Podcasts about Scada

This week Shawn Tierney meets up with John DeTellem of Siemens to walk through the steps of migrating an existing S7 PLC and its Program to TIA Portal v21 in this episode of #TheAutomationPodcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 263 Show Notes: Special thanks to John DeTellem of Siemens for coming on the show, and to Siemens for sponsoring this episode. For more information please see the below links: TIA Portal V21 Sales & Delivery Release TIA Portal V21 Technical Slides TIA Portal V21 Trial Download TIA Portal in the Cloud TIA Portal Documentations Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Allen, Rosemary, and Yolanda, joined by Morten Handberg from Wind Power LAB, recap WOMA 2026 live from Melbourne. The crew discusses leading edge erosion challenges unique to Australia, the frustration operators face getting data from full service agreements, and the push for better documentation during project handovers. Plus the birds and bats management debate, why several operators said they’d choose smaller glass fiber blades over bigger carbon fiber ones, and what topics WOMA 2027 should tackle next year. Sign up now for Uptime Tech News, our weekly newsletter on all things wind technology. This episode is sponsored by Weather Guard Lightning Tech. Learn more about Weather Guard’s StrikeTape Wind Turbine LPS retrofit. Follow the show on YouTube, Linkedin and visit Weather Guard on the web. And subscribe to Rosemary’s “Engineering with Rosie” YouTube channel here. Have a question we can answer on the show? Email us! [00:00:00] The Uptime Wind Energy Podcast brought to you by Strike Tape protecting thousands of wind turbines from lightning damage worldwide. Visit strike tape.com and now your hosts. Welcome to the Uptime Winner Energy podcast. I’m your host, Alan Hall. I’m here with Yolanda Pone, Rosemary Barnes, and the Blade Whisperer, Morton Hamburg. And we’re all in Melbourne at the Pullman on the park. We just finished up Woma 2026. Massive event. Over 200 people, two days, and a ton of knowledge. Rosemary, what did you think? Yeah, I mean it was a, a really good event. It was really nice ’cause we had event organization, um, taken care of by an external company this time. So that saved us some headaches, I think. Um. But yeah, it was, it was really good. It was different than last year, and I think next year will be different again because yeah, we don’t need to talk about the same topics every single year. But, um, yeah, I got really great [00:01:00] feedback. So that’s shows we’re doing something right? Yeah, a lot of the, the sessions were based upon feedback from Australian industry and, uh, so we did AI rotating bits, the, the drive train blades. Uh, we had a. Master class on lightning to start off. Uh, a number of discussions about BOP and electrical, BOP. All those were really good. Mm-hmm. Uh, the, the content was there, the expertise was there. We had worldwide representation. Morton, you, you talked about blades a good bit and what the Danish and Worldwide experience was. You know, talked about the American experience on Blades. That opened up a lot of discussions because I’m never really sure where Australia is in the, uh, operations side, because a lot of it is full service agreements still. But it does seem like from last year to this year. There’s more onboarding of the technical expertise internally at the operators. Martin, [00:02:00] you saw, uh, a good bit of it. This is your first time mm-hmm. At this conference. What were your impressions of the, the content and the approach, which is a little bit different than any other conference? I see an industry that really wants to learn, uh, Australia, they really want to learn how to do this. Uh, and they’re willing to listen to us, uh, whether you live in Australia, in the US or in Europe. You know, they want to lean on our experiences, but they wanna, you know, they want to take it out to their wind farms and they ga then gain their own knowledge with it, which I think is really amicable. You know, something that, you know, we should actually try and think about how we can copy that in Europe and the US. Because they, they are, they’re listening to us and they’re taking in our input, and then they try and go out. They go out and then they, they try and implement it. Um, so I think really that is something, uh, I’ve learned, you know, and, and really, um, yeah, really impressed by, from this conference. Yeah. Yolanda, you were on several panels over the, the two days. What were your impressions of the conference and what were your thoughts [00:03:00] on the Australia marketplace? I think the conference itself is very refreshing or I think we all feel that way being on the, on the circuit sometimes going on a lot of different conferences. It was really sweet to see everybody be very collaborative, as Morton was saying. Um, and it was, it was just really great about everybody. Yes, they were really willing to listen to us, but they were also really willing to share with each other, which is nice. Uh, I did hear about a few trials that we’re doing in other places. From other people, just kind of, everybody wants to learn from each other and everybody wants to, to make sure they’re in as best a spot as they can. Yeah, and the, the, probably the noisiest part of the conferences were at the coffees and the lunch. Uh, the, the collaboration was really good. A lot of noise in the hallways. Uh, just people getting together and then talking about problems, talking about solutions, trying to connect up with someone they may have seen [00:04:00]somewhere else in the part of the world that they were here. It’s a different kind of conference. And Rosemary, I know when, uh, you came up to with a suggestion like, Hey. If there’s not gonna be any sales talks, we’re not gonna sit and watch a 30 minute presentation about what you do. We’re gonna talk about solutions. That did play a a different dynamic because. It allowed people to ingest at their own rate and, and not just sit through another presentation. Yeah. It was made it more engaging, I think. Yeah, and I mean, anyway, the approach that I take for sales for my company that I think works best is not to do the hard sell. It’s to talk about smart things. Um, and if you are talking about describing a problem or a solution that somebody in the audience has that problem or solution, then they’re gonna seek you out afterwards. And so. There’s plenty of sales happening in an event like this, but you’re just not like, you know, subjecting people to sales. It’s more presenting them with the information that they need. And then I, I think also the size of the conference really [00:05:00] helps ’cause yeah, about 200 people. Any, everybody is here for the same technical kind. Content. So it’s like if you just randomly start talking to somebody while you’re waiting for a coffee or whatever, you have gonna have heaps to talk about with them, with ev every single other person there. And so I think that that’s why, yeah, there was so much talking happening and you know, we had social events, um, the first two evenings and so. Mo like I was surprised actually. So many people stayed. Most people, maybe everybody stayed for those events and so just so much talking and yeah, we did try to have quite long breaks, um, and quite a lot of them and, you know, good enough food and coffee to keep people here. And I think that that’s as important as, you know, just sitting and listening. Well, that was part of the trouble, some of the conference that you and I have been at, it’s just like six hours of sitting down listening to sort of a droning mm-hmm. Presenter trying to sell you something. Here we were. It was back and forth. A lot more panel talk with experts from around the world and then.[00:06:00] Break because you just can’t absorb all that without having a little bit of a brain rest, some coffee and just trying to get to the next session. I, I think that made it, uh, a, a, a more of a takeaway than I would say a lot of other conferences are, where there’s spender booze, and. Brochures and samples being handed out and all that. We didn’t have any of that. No vendor booze, no, uh, upfront sales going on and even into the workshop. So there was specific, uh, topics provided by people that. Provide services mostly, uh, speaking about what they do, but more on a case study, uh, side. And Rosie, you and I sat in on one that was about, uh, birds and bats, birds and bats in Australia. That one was really good. Yeah, that was great. I learned, I learned a lot. Your mind was blown, but Totally. Yeah. It is crazy how much, how much you have to manage, um, bird and wildlife deaths related to wind farms in Australia. Like compared to, I mean, ’cause you see. Dead birds all the time, right? Cars hit [00:07:00] birds, birds hit buildings, power lines kill birds, and no one cares about those birds. But if a bird is injured near a wind farm, then you know, everybody has to stop. We have to make sure that you can do a positive id. If you’re not sure, send it away for a DNA analysis. Keep the bird in a freezer for a year and make sure that it’s logged by the, you know, appropriate people. It’s, it’s really a lot. And I mean, on the one hand, like I’m a real bird lover, so I am, I’m glad that birds are being taken seriously, but on the other hand, I. I think that it is maybe a little bit over the top, like I don’t see extra birds being saved because of that level of, of watching throughout the entire life of the wind farm. It feels more like something for the pre-study and the first couple of years of operation, and then you can chill after that if everything’s under control. But I, I guess it’s quite a political issue because people do. Do worry about, about beds and bats? Mm-hmm. Yeah, I thought the output of that was more technology, a little or a little more technology. Not a lot of technology in today’s world [00:08:00] because we could definitely monitor for where birds are and where bats are and, uh, you know. Slow down the turbines or whatever we’re gonna do. Yeah. And they are doing that in, in sites where there is a problem. But, um, yeah, the sites we’re talking about with that monitoring, that’s not sites that have a big, big problem at sites that are just Yeah, a few, a few birds dying every year. Um, yeah. So it’s interesting. And some of the blade issues in Australia, or a little unique, I thought, uh, the leading edge erosion. Being a big one. Uh, I’ve seen a lot of leading edge erosion over the last couple of weeks from Australia. It is Texas Times two in some cases. And, uh, the discussion that was had about leading edge erosion, we had ETT junker from Stack Raft and, and video form all the way from Sweden, uh, talking to us live, which was really nice actually. Uh, the, the amount of knowledge that the Global Blade group. Brought to the discussion and just [00:09:00] opening up some eyes about what matters in leading edge erosion. It’s not so much the leading edge erosion in terms of a EP, although there is some a EP loss. It’s more about structural damage and if you let the structure go too far. And Martin, you’ve seen a lot of this, and I think we had a discussion about this on the podcast of, Hey, pay attention to the structural damage. Yeah, that’s where, that’s where your money is. I mean, if you go, if you get into structural damage, then your repair costs and your downtime will multiply. That is just a known fact. So it’s really about keeping it, uh, coding related because then you can, you can, you can move really fast. You can get it the blade up to speed and you won’t have the same problems. You won’t have to spend so much time rebuilding the blade. So that’s really what you need to get to. I do think that one of the things that might stand out in Australia that we’re going to learn about. Is the effect of hail, because we talked a lot about it in Europe, that, you know, what is the effect of, of hail on leading edge erosion? We’ve never really been able to nail it down, but down here I heard from an, [00:10:00] from an operator that they, they, uh, referenced mangoes this year in terms of hail size. It was, it was, it was incredible. So if you think about that hitting a leading edge, then, uh, well maybe we don’t really need to, we don’t really get to the point where, so coding related, maybe we will be structural from the beginning, but. Then at least it can be less a structural. Um, but that also means that we need to think differently in terms of leading edge, uh, protection and what kinds of solutions that are there. Maybe some of the traditional ones we have in Europe, maybe they just don’t work, want, they, they won’t work in some part of Australia. Australia is so big, so we can’t just say. Northern Territory is the same as as, uh, uh, um, yeah. Victoria or uh, or Queensland. Or Queensland or West Australia. I think that what we’re probably going to learn is that there will be different solutions fitting different parts of Australia, and that will be one of the key challenges. Um, yeah. And Blades in Australia sometimes do. Arrive without leading edge protection from the OEMs. [00:11:00] Yeah, I’m sure some of the sites that I’ve been reviewing recently that the, the asset manager swears it’s got leading edge protection and even I saw some blades on the ground and. I don’t, I don’t see any leading edge protection. I can’t feel any leading edge protection. Like maybe it’s a magical one that’s, you know, invisible and, um, yeah, it doesn’t even feel different, but I suspect that some people are getting blades that should have been protected that aren’t. Um, so why? Yeah, it’s interesting. I think before we, we rule it out. Then there are some coatings that really look like the original coating. Mm. So we, we, I know that for some of the European base that what they come out of a factory, you can’t really see the difference, but they’re multilayer coating, uh, on the blades. What you can do is that you can check your, uh, your rotor certificate sometimes will be there. You can check your, uh, your blade sheet, uh, that you get from manufacturer. If you get it. Um, if you get it, then it will, it will be there. But, um, yeah, I, I mean, it can be difficult to say, to see from the outset and there’s no [00:12:00]documentation then. Yeah, I mean. If I can’t see any leading edge erosion protection, and I don’t know if it’s there or not, I don’t think I will go so far and then start installing something on something that is essentially a new blade. I would probably still put it into operation because most LEP products that can be installed up tower. So I don’t think that that necessarily is, is something we should, shouldn’t still start doing just because we suspect there isn’t the LEP. But one thing that I think is gonna be really good is, um, you know, after the sessions and you know, I’ve been talking a lot. With my clients about, um, leading edge erosion. People are now aware that it’s coming. I think the most important thing is to plan for it. It’s not right to get to the point where you’ve got half a dozen blades with, you know, just the full leading edge, just fully missing holes through your laminate, and then your rest of your blades have all got laminate damage. That’s not the time to start thinking about it because one, it’s a lot more expensive for each repair than it would’ve been, but also. No one’s got the budget to, to get through all of that in one season. So I do really [00:13:00] like that, you know, some of the sites that have been operating for five years or so are starting to see pitting. They can start to plan that into their budget now and have a strategy for how they’re going to approach it. Um, yeah. And hopefully avoid getting over to the point where they’ve missing just the full leading edge of some of their blades. Yeah. But to Morton’s earlier point, I think it’s also important for people to stop the damage once it happens too. If, if it’s something that. You get a site or for what, whatever reason, half of your site does look like terrible and there’s holes in the blade and stuff. You need to, you need to patch it up in some sort of way and not just wait for the perfect product to come along to, to help you with that. Some of the hot topics this week were the handover. From, uh, development into production and the lack of documentation during the transfer. Uh, the discussion from Tilt was that you need to make sure it is all there, uh, because once you sign off. You probably can’t go back and get it. And [00:14:00] some of the frustration around that and the, the amount of data flow from the full service provider to the operator seemed to be a, a really hot topic. And, and, uh, we did a little, uh, surveyed a about that. Just the amount of, um, I don’t know how to describe it. I mean, it was bordering on anger maybe is a way. Describe it. Uh, that they feel that operators feel like they don’t have enough insight to run the turbines and the operations as well as they can, and that they should have more insight into what they have operating and why it is not operat. A certain way or where did the blades come from? Are there issues with those blades? Just the transparency WA was lacking. And we had Dan Meyer, who is from the States, he’s from Colorado, he was an xge person talking about contracts, uh, the turbine supply agreement and what should be in there, the full service [00:15:00] agreement, what should be in there. Those are very interesting. I thought a lot of, uh, operators are very attentive to that, just to give themselves an advantage of what you can. Put on paper to help yourself out and what you should think about. And if you have a existing wind farm from a certain OEM and you’re gonna buy another wind farm from ’em, you ought to be taking the lessons learned. And I, I thought that was a, a very important discussion. The second one was on repairs. And what you see from the field, and I know Yolanda’s been looking at a lot of repairs. Well, all of you have been looking at repairs in Australia. What’s your feeling on sort of the repairs and the quality of repairs and the amount of data that comes along with it? Are we at a place that we should be, or do we need a little more detail as to what’s happening out there? It’s one of the big challenges with the full service agreements is that, you know, if everything’s running smoothly, then repairs are getting done, but the information isn’t. Usually getting passed on. And so it’s seems fine and it seems like really good actually. Probably if you’re an [00:16:00] asset manager and everything’s just being repaired without you ever knowing about it, perfect. But then at some point when something does happen, you’ve got no history and especially like even before handover. You need to know all of the repairs that have happened for, you know, for or exchanges for any components because you know, you’re worried about, um, serial defects, for example. You need every single one. ’cause the threshold is quite high to, you know, ever reach a serial defect. So you wanna know if there were five before there was a handover. Include that in your population. Um, yeah, so that’s probably the biggest problem with repairs is that they’re just not being. Um, the reports aren’t being handed over. You know, one of the things that Jeremy Hanks from C-I-C-N-D-T, and he’s an NDT expert and has, has seen about everything was saying, is that you really need to understand what’s happening deep inside the blade, particularly for inserts or, uh, at the root, uh, even up in, with some, some Cory interactions happening or splicing that It’s hard to [00:17:00] see that hard to just take a drone inspection and go, okay, I know what’s happening. You need a little more technology in there at times, especially if you have a serial defect. Why do you have a serial defect? Do you need to be, uh, uh, scanning the, the blade a little more deeply, which hasn’t really happened too much in Australia, and I think there’s some issues I’ve seen where it may come into use. Yeah, I think it, it, it’ll be coming soon. I know some people are bringing stuff in. I’ve got emails sitting in my inbox I need to chase up, but I’m, I’m really going to, to get more into that. Yeah. And John Zalar brought up a very similar, uh, note during his presentation. Go visit your turbines. Yeah, several people said that. Um, actually Liz said that too. Love it. And, um, let’s this, yeah, you just gotta go have a look. Oh, Barend, I think said bar said it too. Go on site. Have a look at the lunchroom. If the lunch room’s tidy, then you know, win turbine’s gonna be tidy too. And I don’t know about that ’cause I’ve seen some tidy lunchroom that were associated with some, you know, uh, less well performing assets, but it’s, you know, it’s [00:18:00] a good start. What are we gonna hope for in 2027? What should we. Be talking about it. What do you think we’ll be talking about a year from now? Well, a few people, quite a few people mentioned to me that they were here, they’re new in the industry, and they heard this was the event to go to. Um, and so I, I was always asking them was it okay? ’cause we pitch it quite technical and I definitely don’t wanna reduce. How technical it is. One thing I thought of was maybe we start with a two to five minute introduction, maybe prerecorded about the, the topic, just to know, like for example, um, we had some sessions on rotating equipment. Um, I’m a Blades person. I don’t know that much about rotating equipment, so maybe, you know, we just explain this is where the pitch bearings are. They do this and you know, there’s the main bearing and it, you know, it does this and just a few minutes like that to orient people. Think that could be good. Last, uh, this year we did a, a masterclass on lightning, a half day masterclass. Maybe we change that topic every year. Maybe next year it’s blade design, [00:19:00] certification, manufacturing. Um, and then, you know, the next year, whatever, open to suggestions. I mean, in general, we’re open to suggestions, right? Like people write in and, and tell us what you’d wanna see. Um, absolutely. I think we could focus more on technologies might be an, an area like. It’s a bit, it’s a bit hard ’cause it gets salesy, but Yeah. I think one thing that could actually be interesting and that, uh, there was one guy came up with an older turbine on the LPS system. Mm. Where he wanted to look for a solution and some of the wind farms are getting older and it’s older technology. So maybe having some, uh, uh, some sessions on that. Because the older turbines, they are vastly different from what we, what we see in the majority with wind farms today. But the maintenance of those are just as important. And if you do that correctly, they’re much easier to lifetime extent than it will likely be for some of the nuance. But, you know, let. Knock on wood. Um, but, but I think that’s something that could be really interesting and really relevant for the industry and something [00:20:00] that we don’t talk enough about. Yeah. Yeah, that’s true because I, I’m working on a lot of old wind turbines now, and that has been, um, quite a challenge for me because they’re design and built in a way that’s quite different to when, you know, I was poking, designing and building, uh, wind turbine components. So that’s a good one. Other people mentioned end of life. Mm-hmm. Not just like end of life, like the life is over, but how do you decide when the life end of life is going to be? ’cause you know, like you have a planned life and then you might like to extend, but then you discover you’ve got a serial issue. Are you gonna fix it? Or you know, how are you gonna fix it? Those are all very interesting questions that, um, can occur. And then also, yeah, what to do with the. The stuff at the end of the Wind Farm lifetime, we could make a half day around those kinds of sessions. I think recycling could actually be good to, to also touch upon and, and I think, yeah, Australia is more on the front of that because of, of your high focus on, on nature and sustainability. So looking at, well, what do we do with these blades? Or what do we do with the towers of foundation once, uh, [00:21:00] once we do need to decommission them, you know, what is, what are we going to do in Australia about that? Or what is Australia going to do about that? But, you know, what can we bring to the, to the table that that can help drive that discussion? I think maybe too, helping people sort of templates for their formats on, on how to successfully shadow, monitor, maybe showing them a bit mute, more of, uh. Like cases and stuff, so to get them going a bit more. ’cause we heard a lot of people too say, oh, we’re, we’re teetering on whether we should self operate or whether we continue our FSA, but we, we we’re kind of, we don’t know what we’re doing. Yeah. In, in not those words. Right. But just providing a bit more of a guidance too. On that side, we say shadow monitoring and I think we all know what it means. If you’ve seen it done, if you haven’t seen it done before. It seems daunting. Mm-hmm. What do you mean shadow monitoring? You mean you got a crack into the SCADA system? Does that mean I’ve gotta, uh, put CMS out there? Do I do, do I have to be out [00:22:00] on site all the time? The answer that is no to all of those. But there are some fundamental things you do need to do to get to the shadow monitoring that feels good. And the easy one is if there’s drone inspections happening because your FSA, you find out who’s doing the drone inspections and you pay ’em for a second set of drone inspections, just so you have a validation of it, you can see it. Those are really inexpensive ways to shadow monitor. Uh, but I, I do think we say a lot of terms like that in Australia because we’ve seen it done elsewhere that. Doesn’t really translate. And I, if I, I’m always kind of looking at Rosemary, like, does it, this make sense? What I’m saying makes sense, Rosemary, because it’s hard to tell because so many operators are in sort of a building mode. I, I see it as. When I talked to them a few years ago, they’re completely FSA, they had really small staffs. Now the staffs are growing much larger, which makes me feel like they’re gonna transition out an FSA. Do we need to provide a little more, uh, insight into how that is done deeper. [00:23:00] Like, these are the tools you, you will need. This is the kind of people you need to have on staff. This is how you’re gonna organize it, and this is the re these are the resources that you should go after. Mm. Does that make a little si more sense? Yeah. That might be a good. Uh, idea for getting somebody who’s, you know, working for a company that is shadow monitoring overseas and bring them in and they can talk through what that, what that means exactly. And that goes back to the discussion we were having earlier today by having operators talk about how they’re running their operations. Mm. And I know the last year we tried to have everybody do that and, and they were standoffish. I get it. Because you don’t want to disclose things that your company doesn’t want out in public. And year two, it felt like there’s a little more. Openness about that. Yeah, there was a few people were quite open about, um, yeah, talking about challenges and some successes as well. I think we’ll have more successes next year ’cause we’ve got more, more things going on. But yeah, definitely would encourage any operators to think about what’s a you A case study that you could give about? Yeah, it could just be a problem that’s unsolved and I bet you’ll find people that wanna help you [00:24:00] solve that problem. Or it could be something that you struggled with and then you’re doing a better job and Yeah, I mean the. Some operators think that they’re in competition with each other and some think that they’re not really, and the answer is somewhere, somewhere in the middle. There are, you know, some at least small amounts of competition. But, you know, I just, I just really think that. We’re fighting against each other, trying to win within the wind industry. Then, you know, in 10, 20 years time, especially in Australia, there won’t be any new wind. It’ll just be wind and solar everywhere and, and the energy transition stalled because everyone knows that’s not gonna get us all the way to, you know, a hundred percent renewables. So, um, I do think that we need to, first of all, fight for wind energy to improve. The status quo is not good enough to take us through the next 20 years. So we do need to collaborate to get better. And then, yeah, I don’t know, once we’re, once we’re one, wind has won, then we can go back to fighting amongst ourselves, I guess. Is Australia that [00:25:00] laboratory? Yeah, I think I, I say it all the time. I think Australia is the perfect place because I, I do think we’re a little bit more naturally collaborative. For some reason, I don’t know why, it’s not really like a, a cultural thing, but seems to be the case in Australian wind. Um, and also our, our problems are harder than, uh, than what’s being faced elsewhere. I mean, America has some specific problems right now that are, you know, worse, but in general, operating environment is very harsh Here. We’re so spread out. Everything is so expensive. Cranes are so expensive. Repairs are so expensive. Spares spare. Yeah, spares are crazy expensive. You know, I look every now and then and do reports for people about, you know, what, what’s the average cost for and times for repairs and you know, you get an American values and it’s like, okay, well at a minimum times by five Australia and you know, so. It, there’s a lot more bang for buck. And the other thing is we just do not have enough, um, enough people, enough. Uh, we’ve got some really smart people. We need a lot more [00:26:00] people that are as smart as that. And you can’t just get that immediately. Like there has been a lot of good transfer over from related industries. A lot of people that spoke so that, you know, they used to work for thermal power plants and, um, railway, a guy that spoke to a guy had come in from railway. Um. That’s, that’s really good. But it will take some years to get them up to speed. And so in the meantime, we just need to use technology as much as we can to be able to, you know, make the people that good people that we do have, you know, make them go a lot further, um, increase what they can do. ’cause yeah, I don’t think there’s a single, um, asset owner where they couldn’t, you know, double the number of asset managers they had and, you know, ev everyone could use twice as many I think. Yeah, I agree. Yeah. I think something that we really focused on this year is kind of removing the stones that are in people’s path or like helping at least like to, to say like, don’t trip over there. Don’t trip over here. And I think part of that, like, like you mentioned, is that. [00:27:00] The, the collaborative manner that everyone seemed to have and just, I think 50% of our time that we were in those rooms was just people asking questions to experts, to anybody they really wanted to. Um, and it, it just, everybody getting the same answers, which is really just a really different way to, to do things, I think. But more than, I mean, we, we we’re still. We’re still struggling with quality in Australia. That’s still a major issue on, on a lot of the components. So until we have that solved, we don’t really know how much of an influence the other factors they really have because it just overshadows everything. And yes, it will be accelerated by extreme weather conditions, but. What will, how will it work if, if the components are actually fit, uh, fit for purpose in the sense that we don’t have wrinkles in the laminates, that we don’t have, uh, bond lines that are detaching. Mm-hmm. Maybe some of it is because of, uh, mango size hails hitting the blades. Maybe it’s because of extreme temperatures. Maybe it’s [00:28:00] because of, uh, uh, yeah. At extreme topography, you know, creating, uh, wind conditions that the blades are not designed for. We don’t really know that. We don’t really know for sure. Uh, we just assume, um, Australia has some problems with, not problems, but some challenges with remoteness. We don’t, with, uh, with getting new, new spares that much is absolutely true. We can’t do anything about that. We just have to, uh, find a way to, to mitigate that. Mm-hmm. But I think we should really be focused on getting quality, uh, getting the quality in, in order. You know, one thing that’s interesting about that, um, so yeah, Australia should be focused more on quality than anybody else, but in, in, in the industry, yeah. Uh, entire world should be more focused on quality, but also Australia. Yeah. But Australia, probably more than anyone considering how hard it is to, you know, make up for poor quality here. Um. At the same time, Australia for some reason, loves to be the first one with a new technology, loves to have the biggest [00:29:00] turbine. Um, and the, the latest thing and the newest thing, and I thought it was interesting. I mean, this was operations and maintenance, um, conference, so not really talking about new designs and manufacturing too much, but at least three or four people said, uh. Uh, I would be using less carbon fiber in blades. I would not be, not be going bigger and bigger and bigger. If I was buying turbines for a new wind farm, I would have, you know, small glass blades and just more of them. So I think that that was really interesting to hear. So many people say it, and I wasn’t even one of them, even though, you know, I would definitely. Say that. I mean, you know, in terms of business, I guess it’s really good to get a lot of, a lot of big blades, but, um, because they just, people, I don’t think people understand that, that bigger blades just have dramatically more quality problems than the smaller ones. Um, were really kind of exceeded the sweet spot for the current manufacturing methods and materials. I don’t know if you would agree, but it’s, it’s. Possible, but [00:30:00] it’s, it, you know, it’s not like a blade that’s twice as long, doesn’t have twice as many defects. It probably has a hundred times as many defects. It’s just, uh, it’s really, really challenging to make those big blades, high quality, and no one is doing it all that well right now. I would, however, I got an interesting hypothetical and they’re. Congrats to her for, for putting out that out. But there was an operator that said to me at the conference, so what would you choose hypothetically? A 70 meter glass fiber blade or a 50 meter carbon fiber blade, so a blade with carbon fiber reinforcement. And I did have to think quite a while about it because there was, it was she say, longer blades, more problems, but carbon blade. Also a lot of new problems. So, so what is it? So I, I ended up saying, well, glass fiber, I would probably go for a longer glass fiber blade, even though it will have some, some different challenges. It’s easier to repair. Yeah, that’s true. So we can overcome some of the challenges that are, we can also repair carbon. We have done it in air, air, uh, aeronautics for many, many years. But wind is a different beast because we don’t have, uh, [00:31:00] perfect laboratory conditions to repair in. So that would just be a, a really extreme challenge. So that’s, that’s why I, I would have gone for carbon if, for glass fiber, if, if I, if I could in that hypothe hypothetical. Also makes more energy, the 70 meter compared to it’s a win-win situation. Well, it’s great to see all of you. Australia. I thought it was a really good conference. And thanks to all our sponsors, uh, til being the primary sponsor for this conference. Uh, we are starting to ramp up for 2027. Hopefully all of you can attend next year. And, uh, Rosie, it’s good to see you in person. Oh, it’s, uh, it’s, it’s exciting when we are actually on the same continent. Uh, it doesn’t happen very often. And Morton, it’s great to see you too, Yolanda. I see you every day pretty much. So she’s part of our team, so I, it’s great to see you out. This is actually the first time, me and Rosie, we have seen each other. We’ve, we’ve known each other for years. Yeah. Yeah. The first time we actually, uh, been, been, yeah. Within, uh, yeah. [00:32:00] Same room. Yep. And same continent. Yeah. Yeah. So that’s been awesome. And also it’s my first time meeting Yolanda in person too. So yeah, that’s our first time. And same. So thanks so much for everybody that attended, uh, woma 2026. We’ll see you at Woma 2027 and uh, check us out next week for the Uptime Wind Energy Podcast.

