PROCESS CONTROL SYSTEM UTILIZING A DATABASE SYSTEM TO MONITOR A PROJECT'S PROGRESS AND ENFORCE A WORKFLOW OF ACTIVITIES WITHIN THE PROJECT

A process control system that automatically monitors processes and performs activities based on conditions detected during monitoring. The information needed to do the monitoring and perform activities is contained in tables in a database system. The process control system may be configured by configuring entries in the tables. A parallel state machine permits activities to be performed for the process in parallel. The parallel state machine employs a task that is represented in the database tables. The task defines a set of activities that must all be performed in order for a state transition to occur and the parallel state machine causes a process's state to change only when the activities defined in the task have all been performed. In addition, a graphical user interface is disclosed for defining tasks.