Articles and News

By Bill Lydon Focused on the theme, Driving Digital Transformation in Industry and Cities, the February 3-6 event had over 800 attendees from 20 countries representing more than 300 companies, along with many breakout sessions and workshops.

The partnership establishes AAE as an official Authorized Epson Service Center and will expand beyond selling Epson Robots, automation products and integrated solutions to include maintenance and repair of the installed base of Epson robots.

The definition of Digital Twin has been well vetted over the last few years, yet it seems when it’s time to pilot projects, it is forgotten. By working out these kinks, everything else―including performance monitoring, IIoT, predictive analytics and operational simulation―will fall into place.

InVision will offer Dynamic Infrastructure's AI-based predictive maintenance solution to tollway operators in Greece to help them maintain their assets and improve Opex.

What supply chain issues do you anticipate in your area of the world as a result of COVID-19?

The newly classified pandemic known as COVID-19 will have a dramatic impact on nearly every industry around the world, and automation will be no exception.

What impact will COVID-19 have on the automation cybersecurity industry?

Madison-Kipp Corporation (MKC), based in Madison, Wisconsin, makes precision machined aluminum die castings and subassemblies for the transportation, lawn & garden, and industrial markets. When it wanted to bring down costs and raise efficiency, MKC implemented Ignition by Inductive Automation

The company has invested $10 million USD in the new 128,000 square foot facility where it will design, develop, test and manufacture robotic and safety automation solutions.

Experiential learning is increasingly accepted as the most effective way to develop competency for both operators and field workers. To build truly effective operations, though, we need to bring them together.

Connecting JobBOSS data directly with real-time machine performance is intended to create visibility at an actionable level so that operators and managers can run business operations more effectively.

The traveling tour is designed to bring the latest innovations in automation, instrumentation, networking, and cybersecurity right to the doorstep of the process industries.

The first controller has been completed at Rolls-Royce in the Purdue Research Foundation’s Discovery Park District adjacent to the Purdue University campus in West Lafayette, Indiana, and will be installed onto a Rolls-Royce AE 3007H engine, manufactured at the company’s facilities in Indianapolis.

The Facility Management & Maintenance Library features 69 courses in 3D specifically designed to train facility managers, building engineers and maintenance technicians of commercial buildings.

This article discusses how automated guided vehicles have advanced from simple materials handlers to intelligent autonomous robots.

Research by Salesleads, a company that tracks industrial companies that are planning construction, expansion, or relocation projects in North America, 435 new projects are in the works as of February 2020, an activity increase of 1% from the previous month.

For the most effective management of industrial cybersecurity, it should be baked into a company's culture.

As manufacturers consider investing in robotic technology for productivity, it’s vital they have a clear grasp of ROI validating purchasing decisions.

One of the challenges of this application was the metal and shiny surface of the parts, which the ECCO 55.100 sensor was able to manage perfectly, producing a high-quality profile of the inspected part.

Through this partnership, UniCarriers will manufacture and promote their pallet jacks running Vecna Robotics’ Pivotal automation software.

With the objective of spearheading a machining paradigm able to handle large, complex aluminum parts, the companies have started a strategic cooperation.

The automotive sensor market saw the highest growth in 2018, and the Research and Markets predicts the automotive sector will continue to dominate the sensor market until 2029. So, what can the wider manufacturing industry learn from this?

In his role, Jayaseelan will drive company-wide sustainability initiatives for plant operations, design, engineering, procurement, finance and marketing.

The two companies have agreed that Yokogawa will provide energy management technology needed for the efficient operation and optimization of large-scale storage batteries.

There are a host of advantages in adopting the SaaS model for business solutions such as labeling. Not surprisingly there is both a growing trend for companies to integrate labeling with their cloud-based enterprise applications as well as a distinct move to embrace cloud based labeling solutions.

T-Systems currently offers several solution bundles including LoRaWAN sensors, gateways, Senet network connectivity plans, and integration with T-Systems’ Cloud of Things IoT platform for application management and expansion.

With Plus One Robotics, MSC has deployed a patent-pending 3D-vision and AI-enabled robotic packing system in its Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, customer fulfillment center and now plans to implement the system across its five major centers.

The 2020 product catalog features performance data, sizes, specifications, and technical references for the company’s portfolio of current sensing switches, transducers, transformers, and ground fault protection products.