La Dra. Judith Domínguez conversa con expertos del IMEESDN sobre la vulnerabilidad de la insfraestructura del agua en México. Junto con la Dra. Guadalupe Córdova (IMEESDN), el Dr. Carlos Barrera (IMEESDN) y el Dr. Marco Antonio Vargas (IMEESDN), analizan por qué el agua es un componente estratégico de la seguridad nacional. Desde el conflicto en la presa La Boquilla hasta la amenaza de ciberataques a sistemas SCADA. Idea original y conducción: Dra. Judith Domínguez Serrano (COLMEX).Invitados: Dra. Guadaulpe Córdova (IMEESDN), Dr. Carlos Barrera(IMEESDN), Dr. Marco Antonio Vargas (IMEESDN).Instituciones participantes: El Colegio de México A.C., Centro de Estudios Demográficos Urbanos y Ambientales (COLMEX, CEDUA). Instituto Mexicano de Estudios Estratégicos en Seguridad y Defensa Nacionales (IMEESDN).Grabación, producción y edición: Coordinación de Educación Digital, El Colegio de México.

Recorded live at the Wind Operation and Maintenance Australia 2026 conference, Allen, Rosemary, Matthew, and Yolanda are joined by Thomas Schlegl for a panel discussion on where the Australian wind industry is headed over the next five years. Sign up now for Uptime Tech News, our weekly newsletter on all things wind technology. This episode is sponsored by Weather Guard Lightning Tech. Learn more about Weather Guard’s StrikeTape Wind Turbine LPS retrofit. Follow the show on YouTube, Linkedin and visit Weather Guard on the web. And subscribe to Rosemary’s “Engineering with Rosie” YouTube channel here. Have a question we can answer on the show? Email us! Alright, let’s get started. This is the, the final event of this three day marathon. Uh, where will we be in five years? And I have, uh, pretty much everybody from the Uptime podcast and Thomas Schlagel from eLog Ping. Uh. Uh, Rosie and I had a big argument before we all came about what we were going to be in five years, and Rosie’s and my opinion differed quite a bit just on, that’s, uh, that’s what led to me suggesting the personality test because yes, and that was, that’s actually a really good suggestion. So I know something about myself now, but, uh, I, I think talking to people here, watching the presentations. And having an American slash European perspective on it. I think every, everybody can chime in here. Australia’s probably on a better pathway than a lot of places. Yeah. Well, I know I’ve been back in Australia for about [00:01:00] five years, five years. Before that I was in Denmark. I left Australia. Because I was so like in despair about the state of renewables and also manufacturing and just doing smart engineering in Australia. Um, so yeah, when I came back five years ago, I was a bit shocked at how different things were in Australia. And I was also, you know, like I will say that it, we were, we were behind like way less mature than other, um, markets in terms of how we operated our wind energy assets. Um, and it’s changed so much in five years, so like a half day, if I’m making predictions for where we’ll be in five years time, I have to, you know, like use that as a, it, it’s probably gonna be more than you would think in five years, just based on how far we’ve already come in, in five years. Um, so yeah, I think that five years ago people were trusting a lot more in the full service agreements. Um, definitely there’s very few people who are still naive that that’s just, you know, um, a set and forget kind of thing that you [00:02:00] can do and not worry about it. Everybody’s now aware that you need to know, um, about your assets and we’re already to the point where there are like a lot of asset managers know so much, um, and, you know, have become real experts and really wasn’t, wasn’t the case five years ago. So. I’m hopeful for that. Um, you know, that it, it will continue and yeah, probably at a faster pace than, um, what we see elsewhere. I think Australia is a really attractive market, not just for developing new wind projects, but also for developing all of the kinds of supporting technologies, which is, you know, like a lot of the people here either using or developing those kind of technologies. And some of our challenges here make it the perfect place to, yeah, develop new text because. Things are, it’s really expensive to do repairs here. Um, the operating conditions are harsh and so things wear out and it just means that it’s, you can put together a positive business case for a new tech here much sooner than you could overseas. So I’m really [00:03:00] hopeful that we see, you know, like a whole lot of innovation, um, in, in those kinds of technologies that are gonna help wind energy get a lot more mature. And even hearing some of the answers from last year to this year, you see that shift. Uh, I was really shocked last year how much reliance there was on. The FSA and now I hearing a lot more discussion about, all right, we need to be shadow monitoring. We need to be looking at the, the, the data coming off, trying to hack, break into the passwords to get to the SCADA system, which was new, but I feel like very Australian thing to do. Matthew, you’ve been in the small business in Australia for, for several years in the wind business. What do you see? I mean, you’ve been in it like for five years now. Plus actually more than that, uh, I actually did my first wind farm around 20 oh 2001. Okay. Or 2002. Um, that was from a noise perspective. So I, I’ve seen things, you know, the full cycle. Um, you know, there were many years of [00:04:00]despair, the whole, um, stop these, stop these things. I’m actually featured, I was featured on Stop these things. So, um, don’t, don’t Google it. It was pretty horrible. So, um, we did a lot of work around infrasound and noise impacts and so there was many years which were, were pretty horrible. Um. Over that time, I sort of relate to my daughter. My daughter’s turning 21 soon. She is a beautiful girl, turning into an adult, a wonderful adult, and it’s, I think the wind industry is really growing, maturing, growing up, and you know, is wonderful to see. And I think we are, we’re only gonna get better, stronger. And I think one may, one note I made here is that now they’ve got wind, solar batteries. I just think it’s unstoppable, so I’m super optimistic that we’re only gonna keep, you know, raising that bar. Well, if you look at where Australia is compared to a lot of the places on the [00:05:00] planet, way ahead, in terms of renewable energy. I mean, you’ve got basically $0 in electricity for, because of how much solar there is, plus the batteries are coming in and, and the transmission’s coming online. And I’m talking to some people about, uh, what these new developments look like. If you’re trying to develop some of these projects in the United States, you’re not gonna be able to do them. There’s, there’s too many regulatory hurdles, and it seems like Australia has at least opened some of the doors to explore. Uh, people in America, the companies in Europe are gonna be watching Australia, I think in, in terms of where we go next. Because if Australia can pull off pretty much a renewable grid, which is where you’re headed, others will follow because it’s just a lower cost way of running a, running an electricity grid system. Yeah. Now I need to perform my, um, regular role of being a Debbie Downer. Um, I, I think that there’s, there’s big challenges and it’s definitely not, um, a case of [00:06:00] the status quo now is good enough to carry us through to a hundred percent renewables. Um, there are some big, big problems that need to be solved. Like, uh, solar plus batteries in Australia is, is going amazing and it’s gonna do a lot. It’s not gonna, it will be incredibly hard to get to, you know, a fully renewable grid that way. The problem with wind is at the moment, I mean, it’s getting more expensive to install wind now and we don’t only need to install new wind farms, we’ve also got existing wind farms that are retiring. So we need to either extend those or we need to, um, you know, build new wind farms in their place. So we do need to get better there. And then I think that the new technologies, like, you know, I’m the blades person and the bigger blades are bigger problems like, like dramatically. I don’t think that your average, um, wind farm owner or wannabe wind farm owner is aware, like actually how many more problems there are with big blades compared to smaller ones and. I think that, like I said earlier, I [00:07:00] think Australia’s a great place to get those technologies, um, you know, developed. But we, we need to do that. That’s not like a nice to have and oh, everything will be a little bit better, but if we can’t maintain our assets better and get more out of them, um, we also need improvements with manufacturing. But it’s not really an o and m thing. I won’t talk too much about it. But yeah, I think that like we can’t be remotely complacent. Well, I think in, in Europe, uh, Thomas, you actually spent several months in Australia, and you’re obviously from Austria, so it’s an Austria Australian connection. Do you see the differences between the Austrian market, the German market, and what’s happening here in Australia? What, what do you think of the comparison between the two? So, what I, what really was fascinating from was the speed of, um, improvements we see here in Australia. It. Um, just for me, wind industry in my young industry, sorry, was always rather slow in Europe and [00:08:00] like not really adopting. Um, and here, sorry. For example, last year you asked the question how many. Of the audience to use sensors for shadow monitoring and no hand was raised right. It was zero silence. And uh, this year we even had a few percentage on, on sensors on the, on the cido. So you see only within a year like this gradually graduated, improvements are happening and I think that makes such a, um, speed in, in improvements and that will. Close to the rescue again. Thank you. And that, um, that will bring Australia to a big advantage. Um, especially I think overtaking, uh, at a certain point, and it would be great to see in five years from now, um, maybe Europeans, Austrians, uh, coming to Australia to. [00:09:00] To learn and not the other way around. Yeah, and, and especially with Yolanda working for the biggest energy company in Denmark, uh, in America, you see how Americans react to change and, and the reluctance to move forward on some of the things we talked about this week, which are, do seem to be moving a little bit quicker. There is more an acceptance of CMS systems here. And on in the States, it seems like you have to really fight. A lot of times to get anybody to listen, to do something because it’s all, it’s financially driven in some aspects, but it’s sort of like, we don’t do that here, so we’re not gonna listen to it. What’s been your experience being on a, this is your first time in Australia, what, what has been your experience this week and what have you learned? I was very pleasantly surprised by just the amount of collaboration that everybody really wants to have here and the openness to, to do so, and to learn from each [00:10:00] other, um, and to accept just, you know, if you’ve seen an issue and or someone else has seen an issue, then you can really learn from each other. And it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to silo yourself as much as, as you typically do in the United States. I mean, it is a different culture, right? And so it’s just. Honestly, hats off to, to Australians for, for being able to, to work with each other, so, so well, yeah. The discussions out at the lunchtime and the coffee area were uniquely different than what we generally will see in the United States. And Matthew, you’ve been around a lot of that too, where it kinda gets a little clique. But here, I mean, obviously, I mean, not just human nature, but on some level I felt like, oh, there’s a lot of interaction happening and it’s really loud. So people are engaging with one another and trying to learn from one another, or at least connect. And I, I think in a lot of times in Europe, there’s not a lot of the connection until the, the drinking starts, you know, at about 10. Uh, but. Uh, Matthew, did you see that too? [00:11:00] Like I was really pleasantly surprised. That was a good thing to see here. Yeah. And in my former life as a consultant, I dealt with, you know, construction, uh, road rail, you know, I mining a whole range of industries. And, um, one of the reasons why I’ve stayed in wind is ’cause I, you know, I love the people, you know, I love you all. So, or, um, but no, I think, um, the. The collaboration, the willingness to talk, um, the willingness to share ideas. And I think, I think I’ve been super, super, super happy about the way the panels have run, you know, everyone’s willing to share. Um, yeah, I’m, I’m just stoked. Yeah, Rosie, this is all your fault, honestly, because Rosie was always the, the contrary opinion. So I would say something and Rosie would feel obligated to say something as the opposite. But when, when we all started this discussion about, uh, a, a wind turbine conference, you had been to a bad wind turbine conference in Australia and I had been to a really bad one in the States and we were just, okay, that’s enough. And the movement [00:12:00] toward, let’s get some information, let’s everybody interact with one another. Let’s, we will give all the presentations to people at the end of this so you can access data. You’re not spending a ton of money to come. That was a, a big part of the discussion, like, I’m spending $5,000 to listen to sales presentations for three days. I don’t want to do that anymore. We try to avoid that in this conference. Hopefully, if you notice that and, and, and. I guess the conference board is up here right now. Are we gonna do Woma 2027? Are we gonna decide that today? Or. Yes, yes, the website is live. Um, I also wanna take this opportunity to, um, thank the, the sponsors of the event. And I hope that you’ve noticed that it’s not like these aren’t the sponsors of normal events where they’re like, okay, we’ll give you a bunch of money and then we’re gonna stand up and talk at you for half an hour about our new product launch or whatever. Like these sponsors haven’t, they haven’t got back [00:13:00] in the traditional way that you, you would with a kind of, um, event. So I’m really grateful for the very high quality sponsors that we’ve got. And, um, yeah, I just, I, I dunno if I’m allowed to share a little bit about the, the economics of this event. Um, if we didn’t have the sponsors tickets would cost twice as much. So, um, that’s one thing. But then the other key thing that we. Really couldn’t do it without sponsors is that we didn’t, our event didn’t break even until about a week ago because everyone buys their tickets late. Um, so yeah, the, the, we would’ve been having heart attacks, um, months ago about our potential, you know, bankruptcy from running the event if it wasn’t for, um, yeah, the, the great sponsors. So thanks to everybody that did that. Um, and everybody that attended consider buying a ticket earlier next time. Um, I, I’m the worst. I often buy my ticket the day of, of, of an event. So it’s, you know, like it’s a pot calling the kettle black. But, um, yeah, that’s just a bit of the, [00:14:00] the reality. And we have a number of poll questions. Uh, let’s get producer Claire back there to throw ’em up on the screen. So while we’re doing that, we should really thank Claire. Claire has been amazing. Yeah. Thank you, Claire. So the emojis are from Claire. Claire, clearly here. Uh, how do you feel about the, the current state of the wind industry? Hopefully there’s more smiley faces after this week. Well, alright, we’re a hundred percent rosemary. We had to put the one with the, yeah. And for me personally, um, I used to feel a lot more optimistic when I worked in design and manufacturing. And then when I come into operations, that like automatically makes you feel a bit more pessimistic. And then me specifically, like I only get involved when really bad things are happening. And so sometimes for me, like it’s easy to think. [00:15:00] When technology is just not good enough and, you know, I need to find a new industry to move into. So, uh, it is good to talk, talk to other people and, you know, like bring my reality back to a kind of a midpoint. And I, I just like to say, I, I think, I mean maybe there’s been a bit of OE em bashing here maybe. Um. Um, however, we need really strong OEMs, so I just wanna put a shout out to the OEMs and say, yeah, we absolutely need you. So just keep doing it. You will keep doing better, so thank you. Yeah, it’s a difficult industry to be in and we put a lot of demands on them and they, they’re pushing limits, so yeah, they’re gonna run into problems. That’s fine. Let’s just find solutions for them. Alright, uh, next question, producer Claire. What is the best thing you learned at Woma? This is not multiple choice. You can write whatever you want. Stealing passwords. [00:16:00] Did any of us learn anything? Unexpected contracting? Oh yeah. Get the contract right? Oh yeah. Yeah. Dan was really good. Yeah, Dan was great about contracting, looking on the other side of that fence. Cybersecurity is not that big of an issue in Australia. That’s some big thing in Europe, so yeah, it is. I was surprised by the environmental factor in Australia. I was surprised about the birds. Yeah. Everyone who wasn’t in the birds workshop yesterday, Alan was freaking out about, about how Australian wind farms have to manage birds and um, you have to freeze a bird for 12 months. I don’t, where do you have to freeze it for a bird? I don’t know. But that, it just is a little odd, I would say. Yeah. All right, Rosemary, you gotta take away Rosemary’s phone. Alan’s personality test. Yeah, there we go. That was not me. Wind farm toilets was a good one. Thank you, Liz, for, for raising that. [00:17:00] Yeah, I know when I worked in, um, Europe and Canadian wind farms, I would have to strategize my liquid intake for the day. Balancing out tea will help keep me warm, but on the other hand. Did everybody meet up with someone who had a solution? That was part of the goal here is to put people with solutions in the room with people with problems and let you all sort it out. So hopefully that was one of the things that happened this week. Or if you haven’t connected here, be able to connect with over LinkedIn or over coffee later. And the networking on the app and networking page on the website. Right. So you can actually use that now that’s all live. Yeah. So you can, you can connect through there if you’ve selected to. To keep your contact information open. Yep. You can connect through there so it’s easy to, if you need somebody to find my or Matthew’s email, you can just find it right there and we’ll upload the presentations, as you said. Right. The presentations we uploaded. But you have to select into that, Matthew, is that right? Also, the speakers [00:18:00] have to approve them as well. Right. And the, and all the speakers, you know who you are. Can let us know if we can use your slide decks to public size them. I didn’t see anything there that looked highly classified, so I think that would be fine. Alright. This is really interesting. Convince OEMs to install better pitch bearings. That’s very true. Okay, thanks you for that. Claire, what’s the next one? What do you wish you learned more about? So Matthew did a tour before the conference several months ago. And, and went to a lot of the operators and said, what would you like to hear about? So the things that were, uh, the seminar or the different workshops and all that were the result of talking to each of the operators about what you would like to see. So hopefully we covered most of them. Uh, obvious There. There’s some new things. Gear boxes. Yeah. I figured that one was coming. Tower retrofits. Okay. Good, good, [00:19:00] good. ISPs? Yeah. Life extension. Yeah. A lot of life extension. I agree. Well, we’re gonna run into that to the United States also. Asbestos. I’ve read some things about that in Australia. Okay. Which leading protection work by name. I do, I do have, well, lemme see. I do know that answer, but you’re gonna have to talk to Rosemary to get the, the key to the vault there. I I also think that you can’t assume that it’s gonna work in Australia. I think that, that like really seriously, I, I wouldn’t, um. I wouldn’t replace my entire wind farms leading edge protection based on what worked well in Europe and America. So, um, I would highly suggest, um, getting in touch with me and or bigger to get involved in a trial if you, that’s a problem for you. Yeah, definitely get involved in the trial. Uh, more data is better and if you do join that trial, you will have the keys to the castle. They will tell you how all the other pro uh, blades went. Uh, trainings and [00:20:00] skills, obviously that’s a, that’s a international one. When does ROI really happen? Yeah. Yep. We hear that quite a bit. Needs have proven good products for leading edge erosion. Yep. Okay. Yeah. So the que I guess one of the questions is, is that we did not on purpose, did not have any vendor things. I haven’t mentioned my product once this week. I, because I don’t want to, you know, that’s not the point of this conference, but should we. I don’t know. I mean, that’s a, should we have people standing up and I don’t know if it’s standing out there, but able to, to trial things. Yeah. Yeah. I agree. I agree with what. I, I don’t, I don’t want that. Oh, yeah. No, I don’t want that. But it’s not my conference. Right. It’s, it’s everybody who c comes and wants to participate. What do you wanna see? Do you wanna see 10 leading edge products out in the hallway or, I didn’t mind that people were putting like stickers and like little knickknacks out on [00:21:00] tables. That was fun. Rosemary’s got a, a satchel full of them. Alright, Claire, is that the last one? There’s one more. All right. Hang on for one more. What’s your biggest takeaway from Woma? That you’re gonna buy your tickets early for WMA 2027, hopefully, and you’re gonna sponsor. I had a lot of people come up to me and say they would like to sponsor next year. And that’s wonderful. That will really keep the, the cost down because we’re not making anything off of this. I’m losing money to be here, which is totally fine ’cause I think this is a noble effort. Uh, but we will keep the cost as low as we can. We have an upgraded venue from last year. If you attend last year we were at the library, which was also a very nice facility, but this is just another level. Mm. Um, and the website has the ability to register interest in sponsorship. Yeah. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. I’ve already got, uh, Jeremy’s already shook my hand. He’s already committed. Yeah. [00:22:00] Uh, I think we’ll have a lot of three pizzas on, on sponsorship for next year, and that’s good. Uh, that tells you there’s some value to be here and, and, uh, connect stickers, Rosemary stickers. There you go. I like whoever put calories up there. That’s funny. Yeah. You know the thing about, uh, this city is you can eat and it’s so dang good. You can’t do that in the states. You can’t just walk around in a random. Downtown like Detroit, Chicago. There are places you can eat there, but every place you walk into in this city is really good food. It’s crazy. Yeah. It’s, it’s uh, sort of addictive. I’m gonna have to go home on Saturday or not gonna fit in my seat. Um, alright. This is great. Yeah. We really love, um, constructive feedback. I think we’re all, or at least. Vast majority of us are engineers. We like to know about problems and fix them. So, um, most of us can’t have our feelings hurt easily. So, you [00:23:00] know, be very, very direct with your feedback. And, um, yeah, I mean the event should be different every year, right? Like, we don’t wanna do the exact same thing every year, so, um, it will change. Yeah. Yeah. And there is a survey going out as well, so Georgina will send out a survey. All right. So those surveys go to who? Matthew, are they going to you or are they going to all attendees and go? I think it goes back to Georgina, but we’ll, okay. Yeah. Great. So if you do get a, a form to fill out, please fill it out. That helps us for next year. Are we gonna be back in the same city? I say Yes. Yes. Yeah, this place is great. Sydney is also lovely. I spent an hour there at the airport. It was quite nice, but it was long enough. As I learned from people from Melbourne that Sydney is not their favorite place to go. So I guess we’re, we’re here next year. Is there anything else we need to talk about? Um, no. I mean, I’ve just been, uh, my favorite thing about this event is like the, the size of it and that people, uh, like very closely related in what we’re interested in that. It’s not like a, [00:24:00] you can put any two random people together and then we’ll have an interesting conversation. So I’ve really enjoyed all of the, you know, dozens of conversations that I’ve had this week. And, um, yeah. So thank you everybody for showing up with a open and collaborative, um, yeah. Frame of mind. It’s, yeah, couldn’t be done without everybody here. We do have a little bit of an award ceremony here for Rosemary, so we actually put together. A collage of videos over the last, um, five years. Uh, this is news to me. What? Yeah. Surprise. All right. Let it roll. Claire. Champion Rosie Barnes is here. Everybody. Climate change is a problem that our politicians don’t seem to be trying. Particularly hard to solve. This used to frustrate me until I realized that as an engineer, I have the power to [00:25:00] change the world, and unlike some politicians, I choose to use my powers for good. So I made a gingerbread wind turbine, I mean, a functional gingerbread, wind turbine, functional and edible. Everything except for the generator is edible. Alan, what were some of your takeaways from our talk with, uh, with Rosie? Well, I just like the way she thinks she thinks in terms of systems, not in terms of components. And I, I think that’s a, for an engineer is a good way to think about bigger problems. On today’s episode, we’ve got, well, some exciting news. Number one. Rosemary, uh, Barnes will be joining us here today as our co our new co-host. Yeah, thanks. Thanks so much for having me. So, you know, one wind turbine with, um, wooden 80 meter long wooden blades. Yeah. Like, that’s so cool. What a great engineering challenge or, you know, craftsmanship challenge, um, there, but, you know, I’d like to see one [00:26:00]wooden wind turbine blade, but not, not more than that. It’s a, it’s a cool, it’s a cool novelty. And then burn it, right? If you burn it, then you’ll catch the carbon. We need someone within the Australian wind industry to start up a, a better conference. Um, you know, it should be allowing you to kind of put your finger on the pulse and figure out, you know, what, what’s the vibe of wind energy in Australia at the moment? Um, what are the big problems people are having and then, you know, some potential solutions, some people talking about things that are coming up that you might not have heard about yet. I just think that it’s much easier to get a good value conference from a, like a, a small organization that is really dedicated to the, um, topic of the, of the conference. So as part of the Uptime Wind Energy Podcast, Rosemary, the YouTube ci, these little gold plaques. So this is actually, this is your first gold plaque, but you have two [00:27:00] silver plaques also. ’cause engineering with Rosie reached a 100,000 subscribers. Uh, the uptime also reached a hundred thousand subscribers a while ago, but we reached 1 million. This is the first time I, we’ve been in person, but I could actually hand you this award. So congratulations Zi. Very, very well done. Thank you. This is treasured and, um. Yeah, added in. Nothing like that has ever happened to me before, so I’m bit overwhelmed. I, I’m interested to know, we got that Wheel of Fortune footage from, ’cause I thought that was lost. Lost forever. It’s over. It’s on YouTube. Sadly. It is. It’s 24. All the episodes Rosemary competed in the Wheel of Fortune. She was on four times. Six times. Six times. Sorry. There’s only four available on the internet. You may have white scrub tube. I wanna massaging Lazy Boy. Is that your husband? He made me get rid of it. He is like, that thing is hideous. And [00:28:00] it was, yeah. Thank, thank you so much. And I mean, yeah, this is the, the uptime wind energy. Um. Yeah, podcast achievement. It’s, um, it’s crazy how, how popular that, um, it’s in insanely popular since we crossed the 1 million mark that was a while ago. We’re up to 1.6 million right now. We’ll cross 2 million this year. I know it’s, it’s clear Claire’s reason. It mostly clear and it honestly is. Uh, but wind energy is a big part of the energy future, and as I’m realizing now, uh, when you start to reach out to people, you realize how important it is for the planet and for individual countries that wind energy is part of their electricity grid. So the, the information we exchange here this week is very valuable and reach out to others. I think that’s part of this wind industry and Matthew’s pointed out many times, is that we share. So unlike other places, uh. Wind energy likes to work together. And that’s great to hear and it’s great to participate in. So I wanna thank everybody here for attending, uh, this conference. Thank you to all the sponsors. Uh, you [00:29:00] made this thing possible. Uh, as Matthew has pointed out, we’ll be at WMA 2027. The website is live. So, uh, listen to Rosie. Please register now. Uh, and uh, yeah. Thank you so much for, for being with us. And we’ll see you in February right here. Thank you.

