The faster, simpler PROFIBUS-DP standard was born in 1993 from the slower, more complex PROFIBUS FMS (Fieldbus Message Specification) parent standard. PROFIBUS-DP also has a younger sibling or derivative standard, PROFIBUS-PA (Process Automation), which uses Manchester Bus Powered (MBP) transmission, adding power over the bus and making it well suited for intrinsic safety applications in hazardous environments. Otherwise, PROFIBUS-DP is the most widely used version of PROFIBUS today, probably because its plug-and-play nature, flexibility, and cost effectiveness are attractive in the majority of fieldbus applications. From the management of sensors and actuators in an industrial plant, to communication with flowmeters out in the rail yard, PROFIBUS-DP decentralizes I/O cards (masters) from controllers and brings them closer to sensors and actuators (slaves), resulting in numerous installation and operational benefits. All PROFIBUS versions employ serial, bidirectional, and multi-drop communications.