The collaboration combines Emerson’s global reach and an independent E&P software portfolio with QRI’s industry expertise in applying augmented AI, machine learning and advanced analytics for asset and reservoir management.

HANNOVER MESSE 2020 has been postponed to the week of 13 to 17 July. Deutsche Messe AG is thus responding to global developments related to the Coronavirus.

What is digital twin technology in the context of manufacturing automation?

The five core beliefs of the ISA Global Cybersecurity Alliance represent the values that its founding members share in common.

ABB, a supplier of industrial robots, and Silicon Valley AI start-up, Covariant, announced a partnership to bring AI-enabled robotics solutions to market, starting with a fully autonomous warehouse order fulfilment solution.

HANNOVER MESSE USA will highlight the entire scope of Industry 4.0 and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) solutions from digital ecosystems to engineered parts & solutions; automation, motion & drives; energy solutions, augmented reality, AI & robotics; and more.

The first testbed for the rail transportation industry, the LTE for Metro Testbed shows the feasibility of adapting LTE for Metro technologies for the urban rail sector.

New technology is making it possible for these OEMs to re-engineer their processes and operations, better support their customers, and capture increasing aftermarket business.

Process historians were once simply software packages that stored and presented real-time process data, but today historians are being used for much more.

To maintain a constant (rated) flux density, the applied voltage must also be changed in the same proportion as the frequency (per Faraday’s law).

To fight the coronavirus, China completed construction of two new field hospitals in Wuhan in just 10 days. Power management company Eaton and its partner electrical contractors and distributors were part of the construction project at the Huoshenshan and Leishenshan Hospitals that delivered an additional 2,500 hospital beds to the front line of this global health emergency.

“5G for Business” is devoted to the fifth-generation wireless technology, its application to different fields and sectors, and related opportunities to the city’s business. The first issue is dedicated to the theme of 5G and its use in immersive technologies, including artificial intelligence (AR), Virtual Reality (VR) and 360 ° video.

When machines run 24/7, with or without supervision, their components can wear out quickly. This article explains the potential of lights-out manufacturing.

T1 Industrial is the future interface for single pair Ethernet applications in industry. This standard is supported and integrated by the SPE relevant standards ISO/IEC 11801-3, ANSI TIA 1005-x and IEEE802.3cg.

Although few engineers now hesitate to use wireless for monitoring purposes, wireless valve control has not enjoyed such success.

Products are becoming commodities in the fast-moving new global business environment. To succeed, businesses need a competitive differentiator – a proprietary edge which can only be developed through innovation, knowledge and experience.

Network marketing is a distribution system, or form of marketing, which channels goods or services from the manufacturer to the consumer through a "network" of independent distributors or consultants.

The world of HAL and Data, of sentient machines, is fast approaching. Indeed, in some ways it has already arrived as humanlike machines increasingly take on the work of humans. As processing power increases exponentially, and as MEMS technology brings smaller and smarter sensors and actuators, robots are the breeding ground for future-generation products with new, varied and exciting applications.

Today, ETO manufacturers, as opposed to repetitive manufacturers, are required to use technology to stay one step ahead of foreign competition.

Buhler, a provider of grain milling solutions, standardized on Softing’s industry-hardened S7/S5 OPC Server to provide reliable connectivity between Buhler’s “WinCoS.r2” automation system and multiple S7-400 PLC’s

The reason to use derivative (or D) is that you can use more Proportional and especially more Integral action. The result can be a much faster reacting control loop.

Counterfeit electrical products are a growing problem that can have serious consequences. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reports fiscal year 2008 seizures totaled more than $272.7 million in counterfeit and pirated goods, a 38 percent increase in domestic value over fiscal year 2007. In the category of Top Safety and Security Commodities for fiscal year 2009, electrical products moved from 5th to 2nd position just behind pharmaceuticals.

Dr. Godart is known for developing high-performance teams and applying groundbreaking technologies to improve business productivity and sustainability. He comes to OSI well equipped to provide strong strategic leadership to the company’s industrial energy management business unit.

The CC-Link Partner Association (CLPA) announced the release of the open architecture gigabit (GB) CC-Link IE Field Network. I recently met with two members of CLPA Americas to get an update on the latest CC-Link IE standard.