This week Shawn Tierney meets up with Soroush Karimzadeh of Novarc to discuss their AI-Powered Autonomous Welding Robotics in this episode of #TheAutomationPodcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 262 Show Notes: Special thanks goes out to Soroush Karimzadeh for coming on the show, and to Novarc for sponsoring this episode. To learn more about their AI-Powered Autonomous Robotic Welding solution, see the below links: Soroush Karimzadeh, LinkedIn, CEO & CoFounder, Novarc Technologies Inc.: https://www.linkedin.com/in/soroushkarimzadeh Novarc Technologies, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/novarc-technologies-inc- Novarc Technologies Website: https://www.novarctech.com/ NovAI™ – Adaptive Welding: The full power of AI and machine vision in welding automation: https://www.novarctech.com/products/novai/ Spool Welding Robot (SWR™): https://www.novarctech.com/products/spool-welding-robot/ Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

This episode wraps up our Technology Modernization theme with a Siemens perspective that feels very grounded in what factories are actually dealing with right now. Brian Albrecht and Louis Hughes from the Siemens XD team walk through what they are seeing in the field across brownfield and greenfield conversations, why executives keep asking for industrial AI before the foundations are ready, and what it really takes to turn messy plant data into something you can trust for analytics, operations, and eventually AI enabled workflows.A big thread in this conversation is that modern manufacturing is not blocked by ambition, it is blocked by readiness. Everyone wants faster decisions, fewer surprises, and higher uptime, but the path there usually starts with boring work that is not optional. Data transparency across machine, plant, MES, and cloud layers. A clear definition of what real time actually needs to mean for a given use case. And a plan to contextualize and orchestrate data so that AI does not get fed junk inputs. Brian and Louis explain how they approach those early customer conversations, how workshops turn vision into prioritized use cases, and why trust, pilots, and repeatability matter more than flashy demos when you are working in regulated or high consequence environments.If you have been hearing nonstop AI buzz but you are still wrestling with legacy controls, inconsistent tags, documentation that no one can find, and seven layers of security constraints, this episode is for you. We get into practical use cases like AI vision and anomaly detection, LLMs for tribal knowledge and troubleshooting workflows, and the idea of fast versus slow AI, meaning AI that must act during production versus AI that can analyze after the fact.Timestamps00:00 Welcome and why this episode closes the modernization theme02:10 Meet Brian Albrecht and Louis Hughes from the Siemens XD team05:25 Vertical differences across oil and gas, discrete, and process manufacturing07:50 What executives ask for right now beyond AI, factory of the future and data transparency10:50 Brownfield reality and why most modernization work starts with legacy systems12:30 The AI conversation when foundations are missing, meeting customers where they are15:10 Current AI use cases in manufacturing, downtime, throughput, LLMs, and vision18:10 What it means to be AI ready, data silos, contextualization, and orchestration23:50 Fast versus slow AI and why production time decisions are different from analytics25:30 Edge versus cloud architecture, latency, and where the data should live33:40 Cybersecurity, trust, and why perception can lag behind the technology36:50 Hallucinations, guardrails, and why recommendations usually come before automation51:10 Book recommendations, career advice, and future predictions for industrial AIAbout the hostsVlad Romanov is an electrical engineer with an MBA from McGill University and over a decade of experience in manufacturing and industrial automation. He has worked across large scale environments including Procter and Gamble, Kraft Heinz, and Post Holdings, and he now leads Joltek, helping manufacturers modernize systems, improve reliability, strengthen IT and OT architecture, and upskill technical teams through practical training and on site enablement.Dave Griffith is the cohost of Manufacturing Hub and an industrial automation practitioner who focuses on how modern technologies translate into real factory outcomes, from controls and data foundations to scalable implementation strategies.About the guestsBrian Albrecht started in electrical engineering and spent about a decade in systems integration in Oklahoma City focused on oil and gas, building SCADA, networking, and automation solutions and leading teams delivering real world projects. He now works with Siemens customers on building relationships and delivering solutions that create measurable value.Louis Hughes has roughly 20 years of manufacturing experience, starting in software development for manufacturing and engineering applications, then moving into solution architecture, services delivery, and experience center leadership. He now leads a smart manufacturing team, bringing a software and systems view into automation conversations focused on solving customer problems, not just deploying tools.Joltek Services - https://www.joltek.com/servicesContact Joltek - https://www.joltek.com/contactReferenced in the episodeProveIt Conference - https://www.proveitconference.com/Siemens - https://www.siemens.com/Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey A Moorehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossing_the_ChasmExtreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babinhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extreme_Ownership

This week Shawn Tierney meets up with Karim Kozman of Schneider Electric to discuss What’s Next for Industrial Automation in this episode of #TheAutomationPodcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 261 Show Notes: Special thanks goes out to Karim Kozman of Schneider Electric for coming on the show, and to Schneider Electric for sponsoring this episode. Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

In this episode of Manufacturing Hub, Vlad Romanov and Dave Griffith sit down with David for a practical, operator grounded conversation about industrial data, modernization, and what it actually takes to turn plant floor signals into business decisions. David has spent more than two decades in manufacturing across automotive, solar, and electric vehicles, and his story is a familiar one for a lot of us. He walked into a plant thinking he was there for a project, discovered PLCs in real time, and never left the factory world. From early days wiring up a SQL Server to pull line data instead of sending people out with stopwatches, to leading data and analytics and shaping MES and reporting strategy, this conversation stays focused on the messy middle where most factories live.A big theme here is that collecting data is not the same thing as creating information. As tooling has improved, connectivity, historians, SCADA, cloud storage, MQTT, and the modern ecosystem have made it easier to get signals out of machines. The hard part is deciding what matters, aligning stakeholders, and creating context that survives across teams and projects. David breaks down how real progress often starts with simple visibility, what is ruining your day, what is the biggest safety risk, what is the recurring quality miss, what is the downtime story you do not trust, then builds from there using workshops and iterative delivery instead of giant multi year “boil the ocean” programs.We also get into Unified Namespace, why it resonates with people who have been burned by tightly coupled ISA style integrations, and why change management is the hidden cost. If you are exploring UNS, this episode highlights the difference between drawing the box on a whiteboard and getting a whole organization to actually adopt consistent naming, context, and ownership. Then we finish with a grounded take on industrial AI. No hype, no doom. Just a realistic view of where AI helps today, where it breaks, and why context windows, documentation quality, and domain expertise still decide whether results are useful or dangerous.Timestamps00:00:00 Welcome and the month theme on technology modernization00:02:10 David's background from automotive and the Tesla Fremont NUMMI era to data leadership00:05:10 The moment data became “real” and why proactive visibility drives safety and outcomes00:07:10 How Kaizen and Toyota Production System style problem solving creates demand for data00:11:50 Why modern tooling makes collection easier and why budget and commitment still decide success00:16:10 Starting points that work in the real world and the simplest visibility model that scales00:18:20 Unified Namespace explained through decoupling, context, and why the first attempt often fails00:23:50 Who really uses the data, operators, quality, engineering, and the “next factory” teams00:29:10 Defining KPIs when nobody has answers and using workshops to force prioritization00:34:20 What rollouts actually take, machine states, data structures, controls changes, and iteration00:40:10 Industrial AI reality check, where it helps today and why it is not running your factory00:51:10 Predicting the next few years, consolidation, pricing, and better integration with agentsAbout the hostsVlad Romanov is an industrial automation and manufacturing leader with over a decade of plant floor experience across major manufacturers. He is the founder of Joltek, where he helps teams modernize operations through IT and OT architecture, integration, reliability focused execution, and practical upskilling that actually sticks. Joltek works with manufacturers who need real outcomes, not buzzwords, and the work spans controls, data, networking, and operational performance.Dave Griffith is the co host of Manufacturing Hub and works at the intersection of manufacturing operations, technology modernization, and practical delivery. He focuses on helping teams bridge the gap between “we want data” and “we can run this plant better next quarter.”About the guestDavid has 25 plus years of manufacturing experience spanning automotive, solar manufacturing, and EVs. He started in plant floor automation and conveyance projects, then moved deeper into industrial data, MES, and analytics leadership. His recent work includes leading data and analytics, defining KPI strategy, and building the layers required to turn raw plant signals into usable business information.Links from Joltekhttps://www.joltek.com/blog/mastering-unified-namespace-uns-a-guide-to-data-driven-manufacturing-transformationhttps://www.joltek.com/blog/ultimate-guide-mqtt-manufacturingSubscribe for more conversations on manufacturing modernization, industrial data architecture, MES realities, and what works on the plant floor when the budget, people, and legacy systems are all real.

This week Shawn Tierney meets up with Manish Sharma of Emerson to learn about the Next Generation of PACSystems Industrial PCs in this episode of #TheAutomationPodcast. Unlock access to the ad free EXTENDED EDITION by joining our channel at https://youtube.com/@InsightsIA/join or https://TheAutomationBlog.com/join For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast: Note: Below is an ad-free extended edition of the show that’s a member perk. To unlock the extended episode, become a member here. Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

In this episode of Unplugged, powered by PLCnext Technology, Phil and Ed they sit down with Jasper Louage of Mustry Solutions to discuss the latest advances in industrial automation and manufacturing data systems. Jasper shares his experience bringing event-driven architectures, open source platforms, and unified namespace concepts to real-world manufacturing environments. Hear about practical integrations, data flow from plant floor to enterprise, and managing change in IT/OT cultures. Whether you're a manufacturer, tech professional, or automation enthusiast, you'll gain perspective on BI, MES, SCADA, open source, and the future of industrial technology.-----This episode is made possible by PLCnext TechnologyPLCnext Technology is the ecosystem for industrial automation consisting of open hardware, modular engineering software, a global community, and a digital software marketplace.Learn more at:⁠⁠https://www.plcnext-community.net/news/synergy-edge-cloud/⁠⁠-----Connect with Phil on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-seboa/Connect with Ed on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ed-fuentes-2046121a/Connect with Jasper on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasper-louage/Learn more about Mustry Solutions: mustrysolutions.com-----About Industry Sage Media:Industry Sage Media is your backstage pass to industry experts and the conversations that are shaping the future of the manufacturing industry.Learn more at: http://www.industrysagemedia.com

This week Shawn Tierney meets up with John DeTellem of Siemens to learn what’s new in TIA Portal v21 in this episode of #TheAutomationPodcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 259 Show Notes: Special thanks to John DeTellem of Siemens for coming on the show, and to Siemens for sponsoring this episode. For more information please see the below links: TIA Portal V21 Sales & Delivery Release TIA Portal V21 Technical Slides TIA Portal V21 Trial Download TIA Portal in the Cloud TIA Portal Documentations Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Technology modernization in manufacturing is not a list of shiny tools. It is a sequencing problem. In this episode of Manufacturing Hub, Vlad Romanov and Dave Griffith break down why the executive vision for AI often collides with the reality of the plant floor, and what a practical path forward actually looks like when you account for data quality, legacy controls, networking, and the true cost of integration.A core theme in this conversation is imperfect information. Leaders often believe the data already exists because reports exist. But a stack of paper, a few spreadsheets, or a single counter value is not the same as contextualized, trustworthy history that can drive decisions or support advanced analytics. Vlad and Dave walk through why foundational work matters, what teams usually miss during modernization, and how quickly the bill grows when you discover your architecture is outdated, undocumented, or full of dependencies you cannot see until you open panels and start tracing signals.You will also hear a grounded debate on how to think about SCADA, MES, historians, dashboards, and what it would actually mean to “feed data into AI” in a manufacturing context. The takeaway is simple. If you want better outcomes, you need a better understanding of your current state, a clear business case, and a roadmap that prioritizes what matters operationally. Modernization is not one big upgrade. It is a series of decisions that either reduce friction or create it.About the hostsVlad Romanov is an industrial automation and manufacturing expert focused on plant assessments, controls and data architecture, IT and OT integration, and workforce upskilling. Vlad has over 10 years of experience across large manufacturers and complex multi site environments, working from PLC and HMI layers up through SCADA, MES, and ERP integration programs. He is the founder of Joltek, where the mission is to help manufacturers modernize safely, build internal capability, and deliver results that actually survive handoff to operations.Learn more about Joltekhttps://www.joltek.comhttps://www.joltek.com/servicesDave Griffith is an industrial automation practitioner and consultant who works closely with manufacturers to modernize legacy environments, improve reliability, and build practical systems that operators and maintenance teams can support. Dave brings a strong perspective on what is feasible in real plants, where uptime, risk, budget, and organizational readiness drive every decision.Timestamps00:00:00 Welcome and why this month is about technology modernization00:02:10 The real problem with “just add AI” in manufacturing00:04:15 Quick background on Vlad and Dave and the work they do00:05:25 The disconnect between the perfect factory vision and the plant floor00:06:25 Vlad on business cases, integration reality, and infrastructure gaps00:09:05 Dave on imperfect information and why reports are not data00:14:35 What executives actually want from AI and why it is often about people constraints00:20:25 How to get there, hardware first, data normalization, and context00:22:05 Vlad on assessments, legacy hardware, and why upgrades get complicated fast00:39:00 New facility planning mistakes and why early decisions lock you in00:45:10 You have the data, now what, OEE baselines, bottlenecks, and root causes00:58:10 Final takeaways, inventory your architecture and treat data like an assetReferences and links mentionedManufacturing Hub Podcasthttps://www.manufacturinghub.liveProveIt Conferencehttps://www.proveitconference.comAutomate Showhttps://www.automateshow.comIgnition Community Conferencehttps://icc.inductiveautomation.comIf you are watching on YouTube, subscribe so you do not miss the rest of this month's deep dives on hardware, data teams, and practical applications that actually work on real plant floors.

This week Shawn Tierney meets up with Dante Vaccaro of Schneider Electric to discuss Digital Transformations and Trends in Industrial Automation in this episode of #TheAutomationPodcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 258 Show Notes: Special thanks goes out to Dante Vaccaro of Schneider Electric for coming on the show, and to Schneider Electric for sponsoring this episode. Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

In this episode of Manufacturing Hub, hosts Vlad Romanov and Dave Griffith welcome back Amos Purdy for a wide ranging conversation that connects plant floor reality with SCADA, MES, and the business decisions that actually fund modernization. Amos shares his path from early software and programming work into industrial automation, including building an industrial automation class and lab, leading MES and SCADA efforts, and working across industries where the pace, constraints, and validation expectations can feel like completely different worlds. If you have ever wondered why a solution that looks obvious on a whiteboard takes months or years to land on a production line, this episode breaks down the human, technical, and financial reasons in plain terms.A big thread throughout the conversation is what it takes to build systems that last. The group digs into hiring and mentoring for Ignition based teams, what backgrounds translate well, and why “hobbyist energy” can be a real superpower in interviews and on the job. The practical takeaway is simple: credentials help you get in the door, but projects help you stand out, especially when you can explain the problem, the architecture, and the tradeoffs you made. The conversation also gets real about legacy plants, where the constraint is often not ambition but risk, ROI, and operational disruption. The group frames modernization as a sequence of targeted moves that improve data availability, reduce cybersecurity exposure, and create a foundation for future applications without betting the entire facility on a massive rip and replace.You will also hear a grounded take on AI in industrial settings. The panel separates what is useful today from what is still hype, and explains why industrial AI needs context, standards, and purpose built training data to be trusted. They connect that to the “data transparency” problem: companies want answers faster, but the hard part is making the data accessible, reliable, and safe in the first place. The episode closes with a discussion on EV and battery manufacturing trends, the reality of global standards and certification, and what the next few years could look like as edge devices, connectivity, and power systems evolve.HostsVlad Romanov is an industrial automation and manufacturing systems expert focused on SCADA, MES, OT data infrastructure, and modernization strategy. He combines electrical engineering depth with an MBA from McGill University to help manufacturers reduce risk, improve reliability, and turn plant data into decision ready information. He leads Joltek, where he delivers assessments, integration roadmaps, and practical upskilling for engineering and operations teams.Dave GriffithManufacturing and automation leader focused on bridging business outcomes with engineering execution, change management, and scalable plant systems.GuestAmos PurdyMBA and electrical engineering background with deep experience across industrial automation, SCADA, MES, and manufacturing intelligence, including leading teams and deployments in both legacy and greenfield environments.Timestamps00:00 Welcome to Manufacturing Hub and why this episode sets up the upcoming modernization theme02:20 Amos Purdy returns and reintroduces his background03:00 From early programming to industrial automation, lab building, and MES leadership09:40 Switching industries and why vertical experience is often overvalued12:40 Hiring and mentoring for Ignition, web skills vs plant floor instincts16:10 AI vs fundamentals, why legacy tech knowledge still matters17:20 Growing teams and how managers should match work to strengths20:10 How candidates stand out, hobby projects and real systems thinking22:50 Technology modernization, data visibility, and cybersecurity as the forcing function31:50 The real bottlenecks, selling ROI, scoping, and avoiding project blowouts37:30 AI readiness in industry, what works today and what is not there yet41:00 EV and battery manufacturing, investment, standards, and what changes on the shop floor50:40 Predictions for the future, edge devices, connectivity, and more data everywhere54:20 Book recommendation and why macro trends matter for engineers56:00 Where to find Amos and what to reach out aboutReferences and links mentionedIgnition by Inductive Automationhttps://inductiveautomation.com/ignitionIgnition SCADA overviewhttps://inductiveautomation.com/scada-softwareInductive University traininghttps://inductiveuniversity.comProveIt Conference 2026 detailshttps://www.proveitconference.comEdison Motorshttps://www.edisonmotors.ca2030: How Today's Biggest Trends Will Collide and Reshape the Future of Everything by Mauro F. Guillénhttps://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250772213/2030howtodaysbiggesttrendswillcollideandreshapethefutureofeverything/https://www.joltek.com/serviceshttps://www.joltek.com/education/ot-networking-fundamentals

Upstream oil and gas companies continue to be very reliant on spreadsheets, legacy systems, and manual workflows to manage thousands of wells, compliance filings, and capital decisions. It's labor-intensive, error-prone, and slow. In light of global energy transition moves, operators are now facing ongoing margin pressure, a supply glut, tighter emissions regulations, and a shrinking pool of skilled labor. Digital solutions to soften the impacts of these pressures too often end up in "pilot hell", with limited results, stalled momentum, and no path to scale. Core systems like SCADA and ERP can't be easily adapted, and the early stage AI tools are often dismissed as too risky, inaccurate, or incompatible with real-world operations. Capital markets frown on any moves that sacrifice short term ROI for the possibility of better results later. New agentic AI tools look perfectly placed to address these constraints, but getting started is daunting. In this episode, I speak with AI strategy advisor Jeff McKee who outlines how a handful of upstream operators are now using agentic AI (modular software agents), that augment field teams and automate critical tasks across production, compliance, and finance. Already live across 1,500 wells, these tools have delivered a 3–10% uplift in production, 5–15% profit lift, and >90% reduction in compliance workload. Jeff explains how companies can start small, define just a few key KPIs, and stand up agents in under two months, all without touching core systems. From Sarbanes-Oxley readiness to workover economics, it's a roadmap for scaling AI one agent at a time.

