Risks of year 2000 embedded chip problem to U. S. Army installation heating and cooling plants

Abstract : Some computer systems may not correctly recognize dates after 31 December 1999. While much work has been done to prevent this failure in information systems, the effort to find and correct this problem in control systems using embedded chips has progressed less rapidly. Unless this problem is addressed, embedded systems in heating and cooling plants at U.S. Army installations may experience serious problems at or before the year 2000 calendar turnover. Embedded control systems may fail, reducing the reliability of installation utility plants. This study was conducted to locate and publish information to: (1) help installations identify embedded chip equipment and common manufacturers of control equipment that may fail around the year 2000, (2) provide the status of Y2K compliance for common equipment, and (3) supply Internet links and contact points that will help locate equipment manufacturers.