The two main ways to implement secure remote access are with a hosted VPN and with a traditional VPN.A hosted VPN works well in most applications and is much simpler to implement and support.t

Suggested industrial applications for XP Embedded include human-machine interface (HMI) panels, process automation systems, industrial robots, inspection systems, Soft programmable logic controllers (Soft PLCs), remote control devices and factory monitoring systems. Accordingly, many Advantech systems are compatible with XP Embedded. A few of the many possible consumer and commercial applications of XP Embedded would include set top boxes and terminals such as kiosks and ATMs.

Over the years, corrosion evaluation tools have been developed to help the corrosion engineer do his or her job more efficiently. In the end, these tools gave the corrosion expert a high level of data for determination of corrosion but the data was only useful to the specialist, not the facility operator or control systems engineer – that is, until now. Finally, corrosion monitoring technology is available that can be easily implemented into standard control room architecture.

Traditional compressor monitoring has focused on velocity vibration and rod drop. Hardy provides two additional measurement techniques, Impact and Triangulated Rod Drop, that were developed especially for reciprocating compressors.

The vast majority of encoder users have a solid understanding of the type of encoder they need to accomplish their objective. What they don’t always know, at least without painful experience, are the major factors that need to be considered when specifying, installing, and interfacing with the encoders they select for their machine. This article will address those issues, primarily as they relate to rotary incremental optical encoders, though most of the concepts that follow apply to several encoder types.

The methodology proposed in this paper can be applied to any processes i.e. manufacturing, management, software development, financial, etc.

The Freelance system combines easy engineering with open system architecture. ABB describes Freelance as a small footprint DCS for small to medium sized plants in the process industry and for applications requiring DCS functionality in a compact system with intuitive and efficient engineering tools.

ISO 9000 is a family of international quality management systems standards designed to help organizations ensure that they meet the needs of customers and other stakeholders while meeting statutory an

In his role, Markus Spanner has established an extended management team to take a structured approach to achieving the new targets. He will be assisted bDr. Peter Schittenhelm (COO), Dr. Markus Czanta (CTO), Stéphane Bussa (CSO), and Heiko Brehm (CFO).

The transaction includes the purchase of a minority interest in ASEM held by KEB Group, Germany. Post-close, Rockwell Automation will maintain ASEM’s strategic supplier and technology partner relationship with KEB.

The solution is a result of co-innovation between Orange and its strategic partners Ekinops and Dell Technologies, combining Enterprise Branch Server IT and Virtualization Management.

The awards, which are judged by independent juries of industry experts, recognize infrastructure projects for digital innovations that improve project delivery and/or asset performance. The deadline for nominations is May 1, 2020.

The report shows that the current deceleration in manufacturing output seen in 2019 is expected to continue into early 2020. However, a solid recovery is anticipated by 2021, before the sector enters another natural business downcycle towards the end of 2022. A rise in output for most industrial segments is then forecast beyond 2022.

From 2020 to 2022 almost 2 million new units of industrial robots are expected to be installed in factories around the world. New technology trends and market developments enable companies to react to changing requirements. The International Federation of Robotics shows top trends to innovate.

Designed to help digitalize the smart buildings industry, the Smart Buildings Challenge had technology suppliers compete to design solutions for four different use cases.

The amount of worldwide e-waste generation is expected to exceed 50 million tons by 2020. Americans specifically, throw away an estimated 55 billion USD in e-waste material each year. This article explains how manufacturers can achieve sustainable manufacturing through obsolescence management.

There are very few if any chemical or refinery units that would not benefit from state-based alarming.

ISA past president Paul Gruhn, PE, CFSE, will be presenting at local meetings around the country during the first quarter of 2020. As a global functional safety consultant with aeSolutions, Gruhn has gained extensive experience consulting with sites around the world.

SystemLink was developed by National Instruments as a tool to help engineers and engineering management navigate through Industry 4.0. It works to simplify tasks such as software deployment, device configuration, system monitoring, and data management.

Through his experience on numerous projects, Kuusman has acquired a breadth of knowledge in the company’s systems and site work management, which he now brings to this new role. Namely, he will be responsible for leading the Cimcorp U.S. office in Norcross, Georgia, guiding its strategic growth and quality of customer service and after-sales support.