This week Shawn Tierney meets up with Matthew Dulcey of PRONETIQS, and Stefan Hild of Spur Insights, to learn how PRONETIQS helps Measure, Monitor, and Maintain Control Systems in this episode of #TheAutomationPodcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 257 Show Notes: Special thanks goes out to Matthew Dulcey of PRONETIQS, and Stefan Hild of Spur Insights, for coming on the show, and to PRONETIQS for sponsoring this episode. If you’d like to learn more, please visit the below links: Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pronetiqs SID 5: https://pronetiqs.com/sid5 IntraVUE: https://pronetiqs.com/intravue Service & Support: https://pronetiqs.com/service-and-support Trainings: https://pronetiqs.com/trainings Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Decades of industrial automation, SCADA implementations, and digital transformation meet the future of IIoT in this conversation with special guest Max Carritt, made possible by PLCnext Technology. Hosts Phil Seboa and Ed Fuentes trace Max's journey from early experiences in Texas gas plants to leading multi-site SCADA modernization in Europe.This episode covers technical growth, project challenges, cultural contrasts between U.S. and European automation, and hands-on learning with open platforms like Ignition. Highlights include mobile SCADA innovations, transitioning to enterprise-scale solutions, best practices for reducing tech debt, and building custom applications for fun (like D&D game management).Whether you're stepping into the industry, evaluating career paths in controls engineering, or looking for practical advice on databases and IT/OT convergence, this discussion offers firsthand accounts and hard-won lessons from the field.-----------------This episode is made possible by PLCnext TechnologyPLCnext Technology is the ecosystem for industrial automation consisting of open hardware, modular engineering software, a global community, and a digital software marketplace.Learn more at:https://www.plcnext-community.net/news/synergy-edge-cloud/-----------------Connect with Phil on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-seboa/Connect with Ed on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/ed-fuentes-2046121a/Connect with Max on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxcarritt/-----------------About Industry Sage Media:Industry Sage Media is your backstage pass to industry experts and the conversations that are shaping the future of the manufacturing industry.Learn more at: http://www.industrysagemedia.com

Podcast: CYBR.SEC.CAST (LS 25 · TOP 10% what is this?)Episode: Diving (Pun Intended) into SCADA and Control Systems with Randy PetersenPub date: 2025-12-17Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationIn this episode, SJRA SCADA Superintendent and HOU.SEC.CON./OT.SEC.CON. speaker Randy Petersen joins Michal and Sam on the podcast to share his expertise on SCADA systems and the unique security challenges facing water facilities. They highlight real-world incidents and vulnerabilities in OT environments, offer practical advice for improving OT security and protecting essential services from cyber threats, and the importance of proactive defense strategies. Things Mentioned:OT.SEC.CON. Call for Papers - https://www.xcdsystem.com/cybrseccommunity/abstract/abstract.cfmCyber Centre warns hack tampered with pressure at Canadian water treatment plant -https://esemag.com/infrastructure/cyber-centre-warns-hack-canadian-water-treatment-plant/Randy's OT.SEC.CON. 2025 Presentation - "Network Asset Visibility Fundamental for OT Cybersecurity" - https://youtu.be/3tMGwnOFwhA?si=97bdtE6VROT8mZBrRandy's HOU.SEC.CON. 2025 Presentation – “Change the Mindset - Availability is the Driving Factor” - https://youtu.be/tEUY3eeMGr8?si=K6bYUTp7rpPnvMatDo you have a question for the hosts? Reach out to us at media@cscgroupllc.com Keep up with CYBR.SEC.CON.:LinkedInXFacebookInstagramKeep up with CYBR.SEC.Media:LinkedInXFacebookInstagramCheck out our Conferences and Events:CYBR.SEC.CON.OT.SEC.CON.CYBR.HAK.CON.EXEC.SEC.CON.CSC User GroupSupport or apply to our Scholarship Program:TAB Cyber FoundationSubscribe to the podcast: AppleSpotifyIn this episode:Host: Michael FarnumHost: Sam Van RyderGuest: Randy PetersenProduction and editing: Lauren AndrusMusic by: August HoneyThe podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from CYBR.SEC.Media, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.

Shawn Tierney meets up with Drew Allen of Grace Technologies to discuss Automation, Safety, the history of Grace, and more in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 256 Show Notes: To learn about becoming a member and unlocking hundreds of our “member’s only” videos, click here. Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Shawn Tierney meets up with Erik Nieves of Plus One Robotics to discuss Robotics in Warehouse Automation in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Note: As mentioned above, this episode was not sponsored so the video edition is a “member only” perk. The below audio edition (also available on major podcasting platforms) is available to the public and supported by ads. To learn more about our membership/supporter options and benefits, click here. Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 255 Show Notes: To learn about becoming a member and unlocking hundreds of our “member’s only” videos, click here. Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Handing over a project is one of the most underestimated and misunderstood phases in manufacturing and industrial automation. In this episode of Manufacturing Hub, Vlad and Dave sit down to break apart real stories from the field covering MES rollouts, line commissioning, SCADA and ignition development, operational adoption, and the very real consequences of poor knowledge transfer. Most conversations online focus on the technical build, but very few people emphasize the point where engineering lets go and the operations team becomes the true owner of the system. This episode brings forward examples of both well executed handovers and catastrophic failures that every engineer, integrator, or manager can learn from.Vlad begins by walking through his experience building MES and data collection systems for food and beverage facilities where each plant had different architectures, legacy systems, undocumented networks, and obsolete PLCs. These initiatives required deep assessments, phased modernization, server deployments, KPI development, and the long journey from data collection to actual operational use. The most important insight is that success rarely comes from the technology alone. It comes from the extent to which operators, supervisors, and CI teams are trained, empowered, and aligned to use what has been built.Dave then shares a story from a multi year track and trace project that technically worked but failed at the operational handover stage because the one scheduler refused to schedule inside the system. The entire project was mothballed despite millions of dollars invested. The lesson is simple. Technology cannot compensate for missing stakeholder alignment and poor discovery. Human influence can halt even the most well engineered solution.Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and episode setup 01:20 Host introductions and backgrounds 04:00 Vlad's MES and data rollout projects across multiple plants 18:10 Biggest wins and failures from MES handovers 26:20 Dave's chocolate factory MES and traceability project 29:30 The scheduler says no and a multi million project gets mothballed 36:40 Lessons learned about scope creep and realistic timelines 42:00 Vlad's multimillion packaging line rollouts and OEE based handover 49:20 Internal versus external teams and who really owns change 58:50 Connected workforce at an orange juice plant and knowledge capture 01:15:00 Where project handovers are heading in the next three to five years 01:19:00 Career advice, books, and final thoughts HostsVladimir RomanovFounder of Joltek. Electrical engineer with an MBA from McGill University. More than a decade of experience across Procter and Gamble, Kraft Heinz, Post Holdings, and multiple systems integration roles. Specializes in OT systems, industrial data architecture, MES, SCADA, modernization, and digital transformation. Works with manufacturers to unlock value through data and operational decision support.https://www.joltek.com/team-members/vladimir-romanovDave GriffithFounder of Kaplan Solutions. Seventeen plus years of experience across aerospace, automation, system integration, MES delivery, and enterprise manufacturing systems. Dave specializes in ignition development, operations consulting, and project delivery frameworks that reduce risk and increase adoption across manufacturing teams.References Mentioned in the EpisodeNever Split The Difference by Chris Vosshttps://www.amazon.com/Never-Split-Difference-Negotiating-Depended/dp/0062407805How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegiehttps://www.amazon.com/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People/dp/0671027034Traction by Gino Wickmanhttps://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Your-Business/dp/1936661837The E Myth Revisited by Michael Gerberhttps://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280Understanding Plant NetworksManufacturing Execution SystemsManufacturing Digital Maturity and AssessmentsControl System ModernizationEngineering Project Management EssentialsManufacturing Consulting and Change Management

Shawn Tierney recaps his trip to Schneider Electric’s Innovation Summit Las Vegas in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 254 Show Notes: Special thanks to Schneider Electric and their Marketing Partners for sponsoring my trip to this year’s Innovation Summit! Below are all the links I mentioned in this episode: Innovation Summit 2025 – All Videos and Images Modicon Edge I/O NTS: Unbox, Setup & Use with Logix First Time Programming a Modicon M262 PLC Schneider's Altivar Solar ATV320 VSD (P218) Pro-face HMIs & IPCs by Schneider Electric (P195) Schneider Altivar Machine Drives (P187) Harmony HMIs and iPCs from Schneider Electric (P176) TeSys Island: Smart Motor Starters from Schneider Electric (P170) Modicon Machine Level PLC Product Line Update (P161) Next Generation Automation with Schneider Electric (P96) Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): coming Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

AI semantics, Calendly, GreyNoise, Teams, Schmaltz, India, Antigravity, Scada, Aaran Leyland, and More... Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/swn for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/swn-534

Faults don't wait for a convenient time, so it's important to design panels that are ready when they arrive. We start with the core of electrical safety inside an industrial control panel—overcurrent protection—and make the difference between short circuits and overloads crystal clear. From there, we break down where fast-acting fuses shine, where adjustable circuit breakers win, and how to coordinate both so you protect sensitive electronics, ride through inrush, and isolate power safely for maintenance.Then we turn to motors, the real workhorses on your floor. You'll hear how a contactor and overload relay form the backbone of a motor starter, why thermal overloads have served for decades, and where they fall short when you need answers, not just a tripped flag. We unpack intelligent electronic overload relays that monitor current, voltage, phase balance, temperature, and even system conditions like dry-run or jams. With real-time data, trip histories, start counts, and programmable thresholds, these smart relays help you prevent damage, cut unplanned downtime, and extend motor life.Finally, we share practical ways to bring this intelligence into your plant without tearing everything out. Learn retrofit strategies that add diagnostics to legacy panels, how to align setpoints with your process, and how to publish data to SCADA and OEE dashboards for better energy tracking and continuous improvement. If you care about safety, reliability, and getting ahead of problems, this is a roadmap to designing for faults before they happen and turning your panel into a source of insight, not mystery. Keep Asking Why...Read our latest article on Industrial Manufacturing herehttps://eecoonline.com/inspire/panels_102 Online Account Registration:Video Explanation of Registering for an AccountRegister for an AccountOther Resources to help with your journey:Installed Asset Analysis SupportSystem Planning SupportSchedule your Visit to a Lab in North or South CarolinaSchedule your Visit to a Lab in VirginiaSubmit your questions and feedback to: podcast@eecoaskwhy.comFollow EECO on LinkedInHost: Chris Grainger

AI semantics, Calendly, GreyNoise, Teams, Schmaltz, India, Antigravity, Scada, Aaran Leyland, and More... Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/swn-534

Shawn meets up with Travis Cox of Inductive Automation to learn about the new features found in Ignition 8.3 in this episode of The Automation Show. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Show from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Show on The Automation Blog: The Automation Show, Season 2 Episode 37 Show Notes: Special thanks to Travis for coming on the show, and to Inductive Automation for sponsoring this episode so we could release it ad free! To learn more about Ignition, please see the below links: What’s New in Ignition 8.3 Download Ignition 8.3 Ignition User Manual 8.3 Documentation Learn Ignition and earn a free credential   Schedule an Ignition demo Travis’ first appearance back in episode TAP 124 Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): coming later Vendors: Would you like your product featured on the Podcast, Show or Blog? If you would, please contact me at: https://theautomationblog.com/contact Until next time, Peace ✌️ If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

AI semantics, Calendly, GreyNoise, Teams, Schmaltz, India, Antigravity, Scada, Aaran Leyland, and More... Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/swn for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/swn-534

AI semantics, Calendly, GreyNoise, Teams, Schmaltz, India, Antigravity, Scada, Aaran Leyland, and More... Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/swn-534

Todd broke down how we're actually getting real ROI out of AI instead of chasing buzzwords, starting with the simple idea that domain expertise and clear value beats any hype cycle. He walked through the three places AI moves the needle G&A, capital, and risk and safety showing how agents can take over the daily grind like SCADA alert triage, revenue statements, AFEs, regulatory filings, and even capturing tribal knowledge before it walks out the door. He explained how Collide sits above systems like Quorum, WellView, SCADA, and accounting so teams can query everything in one place and see how a single well status change ripples across leases, contracts, and compliance. Regulatory use cases are exploding W-10s, injectors, flaring permits, methane reporting and mapping is becoming a key layer using tools like Mapbox. On the non-op side, the team is already extracting revenue statements and AFEs, pushing data into Aries and accounting, and setting up real ROI analysis for OBO partners. The takeaway start small, prove the value, then expand into a stack of agents that quietly take on the busywork so teams can focus on decisions that matter.Click here to watch a video of this episode.Join the conversation shaping the future of energy.Collide is the community where oil & gas professionals connect, share insights, and solve real-world problems together. No noise. No fluff. Just the discussions that move our industry forward.Apply today at collide.ioClick here to view the episode transcript. https://twitter.com/collide_iohttps://www.tiktok.com/@collide.iohttps://www.facebook.com/collide.iohttps://www.instagram.com/collide.iohttps://www.youtube.com/@collide_iohttps://bsky.app/profile/digitalwildcatters.bsky.socialhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/collide-digital-wildcatters

This episode takes you inside the reality of becoming a systems integrator and growing a technical services business from the ground up. Vlad and Dave share their personal experiences launching and running integration companies, the lessons they learned as engineers moving into business ownership, and the challenges that come with finding customers, choosing technologies, setting rates, managing cashflow, and hiring the right people. This is a detailed and candid look at what the journey actually requires. It is also a practical conversation that breaks down how technical professionals can evolve beyond pure engineering work in order to build a sustainable integration practice in the world of manufacturing and industrial automation.The episode begins by grounding the definition of a systems integrator in the context of modern industrial environments. Vlad and Dave explore the many different shapes and levels of integrators across the ISA eighty five and ISA ninety five landscape, from controls and PLC programming to SCADA development, MES implementations, and specialized software delivery. They also explain why customers hire integrators, why the most valuable asset is always the people, and why the hardest part of the work is rarely technical. Vlad shares insights from his decade in engineering and operations roles at Procter and Gamble, Kraft Heinz, and Post Holdings, followed by senior engineering and management positions at multiple systems integration firms. Dave brings his experience from aerospace, OEM machine building, distribution, and running his own integration business focused on manufacturing execution systems and ignition development.The conversation then shifts to the earliest stages of starting an integration company. Vlad and Dave describe the moment when most professionals decide to go out on their own, which usually begins with feeling constrained by corporate structures or wanting more autonomy over the projects they work on. They break down the difference between being a contractor and building a long term business and why many technical founders underestimate the reality of sales, marketing, legal administration, cashflow management, and relationship building. The discussion highlights how timing and relationships drive early opportunities far more than technical ability and why every contract carries its own risk profile that needs to be negotiated with care.Listeners are then guided through the real startup requirements for a systems integration company. This includes liability insurance, business registration, accounting and bookkeeping tools, mileage and expense tracking, choosing an internal technology stack, managing licenses, and understanding when to invest in programming software or rely on customer owned licenses. Vlad and Dave explain the role of net thirty, net ninety, and even net one hundred eighty payment terms and why long payment cycles can destroy cashflow if not anticipated correctly. They also share practical frameworks for setting hourly rates, pricing time and materials versus fixed projects, and calculating the true cost of travel, administration, and sales time that erode billable hours.Timestamps00:00 Introduction to systems integration month01:10 Vlad background and career in manufacturing and automation03:00 Dave background and experience running an integration company04:40 What a systems integrator actually is in modern manufacturing07:50 The blurry line between integrators machine builders and software providers08:50 Why people decide to start a systems integration company12:40 Contractor mindset versus building a real business16:50 Early startup requirements insurance registration tools licenses22:00 Sales marketing and the challenge of finding early customers27:00 How timing relationships and visibility drive new work30:00 Referrals partnerships and brand building for technical founders33:20 Understanding financials hourly rates project rates and risk40:00 Negotiating payment terms net cycles and cashflow management43:30 Technology choices internal tools external platforms and vendor ecosystems51:10 Should you specialize or learn every platform54:20 When to say no and how to evaluate incoming work58:00 Hiring your first employee and the reality of scaling01:03:20 The future of systems integration over the next three to five years01:08:00 Final career advice for engineers considering integration01:12:00 Resources and closing thoughtsSystems integrators articlehttps://www.joltek.com/blog/system-integratorsManufacturing consulting insightshttps://www.joltek.com/blog/manufacturing-consultingDigital transformation in manufacturinghttps://www.joltek.com/blog/digital-transformation-in-manufacturingIndustrial cybersecurity fundamentalshttps://www.joltek.com/blog/industrial-cybersecurity-ics

professorjrod@gmail.comThe everyday internet feels effortless, but behind every click lives a maze of services quietly doing the heavy lifting. I pull back the curtain on the systems that make your workday possible—file shares that just appear on your desktop, printers that hum along until a 200‑page PDF wrecks the queue, and the alphabet soup of protocols that move data safely and fast.We start with the essentials: SMB and Samba for file and print, why SFTP on port 22 beats FTP for modern transfers, and how relational databases differ from NoSQL when your needs shift from consistent records to massive logs. From there we head to the browser, unpacking HTTPS, TLS, and certificates so you know what that lock icon actually guarantees. Email gets its due too: SMTP for sending, IMAP for syncing, and the trio of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC that keeps phishing at bay.Security and scale meet in the middle with proxy servers, spam gateways, and Unified Threat Management devices that filter, inspect, and sandbox threats before users ever see them. Then we look at load balancers that keep portals alive at peak times, plus the messy reality of legacy systems that refuse to retire. We don't ignore the industrial world—embedded devices, ICS, and SCADA that run utilities and factories—where one misstep can ripple beyond a single office.Troubleshooting ties it all together. I share real stories and checklists for wired faults, slow networks, Wi‑Fi ghosts caused by microwave ovens, and VoIP glitches fixed with QoS and VLANs. You'll leave with practical ways to spot the root cause fast, confidence with ports and protocols, and a clearer map of the services that keep everything running.If you learned something useful, follow the show, share this episode with a teammate, and leave a quick review to help others find us. Got a strange network mystery you solved? Send it my way and we'll feature the best ones next time.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

