result to be achieved. This means that the DCS can be formed by
several levels of PLC’s in creating a fully functional system.
Traditionally, the formulation of DCS’s was extremely expensive and was
only recommended for batch processing industries, as they had various
levels of production before the final product was delivered. This concept
holds today, albeit with a few changes that have occurred along the way.
Multiple PLC and DCS solutions have been developed through time to
ease automation and entire control processes. One of the PLC solutions
developed was coupled with HMI (Human Machine Interface)/SCADA
(Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition) which allows for user
interaction. Furthermore, PLC is a management  tool that has a rather
analogous control function for process management.  PLC ensures that
the ladder logic is maintained. This is the preferred solution for use for
Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and special project needs. For
user interaction, a HMI/SCADA panes must be provided.
For slightly larger processes, a DCS is preferred. This allows for easier
management of processes that are beyond the scope of a single PLC
management. A small DCS management is much better when compared to
traditional DCS management systems, largely due to a smaller footprint.
Also the system has a diagnostics database that lowers ownership costs.
For large processes a large DCS solution is recommended. This is a
distributed control that has numerous features to help in  meeting  the
production requirements. Functions such as collecting controlling output,
alarming, processing, and data collection all are managed in the DCS
system. There are specific measures instituted in the DCS solution to
handle each process. With the entire system synchronized no single
system failure can lead  to the failure of another system of a different part.
The geographical distribution of the area is also a factor when deciding
between PLC and DCS. If the control functions have been distributed over
different geographic locations, use of PLC or even DCS can be
considered, depending on the needs. Having different processes
individually can help a single part of the system in its management,
especially when failure arises, since the failure of a given system does not
mean that the entire process should come to a grinding halt.
The control algorithms in DCS ought to be advanced, as the loop between
the measured and manipulated input handles the entire process. When the
word ‘system’ is mentioned in DCS, it means that one process is linked to
the rest and there are different physical processes spread over a wide
area. To ensure that the PLC control is working as expected, there should
be two processes running in the PLC, one controlling the process in
question, while the other safeguards the process. Smaller PLC’s can have
the same unit running both the control and safeguarding processes.

Summary
PLC is mainly used as a controller of processes and mainly comes as a
standalone program.
DCS is mainly used as a control system and will feature different
processes which can be made up of merged PLC’s.
Both DCS and PLC can be configured or reconfigured.
DCS is a relatively large system while the PLC is a small system.