PCT set out to find a solution that would remove the cab from the boom and, instead, allow operators to control and monitor the process remotely. If the company pulled it off, it would be a first for ship loading in North America.

This strategic initiative is intended to expand Wunderlich-Malec’s services including Civil and Structural Engineering and enhance their capacity for Architectural and MEP services.

Understanding and reducing noise from control valves is an important consideration for the process industries, especially those close to residential areas.

The initiative "Industrial Joining Technologies (IJT)" describes all joining technologies used for manufacturing processes such as riveting, welding, gluing and tightening. The scope of the specification was developed with the help of DIN 8580 and shows which joining processes can be classified under Industrial Joining Technologies (see figure).

Talk of Industry 4.0 has been useful in helping businesses understand the value of industrial automation and connectivity. This article explains why it’s not only vital to work with a systems integrator to get the most from industrial connectivity, but to also take a grounded approach.

Announced in conjunction with the availability of version 1.2 of the FDI specifications (IEC 62769), this release of the FDI Device Package Integrated Development Environment (FDI-IDE) provides enhancements for field instrument software developers.

Slip is usually expressed as a percentage, and varies by motor, from nominally 0.5 percent for very large motors to about 5 percent for small, specialized motors..

This article discusses five factors that can affect the weighing system's accuracy and provides advice on selecting, installing, and operating the system to handle these factors.

The move provides Abaco with the head room and resources that will allow the company to continue to develop the embedded computing technologies and solutions that have enabled it to become a supplier to the defense market.

The largest driver of the growth was a 50.5 percent increase in orders from automotive OEMs and a 16.6 percent increase from the plastics and rubber industry. Orders to automotive component markets were down 6.6 percent, and all other non-automotive industries, including food & consumer goods, life sciences, metals, and semiconductor/electronics, contracted by single digits.

The poster deals with the basics of EtherCAT technology, the EtherCAT Device Protocol (EDP), and provides a visual overview of EtherCAT. It describes the basic functional principles of EtherCAT, the structure of the frame and its processing in the EtherCAT Slave Controller (ESC).

The SOL4CE (Scalable Open Laboratory for Cyber Experimentation) is a collaborative initiative between CERIAS, the interdisciplinary cyber/cyber-physical security research institute, and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Sandia National Laboratories.

The collaboration will allow RobotWorx to expand its service offerings into offline robot programming with a software creator. OCTOPUZ enables path-sensitive, complex robot applications to be programmed without disruption to the manufacturing process.

A fuel cell is a device that converts energy stored in molecules into electrical energy. Using hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2) as power, the fuel cell produces water, electricity and heat without creating any emissions other than water vapour. This article explains the possibilities of hydrogen fuel cells.

A recent industry survey by NTMA through found that more than 90% of manufacturers are struggling to fill open positions. Other data show that the number of job openings in manufacturer is expected to grow even more in the next decade if there is not a significant investment in skills training.

With its keynote theme of Industrial Transformation, HANNOVER MESSE 2020 focuses on the opportunities presented by innovative technologies, steadily growing and ever more readily available amounts of data, and a growing awareness of climate protection.

One of the important objectives of a leak detection plan is specifying the required sensitivity. The two usual ways of doing that begin with either a leak hole size or a percent of mainline flow crite

IEC 63171-6 is the international standard for Single Pair Ethernet interfaces in industrial applications. The editor is the IEC committee SC 48B copper connectors. The mating face standard IEC 63171-6 T1 Industrial Style was the first standard submitted by HARTING to SC 48B for a Single Pair Ethernet mating face as early as 2016.

Overall, the majority of companies (77 percent) continue to use or plan to use automation in the next three years. The biggest takeaway in this year’s study is that the majority of respondents (51 percent) now believe that automation will decrease headcount in the IT security function, an increase from 30 percent in last year’s study.

The project further expands Emerson’s initiative to collaborate with higher education institutions and its commitment with both schools to build a globally competitive craft brewing and brewing industry in Flanders,

The report is a collaboration between many of TÜV Rheinland‘s Cybersecurity experts globally, and discusses seven key Cybersecurity trends which will be important to be aware of in 2020. These include attacks on smart supply chains, threats to medical equipment and weaknesses in real-time operating systems.

One of the main difficulties in modern cities is large number of vehicles. Traffic signal control has a crucial role in transport safety & smoothness of traffic flow.