Shawn Tierney meets up with Mark Berger of Siemens to learn how Siemens integrates SIRIUS ACT devices (push buttons, selector switches, pilot lights) with PROFINET in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 253 Show Notes: Special thanks to Mark Berger of Siemens for coming on the show and sending us a sample! Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): Thank you for tuning back in to the automation podcast. My name is Shawn Tierney from Insights. And today on the show, we have a special treat. We have Mark Berger back on from Siemens to bring us up to speed on serious act. He’s gonna tell us all about the product, and then we’re even gonna do a small demo and take a look at it working live. So with that said, let’s go ahead and jump into this episode with Mark Burger from Siemens and learn all about their push buttons on PROFINET. Mark, it’s been a while since you’ve been on the show. Thank you for coming back on and agreeing to talk about this. Mark Berger (Siemens): Oh, thank you so much. I truly appreciate you letting me be on. I appreciate your channel, and I enjoy watching it. And I’m excited to show you some of this great technology. So I’ve got, the PowerPoint up here. We’ll just do a simple PowerPoint to kinda give you an overview, and then we’ll dive into the hardware. Shawn Tierney (Host): Appreciate it. Thank you. Mark Berger (Siemens): No problem. So as we stated, the Sirius X over PROFINET, let me emphasize that, the, actuators, the push buttons, the estops, the selector switches, they are all standard, when you use these. So if you have those on the shelf, the only thing that PROFINET does is that it adds, removes the normal contact blocks and adds the PROFINET, terminal blocks on the back. So every all the actuators that we’re showing are just standard actuators for the 22 millimeter push button line. So easy to use, modern design, performance and action, and extremely rugged and flexible. The, 22 millimeter is out of the box IP 69 k, which for those who are maybe in the food and beverage, verticals would understand what that is. And that’s for direct hose down, wash down, able to handle a high pressure washing and not able to leak past the actuator into the panel. So IP 69 k is a a great place for dust and wash down and hosing and where you’re having rain and so forth, to be able to protect for a keep of any, water passing into the panel. So introduction wise, it’s, the PROFINET push buttons for us. It it is, again, the same actuators, the same, connections, and so forth, but what we’re going to exchange is the terminal blocks, for it. So on there, I stated it’s, IP 69 k is standard. You don’t need any, extra covers forward or anything to fulfill that requirement, But it’s, it’s insensitive to dust and oil and caustic solutions, you know, like citric acid where you’re hosing down some stainless steel parts and so forth. Now what we have here is, changing out the terminal blocks that have wiring. So usually on a push button, you have two wires coming in, and then you have, for illuminated, you have two wires coming in and so forth and going out. And after you have 20 or 30 push buttons or 10 or 15 push buttons, you’ve got a substantial little bit of wiring or cabling that will be passing from the door over into the main cabinet of your control cabinet. What we’re going to do with PROFINET push buttons is we’re going to eliminate all that wiring. And then in addition, eliminate the input and output cards that you will need for your PLC and take it down to a pro, Ethernet cable, an r j r j 45 cable, and then down to a 24 volts. And that’s all that will pass from the cabinet onto the door where you’re mounting your push buttons. So, huge, safe and cost of wires. We’re reducing all the wire outlay. And, you know, back in the day when I build panels, it was an art how you got all the wires all nice and pretty and got them laid out and wire tied them down and so forth and just made the a piece of art on the backside. And then, it it was all done. You got it all wired. And then, of course, there was somebody that said, hey. We forgot to add another selector switch. So you had to go back and cut all that stuff and redo the whole layout and so forth. So with PROFINET, it’s extremely flexible and easily, to adapt to if you need something, more because you’re not taking all that wiring back to the panel, passing it across the hinge of the door and so forth. It is also with a safety PLC. You do have PROFIsafe, so we can do estops on the door as you can see here in the picture, but then we can do non safe applications also. So today, we’ll be just doing some non safe applications. And then the communications again is PROFINET. But then also just to touch real quick, we do have it on IO Link and on Aussie with our push buttons. So what is SiriusACT with PROFINET? There we go. So what you have is the first, block or interface module that you put on the back of your push button, that’s where the, Ethernet is plugged into and your 24 volts is plugged into. And then after that, subsequently, then the push buttons that you have is that you have what we call a terminal module. And in between the, the interface module to a terminal module or from terminal module to terminal module, you can go up to one meter of cabling, and it’s a ribbon cable. And we’ll show that here shortly. And then if you have up to we can do up to 20 push buttons, terminal modules, with a total of 21 push buttons. And then so from the first interface module all the way to the last push button, you can go up to 10 meters. And then it gives, again, 24 volt power supply for it. And we have, again, as I stated, as nonsafe, talking just PROFINET, and then the safety version, talking PROFISAFE on PROFINET. So serious act, we can go up on the the safety up to seal three and performance level e as an echo. We have, again, the the standard interface module without safety. You have the PLC, the interface module, and then the subsequent terminal modules for it. And then the cabling that goes from the interface module to out to the terminal modules is a simple ribbon cable that comes into the back of the terminal modules. The only tool that you need is simply it’s just a screwdriver, and, you, push it into the terminal module, push down. It uses, vampire connections, insulation displacement, vampire connections, and you push it down in. There’s no stripping of the wires. There’s no mix up. The indicator you can see on the wires here in a minute will show you that there’s a little red line that shows you, which way it, enters into the terminal, and then that’s it. It’s very straightforward. It’s, very simple with tools. And, as I stated, it’s, just like a normal push button that you’d put on, but then we’re gonna add, remove the contact block and add the terminal module or the interface module in the place of the contact block. Just to emphasize again, we can do PROFISAFE on, with a safety PLC and a safety controller, and we can give you all the safety, requirements for the either the ISO or the IEC specifications for safety out there in the field. Here’s some of the part numbers. First one, of course, is the interface module, and that has the ability to do PROFIsafe. It has also, additionally, four digital inputs, one digital output, and then one analog input. And we’ll talk about that a little bit more just in a few minutes. And then the non safe version, 24 volts. You have a, two versions of this one, one with just with just a standard, 24 volts input, but then there’s an additional one that has the four digital in, one digital out, and one analog in. So there’s two different part numbers. One where you don’t need the additional, digital inputs and outputs and analog, and then the and then the part number with the the additional inputs and outputs. But the safety one comes there’s no other version, just the one. Then you have what we call the terminal modules, and there’s three versions. One terminal module is just the command module only. It’s mounted with two mechanical signaling blocks to signal. So you have two contact blocks built in. Then you have one that’s a terminal module with the command, the terminal blocks, and then also an integrated LED. And then you can put what color you want the LED to be, and you can see there the the part number changed for red, blue, amber, so on. And then you have a just an LED module to where it’s no contactors. It’s just LED. And, I think with our demo we’re gonna show today, we’re just gonna show the contact block and LED module and only the LED module today. There’s some other, accessories with the safety. There’s a memory module to where that you, is all the configurations are put into the memory module, and something happens to that interface module. Everything’s put in there, the IP address, the configuration, and everything. If something gets broke and so forth or you have to replace it, you pull the memory module out, put the new terminal or interface module in, plug in the memory module, cycle the power, and it’s up and running. All the configurations, the IP address, everything’s already there. And then on the interface module, it does not come with an LED, so you’re required to buy this this, LED right here if you need it for it, and that’s what you use for the interface module. And then, of course, the ribbon cable that goes between the interface module to the terminal block or terminal module and terminal module and so forth come in five meter length and 10 meter length. K. So what’s it provide for you? Well, the benefits are, I’ll I’ll be very blunt. If it’s just one or two buttons on a panel, it won’t be that cost effective. Yes. We’re reducing the IO, the IO inputs and outputs, but for the savings, it’s not the best. Now when you get up to about three or four push buttons, then that cost saving is, very realized. Now when you go up to 20 push buttons, yes, you’re saving a lot of money, especially in the IO cards that you’re not gonna be required to have. And then, of course, all the wiring and the labor, getting it all wired up and doing all the loop checks to make sure that when you push this button, it’s wired into the right terminal block on the IO card, so on and so forth. So about, the break is about two to three push buttons to where it will become very cost effective for you to use it. But like I said yesterday, without PROFINET push buttons, it was all the wiring you brought across and putting them into all your IO cards and so forth. And now with PROFINET push buttons, all that goes away, and all you’re bringing across is an Ethernet cable and 24 volts positive and 24 volts negative across that hinge into the door. And that’s it. K. And then emphasizing again, we can do PROFIsafe and those, push buttons and estops. The estop can be part of your safety circuit and give you the, safety levels that you’re required from either sill and or performance level safeties depending on the specification, IEC, or ISO that you’re following within your plant. K? And then hardware configuration. Now this is where we step into reduction of engineering and helping you guys get going, quicker and making sure engineering is done properly. You know, back in the day, we’d wire up all the wires, coming from the push buttons, you know, a selector switch, a start button, stop button, indicator lights, and so forth. And and all those wires sometimes just, you know, the what we’re working with, all the wires look the same. You’ve put labels on them. You may have labeled it wrong, and you wired into an input card or an output card. So there’s some time where you’re over there doing some loop checks where you’re trying to say, yes. That’s coming into input byte dot bit, and that should be the selector switch. Well, with the PROFINET push buttons, we’re able to not have to worry about that, and we’re gonna demonstrate that just here in a minute. But you also have a full lineup of the push buttons coming into portal so that you can see the lineup and verify that it is the parts that you want. In TI portal, you can see that, of course, the first, button is the interface module, and then sequentially is the terminal modules that have either just contactors, LED and contactors, or just LEDs. And we’ll we’ll show that just here momentarily. But it’s all integrated into TIA portal. It has a visual representation of all the push buttons, and it’s simple and fast, to, configure. We’ll show you that here in just a moment. And there’s no addressing, for it. So some of the stuff that you have out there, you have addressing, making sure what the address is right, and so on. This is a standardized data management, and it’s extremely time saving and engineering saving for, the user. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, let me ask you a question about that. If the snow addressing, do the items show up, in the order that they’re wired? In other words, you know, you’re daisy chasing the you’re you’re going cable to cable from device to device. Is that the order that they show up? Mark Berger (Siemens): That’s exactly right. Shawn Tierney (Host): Okay. Mark Berger (Siemens): So if you don’t know which ones are what, you just literally put run your hand from the interface module, follow that cable, and the next one that will be visually saw in portal will be the one that it lands on first. Perfect. And then there’s a cable that leaves that one and goes into the next one, daisy chained, and then that’s what’ll be represented in that lineup. And here in just a minute, we’ll we’ll show that. Alright. Thank you for that question. Okay. Now once I got it wired up, how do I know that I got it wired properly? And we’re gonna show that here in just a minute. But just graphically wise, you have the ability to see if it is all wired up. You do not need to plug it into the PLC. This all it needs is 24 volts. The PLC can come later and plugging it in later and so forth. There’s no programming. This all comes out of the box. So once you plug it in, if all on the backside looking at the terminal blocks and the daisy chain ribbon cable, if it’s all green, you wired it up properly, and it’s working properly. But then if you see a red light flashing either at the terminal module because that will that will bubble up to the terminal module. So if you have a problem somewhere pardon me, the interface module. If you have some problem with the terminal modules, a push button like number two or three or four, it will bubble up into the, interface module to let it know, hey. We got a problem. Can you look to see where it’s at? And as you see here, we have maybe a device that’s defective. And so it bubbles up into the interface module to let you know, and a red light lets you know that we have maybe a defective module. You know, something hammered it pretty hard, or, it may have been miswired. Then the second one down below, we’ve got a wiring error to where you don’t have the green lights on the back and everybody else’s there’s no green light shown. That means you have a wiring error. Or if everything works great, it’s green lights across, but then the next level of this is is my push button working? So then we you’ll push or actuate the push button or actuate the selector switch, and the green light will flash to let you know that that terminal module or interface module is working properly. And we’ve done our our, loop checks right there before we’ve even plugged it into the PLC or your programmer has come out and sat down and worked with it. We can prove that that panel is ready to roll and ready to go, and you can set it aside. And if you got four or five of the same panel, you can build them all up, power it up, verify that it’s all green lights across the board. It is. Great. Set it down. Build up another one and go on from there. So it shows you fast fault detection without any additional equipment or additional people to come in and help you show you that. When we used to do loop checks, usually had somebody push the button, then yell at the programmer, hey. Is this coming in at I zero dot zero? Yeah. I see it. Okay. Or then he pushed another one. Hey. Is this coming in on I 0.one? No. It’s coming in on i0. Three. So there was that two people and then more time to do that loop check or the ring out as some people have called it. So in this case, you don’t need to do that, and you’ll see why here in just a minute. And then, again, if we do have an interface module that, maybe it got short circuited or something hit it, it you just pull the ePROM out, plug it into the new one, bring in the ribbon cable, and cycle the power, and you’re up and running. Alright. And then this is just some of the handling options of how it handles the data, with the projects and so forth, with basic setups, options that you can be handling with this, filling bottles. What we wanna make sure to understand is that if maybe push buttons, you can pick push buttons to work with whatever project you want it to do. So if you have six push buttons out there, two of them are working on one, bottle filling, and then the rest of them are working on the labeling, you can separate those push buttons. Even though that they’re all tied together via PROFINET, you can use them in different applications across your machine. Shawn Tierney (Host): You’re saying if I have multiple CPUs, I could have some buttons in light work with CPU one, PLC one, and some work with PLC two? Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. There’s handling there. There’s programming in the backside that needs to be done, but, yes, that can happen. Yep. Oh, alright. So conclusion, integrated into TI portal. We’re gonna show that here in a minute. So universal system, high flexibility with your digital in, digital outs, analogs, quick and easy installation, one man, one hand, no special tooling, and then substantially reducing the wiring and labor to get it going. And then, again, integrated safety if, required for the your time. So with that, let’s, switch over to TI portal. So I’ve already got a project started. I just called it project three. I’ve already got a PLC. I’ve got our, new g, s seven twelve hundred g two already in. And then what I’m gonna do is I’ve, already built up the panel. And, Shawn, if you wanna show your panel right here. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. Let me go ahead and switch the camera over to mine. And so now everybody’s seeing my overhead. Now do you want me to turn it on at this point? It’s off. Yeah. Yeah. Mark Berger (Siemens): Let’s do it. Shawn Tierney (Host): Gonna turn it on, and all the lights came on. So we have some push buttons and pilot lights here, but the push buttons are illuminated, and now they’ve all gone off. Do you want me to show the back now? Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. So what we did there is that we just showed that the LEDs are all working, and that’s at the initial powering up of the 24 volts. Now we’re gonna switch over and, you know, open up the cabinet and look inside, and now we’re looking on the backside. And if you remember in the PowerPoint, I said that we’d have all green lights, the everything’s wired properly. And as you look, all the terminal modules all have green lights, and so that means that’s all been wired properly. If you notice, you see a little red stripe on the ribbon cable. That’s a indication. Yep. To show you that. And then if you look on the on the out on the, the interface module, Shawn, there’s it says out right there at the bottom. Yeah. There’s a little dot, and that dot means that’s where the red stripe goes, coming out. So that little dot means that’s where the red stripe comes. Yep. Right there. And that’s how it comes out. And then if you look just to the left a little bit, there’s another, in, and there’d be a red dot underneath that ribbon cable showing you how the red the the red goes into it. Notice that everything’s clear, so you can see that the wire gets engaged properly all the way in. And then all you do is take a screwdriver and push down, and then the vent, comes in. The insulation displacement comes in and, and, makes the connections for you. So there’s no strip tie cable stripping tools or anything special for doing that. Another item, just while we’re looking, if you look in the bottom left hand corner of that terminal module, you see kind of a a t and then a circle and then another t. That’s an indicator to let you know that that’s two contactors and an LED that you have on the backside. Shawn Tierney (Host): We’re talking about right here? Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. Yep. Right there. Shawn Tierney (Host): Okay. Mark Berger (Siemens): So that’s an indicator to tell you what type of terminal block it is a terminal, block that it is. That’s two contactors and LED. And then if you look at one in the bottom left hand corner, there’s just a circle. That means you just have an LED. So you have some indicators to show you what you’re looking at and so forth. So today, we’re just using the two, LED only, and then we’re doing the contactor and LED combination. I I don’t have one there on your demo that’s just the contactor. So Shawn Tierney (Host): Now you were telling me about these earlier. Yeah. Mark Berger (Siemens): So yeah. The so if you look there on that second row of the terminal blocks, you have a UV and an AI, and I’ll show that in the schematic here in just a little bit, but there, that is a 10 volt output. If you put a 250 ohm or 250 k ohm, potentiometer and then bring that signal back into AI, you have an analog set point that comes in for it that will automatically be scaled zero to 1,000 count or zero to 10 volts. Mhmm. And then you can use that for a speed reference for a VFD. And it’s already there. All you have to do, you don’t have to scale it or anything. You can put it towards, you know, okay. Zero to 1,000 count means zero to 500 PSI or or zero to 100 feet per second on a conveyor belt, and I’m I’m just pulling numbers out. But that’s the only real scalability scaling you have to do. So it’ll be a zero to 1,000 count is what you’ll see instead of, like, yep. Then you got four digital ins that you can use and then a one digital out. Now the four, I, kinda inquired wife just four, but let’s say that you have a four position joystick. You could wire all four positions into that interface module, and then the output could be something else for a local horn that you want or something to that case with it. So you in addition to the, push buttons, you also have a small, distribution IO block right there in the in your panel. Shawn Tierney (Host): Which is cool. Yeah. I mean, maybe yeah. Like you said, maybe you have something else on the panel that doesn’t fit in with, you know, this line of push buttons and pilot lights like a joystick. Right? And that makes a lot of sense. You were saying too, if I push the button, I can test to see if it’s working. Mark Berger (Siemens): Correct. So if you yep. Go right ahead. Shawn Tierney (Host): I’m pushing that middle one right there. You can see it blinking now. Mark Berger (Siemens): And that tells you that the contacts have been made, and it’s telling you that the contacts work properly. Shawn Tierney (Host): And now I’m pushing the one below it. So that shows me that everything’s working. The contacts are working, and we’re good to go. Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. Everything’s done. We’ve done the loop checks. We know that this is ready to be plugged into the PLC and handed off to whomever is going to be, programming the PLC and bring it in, in which means that we’ll go to the next step in the TI portal. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. Let me switch back to you, and we’re seeing your TI portal now. Mark Berger (Siemens): Awesome. Okay. So I’ve got the PLC. I’ve plugged it in to if if I needed an Ethernet switch or I’ve plugged it directly into the PLC. Now I have just built up that panel. I haven’t had anything, done with it for an IP address because it is a TCP IP protocol. So we need to do a IP address, but it’s on PROFINET. And then I’m gonna come here to online access, and I wanna see that I can see it out there that I’m talking to it. So I’m gonna do update accessible devices. It’s gonna reach out via my, Ethernet port on my laptop. And then there’s our g two PLC and its IP address. So that’s that guy right here. Mhmm. And then I have something out there called accessible devices, and then this is its MAC address. So what I and I just have those two items on the network, but, you know, you could have multiples as, you know, with GI portal. We can put an entire machine in one project. So I come here and drop that down, and I go to online diagnostics. I I go online with it, but I don’t have really a lot here to tell me what’s going on or anything yet. But I come here, and I say assign IP address. And I call one ninety two, one sixty eight, zero zero zero, and zero ten zero, and then our usual 255, two fifty five, two fifty five, and then I say assign IP address. Give it a second. It’s gonna go out and tell it, okay. You’re it. Now I wanna see if it took, and you look right there, it took. And I’m I’m kinda anal, so I kinda do it again just to verify. Yep. Everything’s done. It’s got an IP address. Now I’m gonna come up, and I’m going to go to my project, and I’m gonna switch this to new network view. Here’s my PLC. I’m gonna highlight my project. Now there’s two ways I can go about it, and I’m sure, Shawn, you’ve learned that Siemens allows you to kinda do it multiple ways. I could come in here and go into my field devices, and I could come into my commanding and interface modules, and I’d start building my push button station. But we’re gonna be a little oh and ah today. We’re gonna highlight the project. I’m gonna go to online, and I’m gonna come down here to hardware detection and do PROFINET devices from network. Brings up the screen to say, hey. I want you to go out and search for PROFINET industrial Ethernet. Come out via my, NIC card from my laptop, and I want you to start search. Shawn Tierney (Host): For those of you who watched my previous episodes doing the e t 200 I o, this is exactly the same process we used for that. Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. And I found something out there that I know I gave the IP address, but it doesn’t have a PROFINET name yet. So that’s okay. I’ve I got the IP address. We’ll worry about the PROFINET name. So we’ll hide check mark this, and this could be multiple items. Shawn Tierney (Host): Mhmm. Mark Berger (Siemens): K. So now add device. Shawn Tierney (Host): And this is the sweet part. Mark Berger (Siemens): And right here, it’s done. It went out, interrogated the interface module, and said, okay. Are you there? Yep. I’m here. Here’s my IP address. And it also shared with it all of come in here, double click on it now. Shawn Tierney (Host): The real time saver. Yep. Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. And then now here’s all the push buttons in your thing. And let me zoom that out. It’s at 200%. Let’s go out to a 100. And now it already interrogated the interface module and all the terminal modules to tell me what’s in my demo. Yep. And again, as you stated in your questions, how do I know which one’s the next one? You just saw the ribbon cable Mhmm. And then it brings you so forth and so on. So that’s done. We’re good. I’m gonna go back to my network view, and I’m gonna say, hey. I want you to communicate via PROFINET to there, which I’m done. And then it also gives you here’s the PLC that you’re gonna do because, you know, if we have a big project, we may have four or five of these stations, and you wanna know which PLC is the primary PLC on it. And then we’ve done that. I’m going to quickly just do a quick compile. And next, I’m gonna come here. I’m gonna click here. Now I could just do download and and let the PROFINET name, which is here, go into it. But I’m gonna right click, and I’m gonna say assign device name and say update list. It’s gonna go interrogate the network. Takes a second. No device name assigned. No PROFINET name. So this is how we do that time determinism with PROFINET. So I’m gonna highlight it, and I say assign the name, and it’s done. Close. So now it has a PROFINET name and IP address. So now I’m able to go in here and hit download and load. And we’re going to stop because we are adding hardware, so we are putting the CPU in stop and hit finish. Now I always make sure I’m starting the CPU back up and then hit finish. And then I’m gonna go online, go over here and show network view, and go online. And I got green balls and green check marks all over the board, so I’m excited. This works out. Everything’s done. But now what about the IO? So now your programmer is already talking to it, but now I need to know what the inputs and outputs are. So go back offline, double click here, and then I’m gonna just quickly look at a couple things. The interface modules IO tags are in a different spot than the terminal modules. So just a little note. It’s right here. If you double click on integrated I LED, you click here and then go to properties and say IO tags. There it lists all of the inputs and outputs. So it comes here. But if I do a terminal module, click here, then once you just click on it in general oops. Sorry. In general, it’s right here in the IO addressing. There’s where it starts start the bytes, but then I come here to tags, and then here’s the listing. So the the the programs automatically already allocated the byte and the bit for each of these guys. So if I click there, there, click there, there’s it there, onward and upward. Now notice that the byte so if I click on position four, it is three. So it’s one one less because the base zero versus here, it’s five. Just give me a little bit of a so if you look in here, all that starts at I four dot zero. I four dot zero. So k. So that’s there. So I’m gonna come here. I’m gonna go to the selector switch for this, and I’ve called it s s one, and that’s input two dot zero. Then I’m gonna click here, and I’m gonna call this green push button. Notice there’s two inputs because I have one contactor here, one contactor there, and 30 and 31. So then what I’m gonna do is that I’m going to go over here to the PLC, and I’m gonna go to and it’s updated my PLC tag table. There you go. It’s in there. So then I’m gonna grab that guy. I’m gonna because portal pushes you to use two monitors. I’m gonna come here, go to the main OB, and then I’m gonna just grab a normally open contact, drag it on, drop it, put it in there we go. And then I’m gonna grab selector switch and drop that right there, and grab green LED and drop that right there, and then close that out and compile. And everybody’s happy. I’m gonna download and say yes. Okay. And then I’m gonna go online. Alright. So it’s waiting in for me to switch that, and there you go. And if you wanna see my screen there, Shawn, that’s the green light is turned on. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. Let me switch over to Okay. Bring up your, alright. And could you switch it back off now? Mark Berger (Siemens): Yeah. No problem. Yep. So there we go. We switch it off. We switch it on. Now I wanna show you something kinda cool. If I turn that off and I come back here and I go offline Mhmm. I have a indicator light that needs to flash to let the operator know that there’s something here I need you to attend to. So we used to put in some type of timer. Right? Mhmm. Shawn Tierney (Host): Mhmm. Mark Berger (Siemens): And so what we would do here instead of that, I’m gonna come back down here to my tab and go to the hardware config. I’m gonna double click here. I’m gonna go to module parameters, and I’m gonna drop this down, and I’m gonna put it at two hertz. Also, just to point out, I can also do a normally open contact and a normally closed contact and switch them. You see right here. Cool. And I can control the brightness of the LED if it has an LED, and it’s all hard coded into it. So once I’ve done that, do a quick compile. I’m I mean, you know, I’ve always compile and then do download. Mhmm. Mhmm. So we’re gonna download that and hit load and finish. K. Here we go. Turn that on, and now it’s flashing. Shawn Tierney (Host): That’s great. So you have a timer built in. If you need to flash, you don’t have to go get a clock bit or create your own timer. Plus, if it’s a button, you can change the contacts from normally open to normally closed. That is very cool. Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. And that is PROFINET push buttons. As I stated let me quickly pull that up. Remember, you pointed out just a few minutes ago, here is the wiring diagram for that. So here’s the back of that with the terminal blocks. And you come down here, and it shows you that you just wire in that, variable resistor or a potentiometer. And you see m and you there’s the 10 volts, and then the signal comes into a. And then that guy is right here. Excellent. So if you come here, you go to properties and IO tags, and it comes in on I 60 fours and input and IO tags, and then I could call that a pot. Yeah. And now you have a potentiometer that you can use as a a speed reference for your VFD. That is very cool. Engineering efficiency, we reduced wiring. We don’t have all the IO cards that is required, and we have the diagnostics. Emphasize that each of these here, their names, you can change those if you would like because this is your diagnostic string. So if something goes wrong here, then it would come up and say commanding. So you double click here, and we go here to general, and it’ll say commanding and underscore LED module two, or you can you can call that start conveyor p b. And then that would change this. Now see this changed it. This would be your diagnostic string to let you know if if that button got damaged or is not working properly. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, I wanted to ask you too. If I had, let’s say I needed two potentiometers on the front of the enclosure, could I put another interface module in the system? Even if it didn’t have any push buttons on it or pilots on it, could I just put it in there to grab, some more IO? Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. Yes, sir. I have a customer that he uses these as small little IO blocks. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. I mean, if you just needed a second pot, it might make sense to buy another interface module and bring it into that than buying an analog card. Right? Assuming the resolution and everything was app you know, correct for your application, but that’s very cool. I you know, it it really goes in line with all the videos we’ve done recently looking at e t 200 I o, all the different flavors and types. And when you walk through here, you know, I’m just so especially, thankful that it reads in all the push buttons and their positions and pilot lights. Because if you have this on your desk, you’re doing your first project, you can save a lot of dragging and dropping and searching through the hardware catalog just by reading it in just like we can read in a rack of, like, e t 200 SPIO. Mark Berger (Siemens): Yep. Engineering efficiency, reducing wiring, reducing time in front of the PC to get things up and running. You saw how quickly just a simple push button and a and, you know, again, a simple start and turn that on and off the races we went. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, Mark, I really wanna thank you. Was there anything else that we wanted to cover before we close out the show? Mark Berger (Siemens): Nope. That’s just about it. I think, we got a little bit to have your your viewers, think about for it. So I appreciate the time, and I really appreciate you allowing me to show this. I think this is a a really engineering efficiency way of going about using our push buttons and and, making everybody’s projects in a timely manner and getting everything done and having cost savings with it. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, and I wanna thank you for taking the time out of your busy day, not only to put together a little demo like you have for me to use here in the school, but also to come on and show our audience how to use this. And I wanna thank our audience. This was actually prompted from one of you guys out there at calling in or writing in. I think it was on YouTube somewhere and saying, hey. Could you cover the PROFINET push buttons from Siemens? I didn’t even know they had them. So thanks to the viewers out there for your feedback that helps guide me on what you wanna see. And, Mark, this would not be possible if it wasn’t for your expertise. Thank you for coming back on the show. I really appreciate it. Mark Berger (Siemens): Thank you, Shawn. All the best. Thank you. Shawn Tierney (Host): I hope you enjoyed that episode. And I wanna thank Mark for taking time out of his busy schedule to put together that demo and presentation for us and really bring us up to speed on Sirius X. And I wanna thank the user out there who put a comment on one of my previous videos that said, hey. Did you know Siemens has this? Because I wouldn’t have known that unless you said that. So thank you to all you. I try to read the comments every day or at least every two days, and so I appreciate you all wherever you are, whether you’re on YouTube, the automation blog, Spotify, iTunes, Google Podcasts, and wherever you’re listening to this, I just wanna thank you for tuning in. And now with next week being Thanksgiving, we’ll have a pause in the automation show, then we have some more shows in December, and we’re already filming episodes for next year. So I’m looking forward to, releasing all those for you. And if you didn’t know, I also do another podcast called the History of Automation. Right now, it’s only available on video platforms, so YouTube, LinkedIn, and the automation blog. Hopefully, someday we’ll also do it on, audio as well. But, we’re meeting with some of the really legends in automation who worked on some of the really, you know, just really original PLCs, original HMIs, up and through, like, more modern day systems. So it’s just been a blast having these folks on to talk about the history of automation. And so if you need something to listen to during Thanksgiving week or maybe during the holidays, check out the history of automation. Again, right now, it’s only available on YouTube, the automation blog, and LinkedIn, but I think you guys will enjoy that. And I wanna wish you guys, since I won’t be back next week, a very happy Thanksgiving. I wanna thank you always for tuning in and listening, and I also wanna wish you all good health and happiness. And until next time, my friends, peace. Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

