Sustainable Engineering is Here

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‘Reduce, reuse, recycle’ saves the engineering environment, too, when you replace standard coding with time-saving reusable software objects.  Industrial users all seem to have unique environments, even plants within environments like food processing or component manufacturing have requirements and processes that vary widely. But throughout the individual enterprises, there are usually many machines that are run using the same setup. That’s a vexing challenge... Read More

Siemens Component Based Automation video

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Interlocking multiple pieces of equipment in an automation system is often a time consuming, expensive and inflexible task. Learn about the latest advancements for simplifying your machine connections. Have an Inquiry for Siemens about this article? Click Here >>    Read More →

SIMATIC Manager: The Software “Glue” for Totally Integrated Automation

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When Siemens unveiled its Totally Integrated Automation (TIA) approach to manufacturing in 1996 the concept didn’t seem all that new or revolutionary at first glance. “Well that’s just modularity,” some opined. However, they didn’t understand the totality of the TIA vision which calls for both vertical and horizontal integration, defines the interaction of the software, the hardware and services and ties the plant together from the management level, through the operators... Read More

Reduce Arc Flash Accidents Using Totally Integrated Automation

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Several years ago Henry was the maintenance manager at a large manufacturing facility. He was married, had a very upbeat personality, a good position at the company, and was pleasant to be around. One day, Henry was trying to track down a low voltage problem and was conducting voltage measurements on a 4,160V to 480V dry type transformer on an upper level mezzanine. He took off the transformer cover, knelt down in front of it with a meter to test the 480V side and got the 4,160V... Read More

Sinamics® S110 Servo Drive

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“Plug and Play” has become a term almost synonymous with the consumer electronics market – and especially the computing market. These days, if a device requires more configuration than connecting it via USB and a brief walk through of a couple of point-and-click screens then most people will decide it’s not worth the effort. That same kind of convenience is gradually coming to the vastly more complex environment of the industrial automation world.HMI SCADA systems have... Read More

Five Things to Think About Before Using Hardwired Controls

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Regardless of the industry you are in, the universal workhorses for automating a piece of equipment or process are simple hardwired controls like cube relays, timers and counters. You can find these devices in discrete and process industries, on the plant floor in the manufacturing environment and even in commercial and consumer applications such as gate controls, vending machines and amusement equipment. They work just fine, doing their assigned tasks as required so what’s... Read More

How Asset Management Saves in a Down Economy

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Plant Asset Management systems let you squeeze more out of your industrial equipment by reducing unplanned stoppages and unnecessary maintenance tasks. Estimated savings in the U.S. could exceed $60 billion. Wouldn’t it be nice to know something was going to break before it actually brought your production line to a grinding halt, killing productivity, throwing off schedules and possibly compromising delivery deadlines? Now think about how nice it would be to be able to put... Read More