A camera integrated directly into the nut of the drive generates images that artificial intelligence continuously monitors for signs of wear, helping to reduce machine downtime.

The SCADA market growth is attributed to the increasing adoption of automation technologies by oil & gas, utility, and manufacturing industries.

By Bill Lydon, Contributing Editor Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies are disrupting the manufacturing industry, and that disruption has risen to the highest levels: a topic for discussion at the 2020 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in late January

The Reynolds Number for a flowing fluid can be generalized as the ratio of kinetic (or inertial) forces divided by viscous forces.

Tranter IT is a technology service provider with an established presence in all 36 states of Nigeria with over 400 employees, of which 270 are engineers.

This article addresses issues related to the IP portion of the TCP/IP stack as it applies to control networks.

When judging entries for the award, the emphasis will be on the following criteria: degree of technological innovation, benefit for industry, environment and society, economic viability and readiness for implementation.

A non-linear process will have different response across the operating range. It will be sluggish at one end of the range and comparatively faster or even oscillatory at the other.

Within the next few years, literally billions of Internet-enabled microprocessors will provide digital intelligence and connectivity for almost every commercial and industrial product and appliance, extending the Internet into most aspects of our lives.

Passive loopback process simulation will provide a low-cost, first-order approximation of how the plant will react to the software.

A solution for developers and application engineers, information, such as speed and torque, is sufficient in order to determine the appropriate solution. A list with the most important parameters shows the choices calculated.

As COO, Salvalaggio will lead overall operations of Applied Manufacturing Technologies services along with sales, engineering, and talent management.

In addition to electing its current seven-member Executive Committee, the CMS membership voted to establish a formal Board of Directors at the 35th Coordinate Metrology Society Conference in Orlando, FL in July 2019.

By Mark Howard, EU Automation To prevent the risks of foodborne illness and improve shelf life, food processors and manufacturers prioritize safety. This article shares three ways that technology is improving food quality.

The city collaborated with Carollo Engineers, an environmental engineering firm that specializes in the planning, design and construction of water and wastewater facilities, to help with the technology selection process. The team evaluated different solutions’ capabilities, support services, and more. The PlantPAx distributed control system (DCS) from Rockwell Automation came out on top.

Secure online and offline DTM repository meets use case requirements benefiting suppliers and end users

By Bill Lydon, Contributing Editor Attending the Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) Symposium hosted by Harting Electronics and the SPE Partner Network organization, I learned more about the 10BASE-T1 Single Pair Ethernet. SPE is an exciting development enabling seamless ethernet connectivity from sensor to enterprise, connecting the IoT universe.

The Secured by Cimetrics Early Access Program (SbC-EA) is designed to deploy BACnet/SC and the Secured by Cimetrics (SbC) security management framework to the building automation industry.

Specialized project team knowledge and skills are required for integrating automation system components and technology.

The manufacturing computer systems hierarchy is defined in ISA-88 and ISA-95 by Level 0 through Level 4.

ISA created the Global Cybersecurity Alliance to advance cybersecurity readiness and awareness in manufacturing and critical infrastructure facilities and processes.

The servitization maturity model is a four-step process that will serve as the roadmap for manufacturers to navigate the necessary steps and changes required for the journey to delivering Product-as-a-Service (PaaS).

Big data analytics is valuable, but cannot be used for all industrial needs. Edge analytics can help where big data falls short.

The thought of an industrial system upgrade or a DCS migration can inspire fear, uncertainty and doubt about how such a major project moves forward.

By Tatjana Milenovic, ABB Food & Beverage Connected automation systems are making food and beverage manufacturing more efficient, productive and cost-effective, but this greater connectivity creates greater opportunities for agroterrorism. This article discusses the need to integrate data protection into a wider plant safety system.

IIC Community Forum will be an IIoT discussion forum to provide helpful, relevant content to technology users, vendors, integrators, technology experts, researchers, government entities and academicians.

The project includes an implementation of a wireless energy conservation solution that enables SKF a deployment with minimal impact on the manufacturing line.

The partnership enables MBX customers to have their Lanner-based platforms imaged, tested, configured and shipped directly from Lanner's Taiwan plant, while also giving Lanner and its customers full access to MBX's manufacturing controls, inventory management programs, and global logistics and export compliance capabilities.