In this conversation recorded at the Ignition Community Conference, Vlad, Dave, and their guest David Grussenmeyer from Inductive Automation explore one of the most important and inspiring stories in the world of industrial automation education. David leads the Educational Engagement Program at Inductive Automation and has spent the last several years building a global network of universities, colleges, students, and integrators who are working together to bridge the gap between academic theory and real world industrial skills. This episode provides a detailed look at how the Student Buildathon was created, how it works, why it matters, and what it means for the future of the controls and automation workforce.The discussion goes far beyond the event itself. David explains how the industry's needs for engineering talent have shifted, why many academic institutions struggle to keep pace with modern automation technologies, and how Inductive Automation is supporting both professors and students to meaningfully upgrade the curriculum. The episode also explores the importance of industry partnerships, the challenge of faculty bandwidth, the value of internships and academic co op programs, and the realities of teaching automation in an evolving landscape of legacy systems, modern platforms, and everything in between.Listeners will gain insight into how universities can adopt Ignition, how integrators can help shape the workforce pipeline, how students can develop real industry skills before graduating, and how modern industrial technology can be taught effectively without overwhelming educators. Vlad and Dave also share their own perspectives from years of integration work and reflect on how different their own educational experiences would have been if programs like this had existed earlier. This episode is educational, practical, and inspiring for anyone working in automation, industrial education, system integration, or workforce development.Timestamps00:00 Introduction to the Ignition Community Conference and the Student Buildathon01:25 How the Educational Engagement Program at Inductive Automation was created03:22 The origin story behind the Student Buildathon concept05:16 How the seventy two hour challenge works for student competitors06:44 Requirements for student teams and how the selection process works08:49 Why universities struggle to adopt new technology and how industry partnerships help10:41 How integrator involvement accelerated program adoption across universities12:28 The gap between academic theory and real industry practice14:01 Building a complete lab curriculum for professors using Ignition17:24 Why students should learn both modern and legacy industrial systems18:20 Feedback from professors teaching Ignition for the first time20:59 Understanding the different educator profiles and adoption journeys23:15 How Inductive Automation built the five lab training series for schools25:17 The future of the educational program including internships and co op models27:39 Why academic co op programs are powerful for building real engineering experience29:26 How to join the Student Buildathon or the Educational Engagement ProgramVlad RomanovVlad is the founder of Joltek, co host of the Manufacturing Hub podcast, and a long time controls and manufacturing systems engineer with deep experience in SCADA, MES, data architecture, and plant digital transformation. Vlad creates practical industrial education content across YouTube, LinkedIn, and SolisPLC, and works directly with manufacturers on modernization, integration, and performance improvement initiatives. Learn more at https://www.joltek.com/Dave GriffithDave is a systems integration expert, strategist, and consultant with many years of hands on work in automation, SCADA, robotics, and digital manufacturing. Dave is the co host of Manufacturing Hub and advises companies on the intersection of technical systems, operational strategy, and workforce development.David GrussenmeyerDavid Grussenmeyer is the Educational Engagement Program Manager at Inductive Automation. He leads global initiatives to support universities, colleges, faculty members, and students in adopting Ignition for hands on learning. His work has expanded the program from zero to more than three hundred academic institutions worldwide. David also created the Student Buildathon, a seventy two hour Ignition competition designed to push students to think creatively, develop real industrial projects, and gain practical skills that prepare them for careers in controls, industrial software, and automation.Learn more about the program at https://inductiveautomation.comEducational inquiries can be sent to edengagement@inductiveautomation.comReferenced Resources from the EpisodeInductive Automation Educational Engagement Programhttps://inductiveautomation.com/community/educationInductive Universityhttps://inductiveuniversity.com

Shawn Tierney meets up with Henrik Pedersen and Jacob Abel to learn about OTee Virtual PLCs in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 252 Show Notes: Special thanks to Henrik Pedersen and Jacob Abel for coming on the show, and to OTee for sponsoring this episode so we could release it “ad free!” To learn about the topics discussed in this episode, checkout the below links: OTee Virtual PLCs website Schedule an OTee demo Connect with Henrik Pedersen Connect with Jacob Abel Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): Thank you for tuning back into the automation podcast. Shawn Tierney here from Insights. And this week on the show, I meet up with Henrik Pedersen and Jacob Abel to learn all about virtual PLCs from OTee. That’s o t e e. And, I just thought it was very interesting. So if you guys have ever thought about maybe running virtual PLCs to test some processes out, I think you’ll really enjoy this. With that said, I wanna welcome to the show for the very first time, Hendrik and Jacob. Guys, before we jump into your presentation and learn more about what you do, could you first introduce yourself to our audience? Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. Sweetly. So my name is Hendrik. I am the cofounder, COO, OT, a new industrial automation company, that, we’re really glad to present here today. I have a background from ABB. I worked eleven years at ABB. In terms of education, I have an engineering degree and a master degree in industrial economics. And, yeah, I’m I’m excited to be here. Thanks, Rom. And I’ll pass it over to Jake. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): I’m, Jacob Abel. I’m the principal automation engineer at Edgnot. EdgeNaught is a systems integrator focusing on edge computing and virtual PLCs. My background is in mechanical engineering, and I’m a professional control systems engineer, and I have thirteen years experience in the machine building side of industrial automation, specifically in oil and gas making flow separators. And I’ll hand it back to Henrik here. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): K. Great. So OT, we are a a new industrial automation company, the new kid on the block, if you will. We’re a start up. So, we only started, about three years ago now. And, we focus solely on virtual PLCs and and the data architectures allow you to integrate virtual PLCs in in operations. And, you know, some of the listeners will be very familiar with this first, thing I’m gonna say, but I think it’s valuable to just take a take a little bit step back and and remember what has happened in in history when when it comes to to IT and OT and, and and what really what really happened with that split. Right? So it was probably around the ‘9 you know, around nineteen nineties where the the the domain computer science were really split into these two domains here, the IT and OT. And, and that, that was, that was kind of natural that that happened because we got on the, on the IT side of things, we got Internet, we got open protocols and, you know, we had the personal computers and innovation could truly flourish on the IT side. But whereas on the OT side, we were we were kind of stuck still in the proprietary, hardware software lock in situation. And and that has that has really not been solved. Right? That that that is still kind of the the situation today. And it this is what this is obviously what also, brought me personally to to really got really super motivated to solve this problem and and really dive deep into it. And I experienced this firsthand with with my role in NAD and, how how extremely locked we are at creating new solutions and new innovation on the OT side. So so we’re basically a company that wants to to truly open up the the the innovation in this space and and make it possible to adopt anything new and new solutions, that that sits above the PLC and and, you know, that integrate effectively to to the controller. So I I have this this, you know, this slide that kind of illustrates this point with with some some, you know, historical events or or at least some some some big shifts that has happened. And, Aurene mentioned a shift in nineteen nineties. And it wasn’t actually until ’20, 2006 that Gartner coined this term OT, to explain the difference really what what has happened. And and, you know, as we know, IT has just boomed with innovation since since the nineties and OT is, is, is slowly, slowly incrementally getting better, but it’s still, it’s still the innovation pace is really not, not fast. So, this is also, of course, illustrated with all the new developments in in GenAI and AgenTic AI, MCP, and things like that that is kinda booming on on the IT side of things. And and and yeah. So, but we do believe that there is actually something happening right now. And and we have data that they’re gonna show for for that. Like, the the large incumbents are now working on this as well, like virtual PLCs, software defined automation and all kinds of exciting things going on on the OT side. So we do believe that that we will see, we will see a shift, a true big shift on the OT side in terms of innovation, really the speed in which we can, we can improve and adopt new solutions on the OT side. And this is kind of exemplified by, like, what what is the endgame here? Like, you could say that the endgame could be that IT and OT once once again becomes the same high paced innovation domain. Right. But then we need to solve those underlying problems, the infrastructural problems that are still so persistent on the OT side of things. The fine point of this slide is to just illustrate what’s happening right now. It’s like cloud solutions for control is actually happening. Virtual PLC, software based automation, AI is happening all at once. And we see it with the big suppliers and and also the exciting startups that’s coming into this space. So I think there’s there’s lots of great excitement now that we can we can expect from the OT side, in in next few years. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. You know, I wanna just, just for those listening, add a little, context here. If we look at 1980, why was that so important? Why is this on the chart? And if you think about it, right, we got networks like Modbus and, Data Highway in nineteen seventy eight, seventy nine, eighty. We also got Ethernet at that time as well. And so we had on the plant floor field buses for our controls, but in the offices, people were going to Ethernet. And then when we started seeing the birth of the public Internet, right, we’re talking about in the nineties, people who are working on the plant floor, they were like, no. Don’t let the whole world access by plant floor network. And so I think that’s where we saw the initial the the divide, you know, was 1980. It was a physical divide, just physically different topologies. Right? Different needs. Right? And then and and as the Internet came out in the early nineties, it was it was now like, hey. We need to keep us safe. We know there’s something called hackers on the Internet. And and I think that’s why, as you’re saying in 2006, when Gartner, you know, coined OT, we were seeing that there was this hesitant to bring the two together because of the different viewpoints and the the different needs of both systems. So I think it’s very interesting. I know you listeners, you can’t see this, but I kinda want to go back through that and kinda give some context to those early years. And and, you know, like Henrik says, you know, now that we’re past all that, now that we’re using Ethernet on the plant floor everywhere, right, almost everywhere, on all new systems, definitely, that that becomes the right now on this on the today on the, on the chart. And I’ll turn it back to you, Henrik. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. I’ll search that. I just wanna echo that as I think that there are really good reasons for why this has happened. Like, the there has you could argue that innovation could flourish on the IT side because there was less critical systems, right, less, more, you know, you can do to fail fast and you can do, you can test out things on a different level. And so so there’s really lots of good reasons for why this has happened. We do believe that right now there is some really excitement around innovation, the OT side of things and and this pent up kind of, I wouldn’t call it frustration, but this pent up potential, I think is the right word, is is can be kind of unleashed in our industry for for the next, next decade. So so we are like this is really one of the key motivators for me personally. It’s, like, I truly believe there’s something truly big going on right now. And and I I do I do encourage everyone, everyone listening, like, get in get in on this. Like, this is happening. And, you know, be an entrepreneur as well. Like, build your company, build and, you know, create something new and exciting in this space. I think I think this is this is a time that there hasn’t been a better time to create a new new technology company or a new service company in this space. So this this, this is something at least that motivates me personally a lot. So let me move over to kind of what we do. I mentioned I mentioned that we focus solely on the virtual PLC. This this is now presented in the slide for those that are listening as a as a box inside a open hardware. We can deploy a virtual PLC on any, ARM thirty two thirty two and and sixty four bit processor and x eighty six sixty four bit with the Linux kernel. So so there are lots of great, options to choose from on the hardware side. And and, and yeah. So you can obviously when you have a Virtual PLC you can think of it new in terms of your system architecture. You could for instance, you know deploy multiple Virtual PLCs on this on the same hardware and you can also, think about it like you can use a virtual PLC in combination with your existing PLCs and could work as a master PLC or some kind of optimization deterministic controller. So it’s it’s really just opening up that, you know, that architectural aspect of things. Like you can think new in terms of your system architecture, and you have a wide range of hardware to choose from. And, and yeah, So the the flexibility is really the key here, flexibility in how you architect your system. That CPU that you deploy on will will obviously be need to be connected to to the field somehow, and that’s that’s true, classical remote IO, connections. So we currently support, Modbus TCP and Ethernet IP, which is kind of deployed to to, our production environment, as it’s called. So moving on to the next slide. Like, this is kind of the summary of our solution. We have built a cloud native IDE. So meaning anyone can can basically go to our website and log in to into the solution and and give it a spin. And, we’ll show you that afterwards with with Jake. And the system interacts through a PubSub data framework. We use a specific technology called NUTS, for the PubSub communication bus. And you can add MQTT or OPC UA to the PubSub framework, according to your needs. So, and from that, you can integrate with, whatever whatever other, software you might have, in your system. So we have these value points that we always like to bring up. Like, this obviously breaks some kind of vendor lock in in terms of the hardware and the software. But it’s also, our virtual PLC is based on on the six eleven thirty one. So it’s not a lock in to any kind of proprietary programming language or anything like that. There is, there’s obviously the cost, element to this that you can potentially save a lot of cost. We have, we have verified with with with some of our customers that they estimate to save up to 60% in total cost of ownership. This is there is obviously one part is the capex side and the other part is is the opex. And and is this data framework, as I mentioned, is in in in which itself is is future proof to some extent. You can you can integrate whatever comes comes in in a year or or in a few years down the line. And, there’s environmental footprint argument for this as you can save a lot on the on the infrastructure side. We have one specific customer that estimates to save a lot on and this this particular point is really important for them. And then final two points is essentially that we have built in a zero trust based security, principle into this solution. So we have role based access control. Everything is encrypted end to end, automatic certification, and things like that. The final point is, is that this is the infrastructure that allows you to bring AI and the classical, DevOps, the the thing that we’re very used to in the IT side of things. Like, you you commit and merge and release, instead of, instead of the traditional, way of working with your automation systems. So I know this is like, this is pro pretty much, like, the boring, sales pitch slide, but, but, yeah, I just wanted to throw this this out there for for the guys that there is some there is some, intrinsic values underneath here. The way the system works, you will you will see this very soon, through the demo, but it’s basically you just go to a website, you log in, you create a project. In there, you would create your your PLC program, test, you code, you simulate. You would onboard a device. So onboard that Linux device that you you want to deploy on. This can be as simple as a Raspberry Pi, or it can be something much more industrial grade. This depends on on on the use case. And then you would deploy services like, as I mentioned, MQTT and OPC UA, and then you would manage your your your system from from the interface. And, I have this nice quote that we got to use from one of the customers we had. This is a global, automotive manufacturer that, basically tells us that it’s, they they highlighted the speed in which you can set this up, as as one of the biggest values for them, saving them a lot of hours and setting setting up the system. So I also wanted to show you a real you know, this is a actual real deployment. It was it was deployed about a year ago, and this is a pump station, or a water and wastewater operator with around 200 pump stations. They had a mix of of Rockwell and Schneider PLCs, and they had a very high upkeep, and they were losing a lot of data from these stations because they were connected over four g. When the Internet was a bit poor, they lost a bit of data in their SCADA systems, so they had these data gaps and things like that. So pretty pretty, you know, standard legacy setup to be to be honest. Quite outdated PLCs as well. So what they what they did for the first, pump station was they they, you know, removed the PLC. They put in a Raspberry Pi for for, like, €60 or, like, $70, connected it to to a to a remote IO Ethernet IP module they had, in in the storage, and deploy this data framework as I’m showing on the screen now. So so they that was that was the first station they put online, and they they chose a Raspberry Pi because they thought, okay, this is interesting, but will it work? And then they chose a pump station, which was was really just poor from before. So they had very little to to to lose to to deploy on this station. So so, yeah, this has been running for a year now without any any problems on a Raspberry Pi. We have obviously advised against using a Raspberry Pi in a critical environment, but they just insisted that that what that’s what they wanted to do for this first case. Shawn Tierney (Host): And I’ll back that up too. Your generic off the shelf Raspberry Pi is just like a generic off the shelf computer. It’s not rated for these type of environments. Not that all pump houses are really bad, but they’re not air conditioned. And I think we’ve all had that situation when it’s a 120, 130 out that, you know, off the shelf computer components can act wonky as well as when they get below freezing. So just wanted to chime in there and agree with you on that. For testing, it’s great. But if you’re gonna leave it in there, if you were in my town and you say you’re gonna leave that in there permanently, I would ask to have you, assigned somewhere else for the town. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. No. So and and that point is also illustrated with the second station they brought online. So there they chose a much more industrial grade CPU, that, that, was much, you know, cost cost a bit more, but it’s more suited for the environment. And, and yeah. So this was, I can disclose it was a Bayer Electronics, CPU. So so yeah. And, and they reported, some good, good metrics in terms of, like, the results. They they said around 50 on the hardware, 75% on the management of the PLC system. So this relates more to that they have very a lot of, you know, driving out with the car to these stations and doing changes to their systems and, and updates. They no longer have any, any data loss. It’s local buffer on the data framework. They’ve increased tag capacity with 15 x, resulting in in four fifty five x better data resolution and a faster scan frequency. And this is actually on the Raspberry Pi. So so just just think of it as as the the even the even the, kind of the lowest quality IT off the shelf, computers, are are able to to, to execute really fast in in in, or fast enough for for, for these cases. So, Shawn, that was actually what I wanted to say. And, and also, you know, yeah, we are we are a start up, but we do have, fifth users now in 57 different countries across the world. And it’s it’s really cool to see our our our, our technology being deployed around the world. And, and yeah. I’m really, really excited to to, to get more, users in and and hear what they what they, think of the solution. So so yeah. I’ll I’ll with that, I don’t know if, Shawn, you wanna you shoot any questions or if we should hand it over to Jake for for for a demo. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. Just before we go to Jake, if somebody who’s listening is interested, this might be a good time. It said that, you already talked about being cloud based. It’s, o t e e. So Oscar Tom, Edward Edward for the the name of the company. Where would they go if if they like what Jake’s gonna show us next? Where will they go to find out more? Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. So I would honestly propose that they just, reach out to to me or Jake, on on one of the QR codes that we have on the presentation. But they can also obviously go to our website, 0t.io,0tee.io, and just, either just, log in and test the product, or they could reach out to us, through our website, through the contact form. So yeah. Shawn Tierney (Host): Perfect. Perfect. Alright, Jake. I’ll turn it over to you. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): Thanks, Shawn. Fantastic stuff, Henrik. I wanna take a second too to kinda emphasize some of the technical points that you, presented on. Now first, the the fact that you have the built in zero trust cybersecurity is so huge. So, I mean, the OT cybersecurity is blowing up right now. So many certifications, you know, lots of, consulting and buzz on LinkedIn. I mean, it’s a very real concern. It’s for a good reason. Right? But with this, zero trust built in to the system, I I mean, you can completely close-up the firewall except for one outgoing port. And you have all the virtual PLCs connected together and it’s all done. You know, there’s no incoming ports to open up on the firewall to worry about, you know, that security concern. You know, it’s basically like, you know, you’ve already set up a VPN server, if you will. It’s it’s not the same, but similar and, you know, taking care of that connection already. So there’s an immense value in that, I think. Shawn Tierney (Host): And I wanted to add to the zero trust. We’ve covered it on the show. And just for people, maybe you’ve missed it. You know, with zero trust is you’re not trusting anyone. You authorize connections. Okay? So by default, nobody’s laptop or cell phone or tablet can talk to anything. You authorize, hey. I want this SCADA system to talk to this PLC. I want this PLC to talk to this IO. I want this historian to talk to this PLC. Every connection has to be implicitly I’m sorry. Explicitly, enabled and trusted. And so by default, you know, an an integrator comes into the plant, he can’t do anything because in a zero trust system, somebody has to give him and his laptop access and access to specific things. Maybe he only gets access to the PLC, and that makes sense. Think about it. Who knows whether his laptop has been? I mean, we’ve heard about people plug in to the USB ports of the airport and getting viruses. So it’s important that person’s device or a SCADA system or a historian only has access to exactly what it needs access to. Just like you don’t let the secretary walk on the plant floor and start running the machine. Right? So it’s a it’s an important concept. We’ve covered it a lot. And and, Jake, I really appreciate you bringing that up because zero trust is so huge, and I think it’s huge for OT to have it built into their system. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. Absolutely. Absolutely. