Support challenges associated with aging and obsolete Remote Terminal Units (RTUs), combined with built-in cyber security and expanded functionality in modern RTU designs, are accelerating utility efforts to replace legacy hardware. The increasingly critical role of the substation RTU, notably in bulk and transmission substations, underscores the importance of ease of use, high performance, interoperability and scalability.
Large and potentially hazardous machinery is a mainstay of many manufacturing companies, and safeguarding is critical in preventing serious accidents. While it’s never acceptable to provide less protection for the sake of boosting productivity, many manufacturers are seeking to determine which solutions offer full protection while maximizing uptime. Downtime can be exceedingly expensive, particularly when it involves large machinery.
Cybersecurity costs businesses a lot of money – and with no measurable monetary income as a result. That leaves executives and board members scratching their heads and wondering: “Why are we spending so much on this? Why do we need to employ expensive professionals to manage and operate cybersecurity?” Often leading them to ponder, “We know cybersecurity is important, but how do we determine the right level of investment?”
Chances are, you’ve heard the expression “drowning in data.” And if you’re in the CPG industry, you’ve seen the proliferation of intelligent devices and data collection on the plant floor – and the quest for more data extending across all functions of your organization. Marketing tracks consumer behavior and trends – and must respond to consumer expectations for supply chain transparency.
As you can see, any process this complex and time-consuming has many risks associated with it. There are many opportunities for mistakes and human error to occur – and when you’re dealing with electrical hazards, mistakes can result in serious injury or even death. Fred Manuele, an independent research professional and author of safety management publications, is quoted regarding the EU Framework Directive of 1989, “Risk assessment is the cornerstone of the European approach to prevent occupational accidents and ill health.”
Allied’s “Ask The Expert” series taps into the experience and expertise of key thought leaders and subject matter experts from the more than 500 global suppliers they work closely with to bring customers solutions for their most challenging problems (and the daily ones, too). Today’s industrial facilities rely heavily on equipment and systems that often run continuously, in sensitive environments.
Allied’s “Ask The Expert” series taps into the experience and expertise of key thought leaders and subject matter experts from the more than 500 global suppliers we work closely with to bring customers solutions for their most challenging problems (and the daily ones, too). They spoke with David Garcia, product manager at Moxa, who generously offered his vast experience and insight to help them better understand the myriad of considerations needed to create a secure, future-proof Ethernet network.
Ethernet-APL (Ethernet-Advanced Physical Layer) enables the future of process automation through these core features: – Ease of adoption – Seamless integration – Simplified installation – Greater distances – Process industry rated – Valuable data. As digitalization becomes more common in industrial automation and companies seek to extract its value, access to data is more crucial than ever.
After two decades of workplace electrical fatalities trending downwards, the numbers have begun to rise alarmingly in recent years. According to the Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI), 2019 saw the most electrical fatalities on the job since 2011. Many more workers may be in harm’s way. Research shows that for every fatality, a typical industrial facility experiences 300 recordable injuries and 300,000 at-risk behaviors that go undocumented.
Selecting wire and cable today can be a very different experience than in the past. More things are wired and connected than ever before. Wire and cable, depending on its application, was previously more of a commodity purchase. However, Industry 4.0, increased automation, and the criticality of a well-wired facility magnify the importance of wire and cable selection.
When the pace of life slowed in 2020 as a result of COVID-19 shelter in place mandates, the environment around us we saw meaningful — and positive — change. Now there is collective desire and a growing demand to get back to business without compromising the opportunity we’ve been presented. In fact, sustainable practices are becoming a top-of-mind topic among investors, c-level executives, employees, and customers.
From an e-commerce explosion to the rapidly expanding adoption of robotics, 2021 has brought a variety of trends to the material handling and logistics industries. And what can companies expect from the second half of the year? Here, we discuss emerging trends that impact the way the industry does business. As more logistics companies upgrade to the latest technology, one top industrial automation trend is the adoption of human-like robotics.
It can be challenging to get the right components assembled to complete an automation project connected to the Industrial Internet of Things (IoT). Many people feel overwhelmed researching the different approaches to automation, and may experience exasperation once they realize the separate expenses they can incur to bring their IoT-enabled machine control dreams to life. But implementing automation and IoT does not have to be hard. Or expensive.
When designing high-voltage networks, a protection plan must be drawn up to ensure the safety of people but also to preserve the continuity of operation in the event of a fault in the electrical installation. For this purpose, it is necessary to determine for each point of the installation, the maximum and minimum prospective short-circuit currents for each type of fault: three-phase, two-phase, two-phase with earthing and single-phase.
Allied’s “Ask The Expert” series taps into the experience and expertise of key thought leaders and subject matter experts from the more than 500 global suppliers they work with to bring customers the right solutions for their most challenging problems (and the daily ones, too). This edition complements an Ask the Expert video with DesignSpark’s Greig Cameron with John Burns. target market manager and lead application consultant for the Electrical Products Group at Siemens.
There are many important items to consider when choosing a controller for machine and process automation. Breaking down the equipment’s operational needs is a starting point and will help evaluate the range of controllers specified by OEMs or machine builders. Depending on how the equipment fits into the larger manufacturing environment, the automation system can provide a complete solution or just control individual parts.
