1. A method of creating a configuration entity for use in configuring a process plant, the method comprising: creating a class object representative of a process entity within the process plant that includes a first data structure representative of one or more process elements that make up the process entity; and creating a module object based on the class object that includes a second data structure, the second data structure to include a configurable first indication to represent whether a specific process element that conforms to a first one of the one or more process elements that make up the process entity is absent.