Rego has been with PI for 19 years, having grown within the sales operations and in progressive sales management. He built relationships with customers and gained a solid understanding of PI’s manufacturing capabilities, an important factor in PI USA’s future growth.

By integrating Verizon’s Managed Connectivity LTE solutions into Honeywell’s smart meters and other electric, gas, and water solutions, the two companies intend to drive energy savings by more quickly deploying smart electric grid technologies.

The new subsidiary—Cimcorp Iberia, S.L.—based in Madrid is intended to better serve the Spanish market.

CMS Certification credentials aid in verifying an employee’s knowledge of metrology, which is essential to ISO certified manufacturers and companies with Quality Management Systems.

With advances in computer and graphical processing, virtual reality for training personnel has now become practical for process industries.

Studio 5000 Logix Designer (formerly known as RSlogix 5000) is used to program the most powerful Allen-Bradley PLCs (technically PACs), including the ControlLogix and CompactLogix controllers.

An analog voltmeter works by passing a current through a coil that is suspended between two permanent magnets.

The Annual Valve Industry Leadership Forum will be held February 27-28, 2020 at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in New Orleans. This is the industry’s premier executive networking event, featuring executive-level analysis on the trends, management strategies, manufacturing innovations, politics and economics affecting the valve industry.

Based in Grand Rapids, MI, eMotion partners with its customers to provide material handling systems integration, hardware design, software and robotic solutions across its customer base

ElevenPaths will offer Nozomi Networks’ solutions for OT cyber resiliency and real-time operational visibility to customers worldwide.

LK Metrology has built a new CMM measurement services department for performing contract dimensional inspection using the latest metrology software with multi-sensor technology applied to LK Metrology CMM designs.

As one of the fastest growing sectors of the robot market, a lack of knowledge could be dangerous. This article will work to quash some common misconceptions about collaborative robot safety.

Constant industrial network monitoring throughout the network life cycle will mitigate any security risks as the network evolves.

HARTING is offering the modular edge computing MICA, which has been designed according to industrial standards for multiple industrial applications, and Expleo is contributing its know-how in connectivity and data-scientific competence.

This will replace TEP’s legacy EMS system in mid-2021. TEP has previously contracted with OSI to implement OSI’s Advanced Distribution Management System with Outage Management capabilities for control of their distribution networks.

Automation stakeholders will benefit from secure DTM/App management and storage in the cloud

Mitchell holds a BS in Chemistry from Bridgewater State University and has spent his career leading global technology businesses in the semiconductor, optics and analytical sciences industries.

The inclusion of wireless technologies in ST’s microcontroller product portfolio delivers flexibility in device architecture and faster transition for the mass market to add connectivity.

The Open Industry 4.0 Alliance acts as a partnership of industrial companies that pragmatically participate in the implementation of cross-vendor industry 4.0 solutions and services for manufacturing facilities and automated warehouses.

Gallello is an established technology executive with a background in engineering vertical software solutions at companies, including MSC Software, Autodesk, Macromedia and Intergraph Japan.

With these web-based tools, users can select and build their vacuum solutions online. They are designed to be used for two different use cases: Users with vacuum know-how can use LEYCALC to calculate the behavior and performance of vacuum systems in detail. The Pump Finder guides beginners to suitable products by a questionnaire.

Mr. Ross holds a degree in Industrial Management from Northeastern State University and brings 30 years of operations and production management expertise to Trust Automation.

Endless examples of robot uprisings and plots for world domination haven’t assisted the technology’s efforts to be welcomed by humans in the workplace. This article discusses three crucial steps to alleviating human resistance to robot deployment.

There are advanced calibration techniques based on loop testing. Perform individual instrument calibration to achieve maximum accuracy.

Maintainability is the probability that a device will be restored to an operating condition within a specified period when maintenance is done with prescribed resources and procedures.

Every manufacturer must pay attention to costs and competitors’ pricing. For better or worse, purchasing professionals are rewarded for capturing the lowest price; few have the time to scour the internet for ever RFQ to see if the bid offered is indeed competitive.

He previously held every officer position for NTMA at the national level, including serving as NTMA Chairman in 2012, and served in every officer position in the Houston, Texas NTMA chapter.

ISAGCA is organized into four general focus areas for cybersecurity including: Awareness & Outreach; Compliance & Prevention; Education & Training; and Advocacy & Adoption.