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): I wanted to highlight too the Henrik mentioned that the the backbone of the system is running on a technology called NATS. That’s spelled n a t s. And why that’s important is this is a a lightweight messaging, service, and it’s designed to send millions of messages per second. You know, that’s opposed to, you know, probably the best Modbus TCP device that you can find. You might get a couple 100 messages through per second. It’s millions of messages per second. It’s, you know, especially with, you know, we’re dealing with AI machine learning, you know, training models. I mean, we’re data hungry. Right? So this gives you the backbone too. You know, it’s like it can push an immense amount of tag data, you know, with ease. I think that’s another really important point. With that, though, I’ll I’ll get on to the demo. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Oh, that’s great. We do we do see that, Jay, that most of our customers report on that, you know, 400 or 700 x better data resolution. And so it’s it’s a step change for for for the data resolution there. Yeah. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): Excellent. So one of the things that I personally love about OT is how quickly you can get into the PLC once everything’s set up. So this is OT’s website, obviously, ot.io. So once you’re here, you just go to log in. And that brings in the login screen. Now I’m are I’m using my Google account for single sign on, so I can just click continue with Google. And this brings me into the main interface. And another thing that I love is that, you know, it is very simple and straightforward, you know, and simple is not a bad thing. Simple is a good thing. I mean, the way that things should be is that it should be, it should be easy and the finer details are taken care of for you. So right here, we have our main project list. I just have this one benchmarking program that I’ve imported in here. And you also have device lists, just a a test device that I’ve installed the runtime on. Just real quick. You know, you have a Martha, the AI assistant in the corner here. And, the documentation guides is up here. So you can get help or look into reference material very easily. It’s all right there for you. So I’m gonna open up this program here. So just a quick tour here. Right up here in the top left is basically where where most everything’s done. So if you click on this little down arrow, you can choose what virtual PLC runtime to attach it to. I’ve already attached it to the device. I installed the runtime on. You can add, you know, a new program, driver, function blocks, custom data types real quick here. Compile your program, download it to the device. Check the release history, which is really, really great. As you can, you can go into release history and you can revert to a prior version very easily. We got built in, version control, which is another, great feature. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): I can also just comment on that, Jake, that we do have we do have, in the quite short term roadmap to also expand on that with Git integration, that, a lot of our customers are are asking for. So yeah. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): Awesome. Yeah. I mean, that’s that’s another, very hot topic right now. It’s, you know, getting getting the revision control systems, as part of, you know, at least the textual, programming languages. See, so, you know, we have a few, like, housekeeping things here. I mean, you can delete the program, export it. It’s a good good point here is that, OT complies with the PLC open, XML specification. So you can import or export programs, in this XML format, and it should work with solid majority of other automation software out there. You know, if you need to, you want to transition over to OT, you know, you can export it from your other software and import it rather easily. Got your program list here and, you know, just the basic configuration of, you know, you can add global variables that you wanna share between the different programs and POUs or, you know, change the, cycle rate of the periodic tasks, add more tasks. Let’s just get jump into this program here. Both the system uses the IEC sixty one one thirty one dash three standard structured text. So here’s just a little, quick benchmark program that I’ve been using to do some performance testing. Like you, you have the, the code right here, obviously. And on our, our right, the variable list, very easy to add a new variable and pick out the type. You can set a set of default value, add some notes to it. Super easy. So let’s go online. So if you have these little glasses up here in the top, right, you display live tag values. And so it’s grabbing from the runtime that’s running and plopping it right in here in the editor, which I I love the way it’s displayed. It makes it. And, you know, it’s one of the question marks is if you’re doing structured text instead of letter logic, like how it’s gonna show up and how readable is it gonna be. I think the, the text, like the color contrast here helps a lot. It’s very, very readable and intuitive. And we also have the tag browser on the right hand side. Everything is, organized into, you know, different groups. There’s the the resources and instances that you’ve set up in the configuration tab. So the by default, the tag the tags are all listed under there. And here too, you know, you can set tag values doing some performance testing, as I said. So this is, recording some some jitter and task time metrics. And that’s that’s really it. That’s the that’s the cloud IV in a nutshell. Super easy, very intuitive. I mean, it’s there there’s zero learning curve here. Shawn Tierney (Host): For the, audio audience, just a little comment here. First of all, structured text to me seems to be, like, the most compatible between all PLCs. So, you know, everybody does ladder a little bit differently. Everybody does function blocks a little bit differently. But structured text and, again, I could be wrong if you guys think out there in the in listening, think I’m wrong about that. But when I’ve seen structured text and compared it between multiple different vendors, it always seems to be the closest from vendor to vendor to vendor. So I can see this makes a great a great place to start for OT to have a virtual PLC that supports that because you’re gonna be able to import or export to your maybe your physical PLCs. The other thing is I wanted to comment on what we’re seeing here. So, many of you who are familiar with structured text, you know, you may have an if then else, or an if then. And and you may have, like, tag x, equals, you know, either some kind of calculation, you know, maybe, you know, z times y or just maybe a a constant. But what we’re seeing here is as we’re running, they have inserted at a in a different color the actual value of, let’s say, tag x. So in between you know, right next to tag x, we see the actual value changing and updating a few times a second. And so it makes it very easy to kinda monitor this thing while it’s running and see how everything’s working, and I know that’s that’s huge. And I know a lot of vendors also do this as well, but I love the integration here, how it’s so easy to see what the current values are for each of these variables. And, I’ll turn it over to you, Hendrick. I think I interrupted you. Go ahead. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. No. I was just gonna comment on that. Jake said, like, this is the this is the POC editor, and the next the next big feature that we’re releasing very soon is essentially the service, manager, which is the, which is the feature that will allow our users to deploy any kind of service very efficiently, like another runtime or OPC UA server or an entity server or or or whatever other, software components that that, you want to deploy, like a Knox server or things like that. So and that’s that’s, we were really excited about that because, that will kind of allow for a step change in how you kind of orchestrate and manage your system and your, your system and your, your, you have a very good overview of what’s going on with versions of, of the different software components running in your, your infrastructure and your devices and things like that. So we’re really excited about that, that it’s coming out. And it might be that actually when when this, episode airs, who knows if it’s if it’s done or or not, but we’re very close to release the first version of that. So excited about that. Shawn Tierney (Host): Now I have a question for you guys, and maybe this is off topic a little bit. So let’s say I’m up here in the cloud. I’m working on a program, and I have some IO on my desk I wanna connect it to. Is that something I can do? Is there a connector I can download and install my PC to allow the cloud to talk to my IO? Or is that something where I have to get a a, you know, a local, you know, like we talked about those industrial Linux boxes and and test it here with that? Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. So I think you what you what you’re you’re after is, like, the IO configuration of, if you wanna deploy a driver, right, or, like, a modbus driver and how you figure out the system. Right? Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. Because this is in the cloud. It’s not on my desk. The IO is on my desk. So how would I connect the two of them? How would I is is that something that can be done? Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yep. Yeah. Exactly. That’s that’s actually the you know, I I think, Jake, you might just wanna show why you deploy a driver. Right? Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): Sure. Sure. And I just wanna take a second to, clarify. You know, it’s something that kinda comes up often, and I I don’t I don’t think it gets it’s it’s cleared up enough is that so, you know, we have this cloud ID here. So, you know, you can open this from anywhere in the world. But the virtual PLC run times get installed on computers preferably very locally, you know, on the machine, on the factory floor, something like that. I I’ve got, an edge computer right here. Just as an example. I mean, this is something you would just pop in the control panel and you can install OT on this. So to answer your question better, Shawn, you know, to get to, you know, the remote IO that you need essentially, or actually in the, in the case of this, this has onboard IO. You know, you’re looking at connecting with MOBAs, PCP, Ethernet IP. I I know that a lot more protocols are coming. Profinet. So how you would do that is that you have that plus sign up here and add a driver config. We’re just gonna do, Modbus real quick. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Mhmm. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): And we wanna add a TCP client. So you can name the client, tell it how fast to pull, you know, any delays, put in the IP address. Just an example. Do the port number if you need and then add your requests. You know, you have support for, all the main function codes and mod bus right here, you know, read holding, read input, you know, write multiple coils, all that good stuff, you know, tell address how many registers you wanna do, timeouts, slave ID. And then, you know, once you’ve done that, so let’s say, you know, I’m gonna read, and holding registers here, the table on the right auto updates. You can do aliases for each one of these. You can just do register one Mhmm. As an example Shawn Tierney (Host): It’s showing just for the audio audience, it’s showing the absolute address for all these modbus, variables and then, has the symbols, and he’s putting in his own symbol name. It has a default symbol name of symbol dash something, and he’s putting his own in, like, register one, which makes it easier. Yeah. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): Good point. Yeah. Good point. Thanks, Shawn. So, yeah, once once you put in your request and you can throw in some aliases, for the different registers, you know, you can go back to your program and here’s this, sample variable that I just added from earlier. You know, you can the registers are 16 bits. I’m gonna select, an int. And what you can do here now is select those modbus requests that you just set up. So it automatically maps these to those variables for you. So that that way you don’t have to do anything anything manual, like have a separate program to say, you know, this tag equals, you know, register 40,001. You know, it’s already mapped for you. So that’s that’s essentially how you would connect to remote IO is, just add a client in the driver configs and, fill in all your info and be off and running. Shawn Tierney (Host): That’s excellent. I really liked how you were able to easily map the register to the modbus value you’re reading in or writing to to your, variable so you can use that in your program. That was very easy to do. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): Oh, yeah. Yeah. It’s that it’s like I said, that’s one of the things that I love about this interface is that everything is just very straightforward. You know, it’s it’s super easy to just stumble upon whatever it is you need and figure it out. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): And just just, to add to to kinda your your processors, like, once you have created that connection between the IO and and and the program, you basically just, compile it and download it to the to the runtime again, and and it executes locally the based on the yeah. Nice. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): Oh, right. Good point. Yeah. Of of course, after we add something, we do have to redownload. So Shawn Tierney (Host): Very interesting. Well, that answers my question. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): I think that’s that’s about it for the the demo. I mean, unless, Shawn, you have any more questions about the interface here. Shawn Tierney (Host): No. It looked pretty straightforward to me, Hendrik. I don’t know. Did you have anything else you wanted to discuss while we have the demo up? Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Nope. Not nothing related to this except for that, you know, this is probably something that’s quite new in the OT space is that this is a software service, meaning that there are continuous development going on and releases, and improvements to the software all the time. Like literally every week we deploy new improvements. And, and what, I typically say is that like, the, you know, if you if you if you sign up with OT, what you what you will experience is that the actual software keeps on becoming better over time and not is not going to become outdated. It’s going to be just better over time. And I think that’s part of what I really loved about the innovation space, innovation happening around IT is that that, that has become the new de facto standard in how you develop software and great software. And I think we in, in, in the OT space, we need to adopt that same methodology of developing software, something that continuously becomes better over time. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. And I would just say, you know, if you’re if you’re on the OT side of things, you wanna be in six eleven thirty one dash three languages, because these are things that your staff, you know, what you know, your electricians and technicians and even engineers, you know, should know, should be getting up to speed. I don’t know. We’re at the automation school. We’re teaching, structured text. And so, easier. I look at this, and I’m like, this is a lot easier than trying to learn c plus or or JavaScript. So in any case, I think, you know, if it’s an OT side real IO control, real control system or data collection, you know, you know, very important, you know, mission critical data collection, then, you know, I’d rather have this than somebody trying to write some custom code for me and, you know, use some kind of computer language who doesn’t understand, you know, the OT side of things. So, I could definitely see the advantage of your system, Henrik. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yep. I I I also wanted to say to that, Stike, the I I do not believe the EIC standards in general will disappear. They exist for a very good reason. Right. Exists to standardise to to ensure safety and determinists, determinism in this. So I don’t think they will disappear. But there are obviously advances now with AI and things like that that can can help us create these things much faster and much more efficient and things like that. So, so but, but the EIC standards, I think, will be there for a very long time. Obviously, the 06/4099 standard is is really exciting, and and we believe that that can be, yeah, that that can clearly be there, but it’s still a new EIC standard. So, Shawn Tierney (Host): it’s not think what we’re gonna see is we’re gonna see a lot more libraries fleshed out. There’ll be a lot less writing from scratch. We’ve interviewed on the History of Automation podcast. We’ve interviewed some big integrators, and they’re at a point now, you know, twenty, thirty years on that they have libraries for everything. And I think that’s where we’ll see, you know, much like the DCS, I think, vendors went two years ago. But I still think that the there’s a reason for these languages. There’s a reason to be able to edit things while they run. There’s a reason for different languages for different applications and different, people maintaining them. So I agree with you on that. I don’t I don’t think we’re we’re gonna see the end of these, these standard languages that have done us very well since the, you know, nineteen seventies. Jacob Abel (Edgenaut): I just wanna add a bit on there about, Shawn, you mentioned, you know, doing less code. I I did show earlier in the bottom right hand corner here, we have our our little AI assistant, Martha. I don’t believe the feature, it has been released yet. You know, Henrik, correct me if I’m wrong, but I know one of the things that’s coming is, AI code generation, you know, similar to that of cloud or chat GPT. So it’s going to, you know, you can open this guy up here. You know, right right now, I think it’s just for, help topics, but you’ll be able to talk to Martha and she’s gonna generate code for you in your program there all built in. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. Yeah. That’s that’s coming really fast now. So, it’s it’s not been implemented yet, but it’s, it’s right around the corner. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. And it’s it’s not gonna be able to it’s you’re not gonna be able to hook a camera up to it and, like, take pictures of your machine and say, okay. Write the control code for this. But, you know, if you had a, you know, process that had 12 steps in it, the AI could definitely help you generate that code and and other code. And we’ll have to have Henrik and Jake back on to talk about that when it comes out, but, you know, it’s gonna be able to save you, reduce the tedious part of the the coding. You know, if you need an array of so many tags and so many dimensions or, you know, the stuff that, you know, it would just be the typing intensive, it’s gonna be able to help you with that, and then you can actually put the context in there. Just like, you can pull up a template in Word for a letter, and then you can fill in the blanks. You know? And and, of course, AI is helping make that easier too. But, in any case, Henrik, maybe you can come back on when that feature launches. Henrik Pedersen (OTee): Yeah. Absolutely. And I’m also excited about just a simple a use case of of translating something. Right? Translating your existing let’s say if it’s a proprietary code or something like that, like, getting it getting it standardized and translating it to the ESE six eleven thirty one standard, for instance, or, so so the obviously AI is, like, perfect for this space. It’s there is no doubt, And and it’s, like, that’s also why I’m so excited about, like, what’s going on at the moment. It’s like there’s so much innovation potential, in the on the OT side now that, they are with all these new technologies. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. Absolutely. Absolutely. Well, gentlemen, was there anything else you wanted to cover? Henrik Pedersen (OTee): I think just just one final thing from from me is, like, we thought a lot about it, like, before this this episode, and we thought, like, let’s offer let’s offer the listeners something something of of true value. So so we thought, the, you know, after this after this episode launched, we want to want to offer anyone out there that’s listening a free, completely hands on trial of our technology, in their in their in their environment or on their Raspberry Pi or whatever. So just just reach out to us if you wanna do that. And, and I yeah. We’ll get you set up for for for testing this, and it’s not gonna cost you anything. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, that’s great. And, guys, if you’re listening, if you do take advantage of that free trial, please let me know what you thought about it. But, Henrik, thank you so much for, that offer to our listening audience. Guys, don’t be bashful. Reach out to him. Reach out to Jake. Jake, thank you for doing the demo as well. Really appreciate it. My pleasure. Any final words, Henrik, before we close out? Henrik Pedersen (OTee): No. It’s been great. Great, being here, Shawn, and thanks for for helping us. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, I hope you enjoyed that episode. I wanna thank Hendrik and Jacob for coming on the show, telling us all about OT virtual PLCs, and then giving us a demo. I thought it was really cool. Now if any of you guys take them up on their free trial, please let me know what you think. I’d love to hear from you. And, with that, I do wanna thank OT for sponsoring this episode so we could release it completely ad free. And I also wanna thank you for tuning back in this week. We have another podcast coming out next week. It’ll be early because I will be traveling and doing an event with a vendor. And so expect that instead of coming out on Wednesday to come out on Monday if all goes as planned. And then we will be skipping the Thanksgiving, week, and then we’ll be back in the in the, in December, and then we have shows lined up for the new year already as well. So thank you for being a listener, a viewer, and, please, wherever you’re consuming the show, whether it’s on YouTube or on the automation blog or at iTunes or Spotify or Google Podcasts or anywhere, please give us a thumbs up and a like or a five star review because that really helps us expand our audience and find new vendors to come on the show. And with that, I’m gonna end by wishing you good health and happiness. And until next time, my friends, peace. Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Industrial Talk is onsite at SMRP 2025 and talking to Colin Morris, Sr. Director of Solution Consulting at MaintainX about "Mobile first asset management platform". Scott MacKenzie interviews Colin from MaintainX at the SMRP conference in Fort Worth, Texas. Colin discusses Maintain X's mobile-first platform, which integrates with various systems like SCADA, ERPs, and wireless sensors to enhance maintenance decisions and asset availability. The platform, which has a three-week implementation period, supports voice summaries to capture technician knowledge and offers a full web client. MaintainX recently raised funding to enhance AI and mobility features. Colin emphasizes the importance of data strategy and extensibility in modern maintenance practices. Listeners can learn more at gomaintainx.com. Action Items [ ] Reach out to Colin on LinkedIn or the maintain X website to learn more about the platform. Outline Introduction and Welcome to Industrial Talk Podcast Scott MacKenzie introduces the Industrial Talk podcast, sponsored by CAP Logistics, emphasizing the importance of 24/7 insights into supply chains.Scott MacKenzie welcomes listeners to the podcast, highlighting the SMRP conference in Fort Worth, Texas, and introduces Colin from MaintainX.Colin shares his experience of working with Maintain X for over two years and his background in the software industry, including his time at Rockwell Automation. Colin's Background and MaintainX's Funding Colin discusses his career journey, including his 10 years in the software business before joining MaintainX.Scott MacKenzie inquires about Colin's first SMRP experience, and Colin expresses his excitement and impressions of the conference.Colin explains MaintainX's recent funding round, which will enhance AI and mobility features, and improve the product's strength.Scott MacKenzie asks about MaintainX's strategic vision and priorities, focusing on AI and mobility. MaintainX's Features and Differentiation Colin elaborates on MaintainX's mobile-first application, which is designed for technicians and other business users.Scott MacKenzie asks how MaintainX differentiates itself from other solutions, and Colin emphasizes the platform's extensibility and connectivity.Colin explains MaintainX's ability to ingest information from various sources, including wireless sensors, SCADA, and ERPs, to improve maintenance decisions.Scott MacKenzie and Colin discuss the importance of bidirectional connectivity and API bridges to integrate with existing systems. Data Strategy and Implementation Colin highlights the importance of understanding data strategy and building integrations with other systems.MaintainX offers in-house integration teams and self-serve tools for customers to connect their systems.Colin discusses the challenges of OEE and the need for real-time analytics to improve asset availability.Scott MacKenzie inquires about the point of diminishing returns with data, and Colin explains the need to balance data collection with business impact. Implementation Period and Third-Party Solutions Colin explains MaintainX's average implementation period of three weeks, emphasizing outcome-based goals.MaintainX has a team of over 40 implementation consultants, most of whom are engineers, to ensure successful setups.Colin confirms that Maintain X supports third-party solutions, including vibration vendors, Ignition, Kepware, and industrial protocols like MQTT.MaintainX is an SAP partner and connects with Oracle and other...

