Soft sensing is CTQ's latest development in the field of inferential prediction of process variables and quality measures in chemical processes.

A soft or virtual Sensor is a software component, easily integrated in the plant information system, that predicts the future value of one or more process variables or quality measures of the final product on the basis of the values of several process variables that are measured on-line by plant sensors. Consequently, soft sensing provides process information and product specifications to plant operators in advance. It's also a key element in the development of early warning systems.