Netwrix experts predict that the three main challenges for organizations will be targeted ransomware, attacks on AI-based solutions and data privacy challenges. According to Netwrix, organizations will also need to satisfy data access requests, increase cybersecurity awareness, deal with IT skills shortage and justify security investments.

By Mike Guilfoyle, ARC Advisory Group Digitally transformed organizations will be able to transition to and thrive in digital economies, making digital transformation a matter of not “if,” but “when.” Given that industrial digital transformation is necessary to remain viable and competitive, why are mistakes, false starts, and dead-end investments all too common?

AInnovation, dedicated to bringing AI to the industries of manufacturing, retail and finance, deploys various CV and other algorithms to its ManuVision platform, based on which, the Quality Assurance all-in-one Machines are provided to a range of customers in different industries like garment, motor, consumer electronics, helping to identify defective products. It

A sensitive flow measurement is needed to identify the installed flow characteristic online.

Stadtwerke Lohr am Main has been supplied with 39 GT pneumatic piston actuators and 13 CK modular electric actuators to be used at two municipal water works which supply the town of Lohr am Main, in Bavaria, and surrounding areas.

By Jonathan Wilkins, EU Automation An electric motor is a device that converts electrical energy into rotary kinetic energy, powering many diverse processes like a drive, fan, pump or conveyor belt. Each process requires a specific motor, with specialised characteristics for each unique function. This article explores the best ways of reducing costs related to running a motor.

Tripwire’s Industrial Appliance provides industrial organizations a one-box solution for gaining visibility into their operational technology (OT) networks through a passive asset discovery approach.

By Stephen Armstrong, Freelance Industrial Writer With some DCS systems now decades old, system users often know they need to upgrade but find the task daunting given the cost and potential for disruption of operations while the new system is brought online.

Nocom comes to StratEdge from Samtec, where he served as a research and development process engineer. He is certified in Six Sigma Green Belt training, has 5S and RETC semiconductor training, and has developed numerous manufacturing tools and processes.

Closely monitor the temperature of liquids in impulse lines, and always check the viscosity to ensure it is within acceptable operating limits.

UR cobots allow employees to move from repetitive, low-value tasks to higher-value activities that increase productivity and quality as well as work conditions.

The partnership involves Critical Manufacturing’s Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) customers in the complex manufacturing for hi-tech, semiconductor, and medical device manufacturing industries.

Parity is a simple method using a binary code (“1” or “0”) to detect data transmission errors by making the sum of the “1” bits in the source data either an odd or an even number.

Based in Hudson, Ohio, Tribute Software provides integrated ERP software solutions. Tribute systems power millions of dollars in transactions every month and supply thousands of users with critical information.

By Ben Smye, Matmatch While automation greatly enhances productivity, it also places additional demands on steel components. This article examines why wear resistant steels are vital to modern, enhanced production.

These innovators, whose landmark inventions range from the hard hat to the sports bra, will be celebrated as the newest class of Inductees during the NIHF Induction Ceremony.

DataHub middleware from Skkynet was used by ABB to support redundant, secure networking of OPC A&E and real-time data on the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) project in Turkey.

Since 1990, CIMdata has provided coverage of the CAM and Digital Manufacturing software market spaces. This is eBook on CGTech's manufacturing program verification and optimization solution suite

Nordstrom is utilizing Tompkins Robotics’ t-Sort system to handle unit and item sortation of e-commerce and store fulfillment orders as well as the provider’s larger t-Sort Plus robots for parcel and carton shipping sortation to outbound carriers and modes.

ISA author and leak detection expert Ed Farmers shares his life experiences in industrial automation on the road to becoming an ISA Fellow.

The exida Cyber Awards honor exida-certified products and processes that best demonstrate new and innovative work in the realm of automation cybersecurity. exida found the Catalyst IE3x00 demonstrated considerable security and resilience according to the IEC 62443-4-1 cybersecurity standard.

By Darcy Simonis, ABB food and beverage Many manufacturers are turning to new technology to help them keep up. This article discusses the technology being used and the impact it is having on the industry.

This latest Cisco integration provides visibility into OT and IoT assets so IT teams can holistically secure ubiquitous access, streamline connectivity, and ensure they apply security best practices across all their networks.

The handbook is resource for learning the basics about current sensing theory, current transducers and switches, and choosing a solution for an application.

This partnership was formed to address the challenges facing the industry in developing platforms to realize active-safety, advanced driver assistance, in-vehicle infotainment, digital cockpits, vehicle-to-vehicle/vehicle-to-infrastructure and self-driving vehicles.

The IFR President, Steven Wyatt, has a decade of international experience gained in the flexible automation industry. He is currently global Head of Portfolio and Digital for ABB’s Robotics & Discrete Automation business.

A $2.7 million cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) between AddUp Group, a global machine and solutions provider for metal additive manufacturing (AM), and the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) aims to advance laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) technology for the manufacturing of metal molds with complex geometries for the tooling industry.

The ANSI/ISA95 standard, generally referred to as ISA95, is an important tool for digitalization. It provides the framework, modeling, and vendor independent common information models which can be applied in any manufacturing or process industry production architecture.

It can be difficult to define suitable PID gains when an industrial plant has a high level of complexity, such as, modeling nonlinearities, time delay and structural uncertainties.

Professor Stolkin was unanimously elected to chair the Expert Group on Robotic and Remote Systems (EGRRS) at a recent inaugural meeting, which brought together 40 experts from 14 OECD member countries as well as three international organisations including the European Commission.

An NPN (sinking) open-collector, when “energized,” switches the load side of the relay (at terminal “A”) to ground (terminal “B”).

Along with other Zigbee Alliance promoter member companies, Resideo also will play a role in the Connected Home over IP project, which aims to simplify development for manufacturers and increase device compatibility for consumers.

Effective immediately, the organizations will work together under the IIC umbrella to drive industry collaboration and research, foster open systems development and promote best practices for trusted IoT systems such as blockchain and related distributed ledger technologies (DLT).

PCB expects that the environmentally controlled clean rooms will enhance their pressure and force sensor manufacturing and assembly processes.. PCB Design Engineers are already working on the next generation of sensors, whose design and manufacturing is dependent upon a clean room environment.

Oil and gas fields in several states use new technology at production well sites to capture methane and natural gas liquid streams.

Under this alliance agreement, Yokogawa will promote localization in Saudi Arabia, and its integrated control systems and safety instrumented systems will be preferentially selected for plants operated by SABIC in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific regions.

By working together with OCP on open architecture business initiatives to drive network infrastructure transformation, Lanner joins the consortium for a number of projects by leveraging network disaggregation, white box economics, open source software, and software-defined standards to revolutionize the carrier industry.

One of the first steps when creating a new wireless instrumentation network using is a site survey.

A digital controller requires a digital signal as its input. A 4-20 mA transmitter outputs an analog signal. Therefore, a device to convert an analog (A) signal to a digital (D) is required.

ISA's 2019 achievements include a surplus budget, membership growth, and volunteer leaders moving in the same direction to achieve strategic objectives.

Potential blockchain applications are protection and verification of device firmware and application software updates.

Basic control functions may keep a process stable, but much more is needed to optimize performance and achieve specific company goals

The integrated solution allows automakers to deploy and scale global vehicle services such as fleet management, over-the-air software updates and connected safety services.

By Sean Robinson, Novotek UK and Ireland As with most manufacturers, much of the success comes from choosing the right tools for the job. So, what will be on your industrial wish list this Christmas?

Net present value (NPV) by itself is not a good indicator of the viability of a project or a good differentiator between two competing projects.

New projects expose automation professionals to more learning opportunities to continue to grow their skill sets and expertise.

The combined organization, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa., offers a full range of applied motor control solutions, and is a supplier of low and medium voltage soft starters. Global operations now include facilities in the U.S., Canada, New Zealand, Germany, Middle East and Asia.

By Ken Lynch, Senet Whether it is delivering propane for residential heat, optimizing industrial operations, reducing energy consumption in cities or reducing water loss through smart metering and water management solutions, an entire ecosystem of partners has the opportunity to provide limitless societal and economic benefit, delivering on the ultimate promise of the Internet of Things.

By Bill Lydon, Automation.com Integration was the heavy emphasis for Rockwell Automation at Automation Fair 2019, th a particular focus on expanding the system integration business and launching Rockwell Automation Lifecycle Services, as well as greater PTC software integration