Shawn Tierney meets up with Ivan Spronk of Siemens to learn about the SINAMICS G220 Clean Power Drive in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 251 Show Notes: Special thanks to Ivan Spronk of Siemens for coming on the show, and to Siemens for sponsoring this episode so we could release it “ad free!” To learn about the topics discussed in this episode, checkout the below links: White Paper – Drives Harmonics – Siemens US SINAMICS G220 Website SINAMICS G220 Catalog Siemens Product Configurator (SPC) for quick part number selection and access to data sheets and CAD files Siemens energy savings calculator, SinaSave  Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): Thank you for tuning back into the automation podcast. My name is Shawn Tierney from Insights and Automation. And this week, I meet up with Iren Sprock from Siemens to learn all about their g two twenty clean power drive. I also wanna thank Siemens for sponsoring this episode so I can bring it to you completely ad free. So with that said, I wanna welcome back to the show Ivan from Siemens to talk about VFDs. And, this is something we’ve been wanting to talk about for a while. But before you jump into your presentation, Ivan, could you introduce yourself to our audience for those who maybe didn’t catch your last appearance? Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Thanks a lot for just having me, back to the show here. I got a slide up here that introduces myself. I’m the product manager for the Synamix variable frequency drives for Siemens here in The US. So, yeah, happy to be back on your show. And what I would, like to talk to you about and discuss with you is our latest variable frequency drive. It’s the g two twenty and specifically the clean power drive. This is a best in class solution for a grid friendly power quality when using variable frequency drives. So Shawn, you audience may be wondering why we should discuss power grids and variable frequency drives, but I’ll just say if you’ve been around variable frequency drives or VFDs as I’ll refer to them, you’ve likely had conversations or heard something about VFDs creating or generating harmonics on the power grid. Shawn Tierney (Host): Oh, yeah. Yeah. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Yeah. Or maybe you’ve, you know, someone in the audience has been involved in a situation where harmonic current and associated voltage distortion on your plants electrical grid were causing overheating on transformers and cabling or potentially causing circuit breakers to trip their fuses to open. Or maybe you’re just an engineer looking to select and specify a variable frequency drive and you may need to answer some questions about harmonics that typical VFDs generate. You can relate to any of those or if you’re just interested to know more about this topic, we’ll invite you to stay tuned here for the next thirty five to forty minutes for discussion on power quality and VFDs. So, Shawn, I’d like to just ask you, have you heard anything about the power grid lately? Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, yes. I’ve heard lots about the power grid. I know that this is more and more becoming a big issue because when you have a lot of VFDs producing all kinds of harmonics, that can cause lots of problems like the ones you just mentioned. But, also, the utilities are starting to to see this and saying, why are we putting up with this? So aside from the power grid needing to be hardened against all kinds of things, everything from EMTs to, you know, just, you know, Yahoo’s shooting transformers in the middle of nowhere. This has been a, I think, a big and growing issue. That’s why I’m glad that you’re on the talk about this because in the preshow, we just really I really got a sense of how important this was, you know, in 2025 and going into 2026. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Lots of conversations about the grid and really how the grid electrical grid is being stretched. And with all of the, you know, data centers being built, you know, lots of conversations about how power is gonna be supplied with those. In other words, I think for maybe the first time in twenty five to thirty years, they’re anticipating our usage and power requirements going up. So that’s why I think all these utilities and plant operators are interested in the grid. So some reasons to discuss then the power grid and variable frequency drives is variable frequency drives very useful for motor control, but left unchecked, they can introduce several power quality issues. Harmonics, as you can see on the screen here, typical VFDs use rectifiers that generate nonlinear currents that also distort the voltage waveform and these harmonics can propagate through the electrical grid. And, you know, with that voltage waveform potentially affecting other equipment or you know at worst case other utility customers. These voltage fluctuations can lead to flicker in lighting and perhaps even take other sensitive devices offline. Typical VFDs some of them can negatively impact power factor. Again, something that’s of interest to utilities and plant operators. And just you know there could be some resonant frequencies set up that may interfere with other things. So those are all things that yeah, harmonics, and you know, the voltage fluctuation, things that are unfavorable I’ll say. And what I’d like to do here Shawn is just gonna introduce, you know, what I want to tell you is we have a very unique product here in the SINAMICS g two twenty clean power drive. Three advantages of this product we’ll wanna talk about here through through the course of this podcast. One is the clean power technology. So you can see total harmonic current distortion is well under the strictest harmonic standards there at less than 2%. It delivers near unity power factor under almost any load conditions. And I’ll just say, you know, there has been technologies out there that have been able to produce, you know, those two attributes of of, you know, low current harmonic distortion and near unity power factor. But what’s most unique about, this product we’re that we’re launching here is the compact space saving design, and it is the smallest low harmonics drive in the market. And also available, it’s all self contained, so there’s nothing extra to install. It’s all in one footprint. And I’ll give you an example here. This product is released up to a through 150 horsepower now. By the end of the year we’ll have it released up through 200 horsepower. So this is a relatively new product on the market. But that 200 horsepower drive imagine this Shawn less than three feet tall, less than 12 inches wide, and about 14 inches deep. That’s a 200 horsepower drive, that will guarantee these, things I’ve got got here with low distortion and near unity power factor. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, that’s not something I would have thought of is that these clean drives are more clean power drives are typically larger than their standard cousins. And so the fact that you’ve been able to get these smaller and closer to the sizes of the standard drive is pretty impressive. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): You’re quite we we’d like to think so. Let’s dig into, you know, first of all, if, you know, I I said variable frequency drives or typical very free frequency drives can generate harmonics. So why why would people wanna use VFDs? Turns out variable frequency drives are really good at two things. One, saving energy, and two, improving processes. So just, you know, kind of as a reminder, why do people wanna use variable frequency drives? Just a reminder. Yeah. Half the world’s electricity is used by motors operating pumps and fans and compressors. And just as a reminder, Shawn, if you’ve got a 20 horsepower motor operating and I just use twelve hours a day, two sixty five days a year, I used average commercial power rate of 12¢ a kilowatt hour, that electric motor is gonna cost you running across the line around $5,500. If I operate that motor with a VFD and I’ve got opportunity to adjust the speed, you know, based on demand, electricity cost is half of it. So $2,500 And that even gets more grows your savings grow if I consider a 100 horsepower motor operating twelve hours a day, two fifty days a year, again, with that same kilowatt hour. You know, that running that electric motor across the line is gonna cost you, you know, I’ve got on the screen here $28,000. I’ve got the opportunity to adjust speed and control speed as I do with the VFD, and the application can, of course, doesn’t have to be run at full speed. You know, just typical savings again is gonna it’s gonna cost you less than half to run that electric motor. So I like to put those numbers in front of people, Shawn, because I think people lose sight of how much it costs to run an electric motor. So any thoughts on that? Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. You know, when I first got in this industry back in ’90, this was big. This was talked about all the time. They were like, if you get a fan or pump and you don’t have a VFD on it, you’re just wasting money. And and and to some extent too soft status. But the point being that, you know, if the way you drove your car was you just put the pedal to the metal everywhere you went, you could just realize that’s not gonna be very efficient, you know, fuel wise. And so, you know, putting aside the process thing, because many processes, you can’t just do a cross line starter. Right? It would be great for the process, but, typically, fans and and pumps, I mean, the the amount of savings is tremendous. And I know for a very long time, this was, you know, it was up there with, lighting, up upgrading your lighting in your plant. You’re just installing VFDs or upgrading VFDs from very old VFDs. A lot of times, the cost savings and the rebates would make the the project pay for itself within a year or two, if not sooner. So it’s, for anybody listening, I know all the old timers out there are like, yeah, know all about this, but maybe he’s listening and you haven’t taken a look at that, definitely call your, local representative and ask him about energy savings with VFDs because it’s huge. I mean, it’s just massive. As you show in this slide, you know, but it’s it’s it’s just it’s it’s super. Now at your second point, processes, yeah, some processes I mean, they wouldn’t be possible if all you had was across the line. You know, we we think about, you know, needing a very precise control, very precise movement, maybe not servo control, but in some cases, you know, just, you know, starting the VFD across the line would, you know, would break things. Right? You need to coast up and coast down, and, you know, be able to vary the speed based on the but what part of the what product you’re making sometimes. But let me turn it back to you. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Sure. So one of the links that I’ve got in my resources is a a a link to it’s called CNA Save. It’s just our Siemens name for our, energy savings calculator. So somebody, you know, with that link, somebody could go in there and very quickly, you know, put in their own horsepower and speed profiles and energy costs and see for themselves, you know, more dialed in. So yeah. And I liked your your conversation about the process. I mean, so I think what I’m trying to establish on this slide really is VFDs are very useful and very effective at helping manage costs and improve process. So, you know, VFDs are not going away. So now let’s then dive into figuring out, okay, how do we handle harmonics that typical drives generate. So first, Shawn, let’s start with a conversation about what are line harmonics, and I’ve just got a few slides here to talk about that. But we’ll relate it to, you know, what we call linear loads, which is like an induction motor or resistors or incandescent lamps. They draw sinusoidal or linear current proportional to voltage. So in other words, for the audience on the looking at this slide here you can see very nice looking sine waves. Yeah. In this country of course that’s coming from our power plants at 60 Hertz. Looks very nice, right? Well, when you put a nonlinear load on your electrical distribution center system, yeah, and nonlinear loads are any power electronic device that’s converting AC power to DC power. So that’s what we’re doing in a VFD, we’re converting AC power to DC power. But also computers, you know, that’s obviously not the same talking in the same magnitude of power, but this is what computers are doing. Same thing with LED lamps now, Discharge lighting. And very interestingly enough, this is also what’s going on in EV charging stations. You know, you’re converting AC power to DC power, so that’s considered a nonlinear load. And what happens there in a nonlinear load is it doesn’t draw, it just draws power in pulses when the capacitors need to charge. So think about these capacitors charging more at the top of the waveform, And that’s then what causes these variations in both voltage and current, from the fundamental sine wave. And you know, in very simple terms, that’s what these harmonics are. Yeah. They’re non sinusoidal, they’re nonlinear, and even since it’s changing with the applied voltage. So there’s some things that they, you know, negative impacts we’ll say. And again, for the audience that’s looking at the slide there, you can kind of see some of these nonlinear currents stacked up there. Point is it creates a much more complex waveform, and there’s current flowing at those multiple frequencies. So Shawn, I’ve got for for people that are maybe having a hard time visualing this up, I’ve got a little example. So can you think, Shawn, of a musical group that sings in parts? Shawn Tierney (Host): Mhmm. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Even if we can’t mention them on the air, you can we can all think of, you know, a group that’s in Yep. Yep. Yeah. Exactly. So here we go. We’ve got a musical group singing in different parts, and these different musical parts are sung at different pitches or frequencies. And that all blends together to make a richer sound. Right? Well, we can think of that fuller sound that’s flowing at those frequencies. That’s kinda like more current flowing in there. So, you know, to back to our harmonics example. So, yeah, there’s world flowing at these other frequencies other than 60 Hertz, and that kind of fundamentally becomes a problem we need to deal with. And then in that in that group, Shawn, can you think of someone what does it sound like when they sing off key? Shawn Tierney (Host): Absolutely. Who doesn’t sound good. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Does it so maybe we’ll think of that as voltage distortion. So we gotta gotta do something about that too. So Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. I’d like to you know what? For me, you know, to and I think the charts for those listening, I think the charts really spell it out. They’re color coded, and they show the different harmonics. And for me, I think charting it is kinda one of the ways to understand it visually because if you think about let’s say you have a large rock, a medium rock, and a small rock, and you throw all three at the same time into a pond. You can visually see the big ripple, the medium ripple, and the small ripple, but it’s really hard for you to understand as they’re spreading out what the effect would be on, you know, any any, you know, maybe toy boats that your kids have in the water or grandkids have in the water. Right? And so it it’s it’s a very tough for for human beings to try to keep in their head more than three things happening at a time. Right? And so and so I I love seeing the chart here, and it shows the relationship to when the capacity of charging and how that affects the primary and the sympathetic and the different waveforms. And I just know that these are, you know, inducing currents, And each one of these are inducing currents, but it’s like that throwing multiple rocks into into a body of water. I just can’t I, you know, I need to see it. I need to draw it out. I just can’t, you know, understand. Hey. Well, that me means this little boat’s gonna go to the Northwest because, you know, you know, and this is where I think it’s it’s easy to overlook the effects that these harmonics have because it is it does get kinda complicated to visualize. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Yeah. No. I I like that analogy of, the rocks and the water too. You can see those wave forms and yeah. It becomes, you know, more current flow that has to be dealt with. And and the voltage notching is something again, talking about typical VFDs. I’ve got a little picture here of yeah, showing in the center of the screen there. Just main section of a typical VFD with the rectifier front end that’s a six pulse, standard six pulse rectifier in there that’s what you know is very very common. You can see the DC link capacitors in the middle there, and of course the inverter section on the output which is recreating that sine wave. But let’s turn our attention to you know the input waveform that we’re showing. You can see you know drawing power creating those that notched waveform. And really what I want to point out on this slide is okay that’s kind of at the top of the slide I’ve got a picture of OneDrive doing that that you know on any given distribution system there’s a variety of loads right? Each with its own signature that interacts with each other, So you end up in trying to show down in this down in the orange section here of this drawing. Okay all of these different loads combined with their own signature to create kind of a system signature if you will. And then what happens is, okay, you’ve got standards that we’ll talk about here a little bit, but standards and specifications, you know, you’ll see if you’re an engineer dealing with harmonics, you know, they often refer to this point of common coupling. So that’s kind of what I’m trying to come across on this slide here as well is when you have a system, you know, it’s very useful to identify this point of common coupling where you’re gonna measure, these harmonics. So you’ll see that in a lot of specifications. Not sure if you ever seen that, Shawn. Shawn Tierney (Host): No. And and and just the point of common coupling, when you’re saying that you’re referring to go ahead. Give me that again. What what does that actually mean? Ivan Spronk (Siemens): If you notice over on the right side here, we’ve got a different loads. I’m showing I’m showing a couple of different drives. I’m showing few motors operating across the line, each with their own signature, but that ends up creating, you know, on the distribution system, you know, a system signature. So we need some place, you know, to decide, you know, if you’re trying to meet a spec, well, tell me then where I have to measure it. So that becomes that’s what this point of common coupling is. And I just wanted to get that term out there because people have often heard of this. Sometimes it’s right at the we’ll say the you know connection to the Utility Transformer. If you’re a plant operator maybe you’ve got a handful of buildings over here and you want to define a point of common coupling between some of these other buildings. Mhmm. But it’s just a, yeah, place to define for a measurement. Shawn Tierney (Host): So in this case they have let’s say they have a transformer here. This transformer feeds two, let’s say, VFDs and then two motor starters. So they’re exactly at that point, you know, on the outfeed of the transformer, which we know we have four loads on, to be that point of common coupling. Because what’s gonna happen is we have all these different loads, so we have all these different waveforms. We have the different harmonics from the VFDs. So that’s gonna average together to give us a a waveform that’s the combination of those four devices, And that’s point of common coupling. Alright, I’m with you. Thank you. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Exactly. Again, just one other factor, just to talk about a factor that impacts the magnitude of harmonics, is something else you’ll see in a lot of specifications is what’s called the relative short circuit ratio. And really this is just a metric that’s used when evaluating the grid’s ability to support variable frequency drives and and really any other nonlinear load, which, you know, we mentioned LED lighting and there’s other nonlinear loads out there too. But what it does is compares the strength of the grid or distribution system maybe that you have in your plant to the size of the connected load. And of course, this ratio and therefore the magnitude of the harmonics is impacted by transformer size, by what you all got connected if I’ve got other reactors, how much cable I’ve got connected. And then probably most importantly by load size and type. In other words, by load size I mean, okay is this 50 horsepower or 200 horsepower? And by type meaning, is this 300 horsepower running across the line or is it on a with a VFD? I like to give an example there, Shawn. Water treatment facilities often you hear a lot about harmonics in those facilities because often there’s such big motor loads being controlled by VFDs and that is by far the largest represents the largest percentage of load on that transformer. Right? So I’ve got to imagine kind of this remote water treatment facility, you know, what’s out there? Probably four to five to six depending on how big it is, you know, huge motors running pumps, right? And not much else. So there’s an example of people that would be you know very concerned about how much you know what percentage of nonlinear load do I have on my transformer? So that’s kind of all relates back to this short circuit ratio. Again, something you see in a lot of specs. So just trying to give some definition around what that is. Sure if you got anything, any questions or anything you wanted to add or? Shawn Tierney (Host): No. I I appreciate that. Appreciate you going over. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): No. Kind of a point I’m trying to make is, you know, there’s multiple factors that impact the magnitude and lots of things to think about and figure out. It’s like, wow. If you’re a plant engineer with responsibilities for a power grid, wouldn’t it be great not to have to think about this? And I guess ask you to remember, you know, why I showed you at the beginning of this is, well, our our product, you know, take that whatever’s I drive is giving you no distortion at the terminals, no, you know, near unity power factor. So it becomes something that can really simplify. Yeah. Make make make a life of a plant engineer much simpler by specifying products that are you know low harmonic content. So let’s talk just okay so we kind of defined variable frequency drives. We we like them. They do a lot of good things. But okay there’s some things going on with harmonics. Okay so what’s what’s necessarily bad about these harmonics? So I’ve got a couple slides here showing that’ll walk us through the effects of, you know, kind of the pain points of harmonics. So, you know, with regards to transformers, generally, remember we talked about there’s there’s more current flowing at these other frequencies. So that’s gonna induce some additional heating and additional losses, likely to see some insulation stress, possibly even some resonant frequencies that are gonna set up core vibrations. So those are some of the, you know, undesirable things with generators. You know, there’s most good sized facilities have a standby generator. Right? Well, now if I’m operating a lot of nonlinear loads, I’d really start to need need to start to pay attention to, okay, is my generator gonna work to power these nonlinear loads? So something to consider there. And what what ends up happening is you people may have to oversize that generator Shawn Tierney (Host): Mhmm. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): To be able to run these nonlinear loads. And dropping down to cables and conductors again, if I’ve got more current flowing through them, that’s gonna increase your cable losses due to increased cable resistance caused by the skin effect, which is something that in tendency of alternating currents to flow primarily along the surface of the conductor. Yeah. Increasing or decreasing its ability to, you know, do its job and really deteriorating the the insulation, due to excessive heating. So those are all, you know, negative things that happen when you have a lot of harmonics. Right? Alright. Looking at one more slide of just some, you know, negative impact on circuit breakers or that may trip prematurely or fuses that may open prematurely. Again, thermomagnetic circuit breakers have these bimetallic strips that may be impacted by those additional currents flowing. Electronic type circuit breakers use current sensors which need to account for, you know, these harmonic currents. Yeah. Most circuit breakers are designed to trip at a zero crossover point. So with these distorted currents, you know, there may be some spurious zero crossovers. And then kind of some similar problems with fuses again due to heating effect. This RMS current and non uniform current distribution through the fuse element. You know, what tends to happen is people may have to oversize fuses. But of course, I’m also, you know, to match that actual RMS curve that’s flowing with these harmonics. But okay, that’s not necessarily unless somebody’s out there measuring it, they don’t know what that is. Right, Shawn? And I’ve got codes to meet. I can’t just put a way bigger fuse in. So, you know, it kind of becomes this balancing act. Right? Yep. So Yeah. So those are all things, you know, that happen when you have a lot of harmonics. Again, I can kind of summarize them on one slide here. Line, you know, line harmonics produced by these nonlinear loads cause overheating, inefficient operation, you know, and more losses, perhaps some premature line tripping, perhaps some system oscillations and instability, perhaps noise, and and yeah. And reduced power factor. So none of those are good. Right? In general, reduced efficiency, increased power loss and energy costs, and of course then higher carbon emissions as well. And yet to kind of summarize this all up, current distortion is is bad, infects your all your systems. You gotta account for it. Voltage distortion is often the one that will get people that it’s much worse because that goes all other systems as well if if left unchecked. So that’s my kind of my summary slide there of effects of harmonics and why we wanna do things to control them. So any any thoughts or questions there, Shawn? Shawn Tierney (Host): No. I think I think the slide does a good job of showing that, you know, this isn’t not just for your VFD, VSD. It’s the other things on the line too that you’re affecting. Right? So so now I’m sure some of the, some of those, listening or watching have have stories of where, you know, one drive, two drive wasn’t a problem, four, five, six drives, and they started seeing these issues because it was cumulative. Right? You know, the more drives you have. So, I’d love to hear any stories you guys that are listening and watching have about this and what you did to resolve it. But, this is this is I mean, in some cases, you may just need to get a VFD, like this clean power drive that eliminates this problem versus, you know, other ways of dealing with it. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Sure. Oh, so, yeah, that that leads well into my next kind of couple of slides here. I mean, harmonics are not new. Line harmonics voltage distortion isn’t something that’s new. I mean, this this has been around for as long as VFBs has been around. So people have come up with, you know, ways to mitigate this. And I’ve got, you know, five of those methods listed on the screen. And we’re just gonna kinda very quickly step through these. But the last one there is really we’re gonna get to okay. What is in the g two twenty that makes it unique, and why do I wanna talk about it? So again, what and we’ll come back to this summary slide at the end here, but just okay. Like I said, people have come up with a handful of different ways to try and mitigate harmonics. First one is just, you know, a simple line reactor. And what you also see is some manufacturers, and Siemens has done this too, to some of our lines. We have DC chokes in the, you know, in that DC link section. You know, it’s an inductor and really all that’s doing is imposing, you know, opposing rather the rate of change of current flowing through it. So it kinda takes the top off of those notches if you you will. Yeah. It’s simple, probably economical. It’s usually applied to each VFD. If you know something about what impedance you need, there’s there’s a selection you know available in these AC line reactors. You can select the impedance you want. But some of the negative things is they take up more panel space. They gotta wire it. And in reality, it only offers kind of a small improvement. So people invented other things. So the next thing I got here is people came up with, they call them massive harmonic filters. They’re also called line harmonic filters, you know, LHF, you see that or harmonic trap filters. And what these do is they eliminate or control kind of those dominant lower order harmonics. I didn’t talk about this much, but these harmonic currents that are flowing they’re they’re much more dominant kind of at the lower end of the frequency range so they these harmonic trap filters work on, you know, those low order harmonics. And they they can be effective for, you know, putting in front of a drive. Kind of what they consist of is a LC circuit there, maybe with a damping resistor, and they get tuned to these specific frequencies. So but again, it’s a device that takes up panel space. I have to install that separate from the drive, so I gotta wire it. And then they don’t do a very good job because they still have, you know, voltage notching and instability on gen generator operation is a a is a known problem with these things. And okay you’re introducing more losses to the system. So that’s passive harmonic filters. The next thing I’ve got here is, you may have this has been pretty common in the industry. It’s called the 18 pulse front end. And really what this does is uses takes your incoming three phase power and really converts it to nine phases with a, you know, special transformer, that creates a phase shift between these different, now nine phases, so I can now I gotta have this 18 pulse, diode bridge and you can kinda see that on the on the slide here too. So I need, you know, this involves a lot of equipment. I need this auto transformer, I need a different rectifier bridge, you know, a much bigger one really, but it does do a really good job of yeah. So I’m not drawing current in big chunks anymore, I’m drawing current more often. Right? Because I’ve got this, you know, 18 pulse rectifier. So it really does a good job of meeting, you know, there’s a standard out there called IEEE five nineteen that’s referenced, that we’ll talk about just a little bit more here in a bit. And these also, work relatively well with the standby generator. Some of the negative things is, okay, you know, soon as I introduce that transformer and more switching, that reduces my system efficiency. And really the big one is this takes a ton of space to not only mount that transformer, but that, 18 pulse rectifier. I got a wire between all of that. So it ends up being a pretty substantial product cost in terms of component cost and and floor space cost. So, but you know has been widely used in the industry but a lot of metal, you know copper and iron, being used in that solution. Next IBT bridge and a DC bus much like the front end, front two parts of that AC drive that I showed you. So we’ve got kind of a the front end and a DC bus set in there. And what this really does is monitors the current and then really generates compensation current in opposite phase to offset harmonics. So this can be, you know, effective. The waveform looks pretty good. It’s unaffected by impedance changes because it’s managing the switches. But yeah, it tends to be you know more complex, it’s more expensive than passive filters, and again it becomes another device to install. Permissioning can be a bit of a challenge because you gotta get this tuned to obtain optimal performance. Although there are some self tuning ones out there that, you know, help take that burden away. But, yeah, you gotta install another piece of equipment that takes up think of it as, you know, two thirds of another VFD setting out there. Right? Shawn Tierney (Host): I would think it is also less energy efficient too because so we all know we have noise canceling headphones. They take power to generate a cancel waveform. Right? So we were already losing power because of harmonics, and now we’re generating another waveform to cancel out the harmonics. So it just seems like we’re losing more energy to produce this canceling wave. So it I mean, I could if this is the option that works, then you have the space granted, but it seems like it’s less energy efficient than maybe a passive filter. Right? But I don’t know. What do you I mean, two thirds more of the panel space as a as just the VFD alone. That sounds like a lot of equipment. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Give you a a fucking waveform. So I think that’s why people like it. But, yeah, it is definitely something that’s more complex. And and again, I think also there’s that commissioning aspect. And another thing is okay. So you get it set up on a given distribution system and it’s doing great. Okay what happens when I add a couple of more drives on this distribution system? It’s gonna change the dynamics and may need to do some recommissioning. So again it’s something that a plant operator would would need to you know pay attention to. So all those methods and and what I’m gonna get to next is something that’s actually in the G220. So all these previous method methods you know kind of works to a degree and each kind of has its maybe strong points and and not so strong points. But what I want to talk about now is something that’s called active front end. And this is you know, the g two twenty clean power drive is a version of this active front end. So active front ends. So what do we mean by that? Basically, it’s, you know, a sinusoidal input rectifier. And we are controlling the commutation or when we’re conducting energy. So with that we can get, you know, if done right we can have a high dynamic response. So we can respond to, changes for instance, you know, voltage dips in the distribution center excuse me, distribution system. And and because of that, then we we can also kinda get because we’re controlling when we’re conducting current, you know, it’s it’s near you unity power factor. So, yeah. These active front ends have been versions of these drives out there as well. What’s unique about the g two twenty is that it’s a two quadrant active front end. So power is flowing only in one direction. So in other words from the supplier line source, you know, through the drive to the motor. These are called clean power. So you hear the name clean power infeed that’s because okay the, you know, the infeed or line supply is is clean. This is known as something, out in the industry. They’re called Vienna bridge rectifiers. Vienna bridge rectifiers, something that was invented in the mid nineties. And basically, I I just put up a, you know, bigger diagram of kinda what’s going on here. There you can kinda see, okay, it is only two quadrant, but there’s this three level switching process that really reduces all these lower ordered harmonics. So this provides them a stable controllable. The advantage is five voltage DC output, so there’s no voltage reduction going on. Makes it ideal for high power applications like VFDs. And again, remember I mentioned earlier in the conversation here, electric vehicle chargers. So this is a technology that’s been popularized by some of the people. Yeah. Making electric vehicle chargers as well. So and really, yeah. What we’re doing here is using on smaller sizes MOSFETs or on larger sizes, you know, IGBTs here in the power section. Mhmm. And then using a very, you know, part of the sauce here is the control or of the pulse width modulation to manage power inflow is is really, as short a sentence as I can come up to describe what’s going on here. With this, because we’re only controlling power in one direction, there’s some ability, you know, we we don’t have as many switching losses. Again, because we’re only dealing with two quadrants, it’s a compact size, but it is non regenerative. And I I just what I’ll do here is I’ll put up, you know, a four quadrant comparison. So there are active front ends out there that are four quadrant, which has more of a full IGBT, you know, front end to it. The advantage of that is you do get power flow. It is regenerative. You do get power flow in both directions. But of course now I have higher losses because I’m switching in both directions and and you know, just a little bit less efficient. So really kind of coming back to what’s in the the g two twenty clean power drive is this two quadrant Vienna Bridge rectifier. Again because we’re only controlling power in one direction there’s some space savings that that come from that. So yeah and I’ll just add a two quadrant so that’s why this is targeted at you know, non regenerative load applications like pumps and fans. Right? And compressors. Those are not regen load applications. If you need something, you know, four quadrant that would be, you know, like think of a hoisting application or something like that. Maybe large centrifuges or something like that that has a lot of mass that’s been accelerated up and yet can capture some region on the D cell. But that’s kind of, what’s in the g two twenty clean power drive. So, Shawn, I’ll just kinda stop there and the and by the way, the waveform is fantastic. Just dialed that in there. So any thoughts or questions or what’s on your what’s on your mind there? Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. No. That’s important to know. So, you know, you got the two quadrant version in the Clean Power g two twenty. And the important thing here is you’re gonna get beautiful. You’re gonna get beautiful elimination of harmonics. You’re gonna have a beautiful waveform. But when you make this choice, you’re also opting out of, regen, like you said, like a hoist or a large inertia load. There’ll be no regenning, which in some cases, you’d be choosing a different VFD. That’s just a different application. Right? Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Exactly. Shawn Tierney (Host): But I think most VFD applications, at least the ones I’ve seen over the years, do not have any regen. Right? They’re your standard purpose, even your high performance VFDs are not doing regen or anything any any type of regeneration capabilities. So I think for most applications, that’s not gonna be an issue, but it’s important to point out. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): What do you think? In the you know, some people we’ve asked questions about, why didn’t you just make it four quadrant? Well, let me ask you, Shawn. What do you think’s less expensive to make? A a two quadrant or four quadrant version? Shawn Tierney (Host): I got a feeling the four quadrant may be twice as much. Yeah. Well, at least that part of it. Right? The front end. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): And when do you think would, you know, take up more handle space Shawn Tierney (Host): at two quadrant or four quadrant? Yeah. Exactly. Exactly. Yeah. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): So, I mean, it’s it’s a very targeted, again, targeted at those, applications that are non region load applications, which Yeah. I’ll I’ll submit that’s at least 80% of them, you know, what’s out there. So if so, again, this really just to emphasize, it’s it’s a Vienna bridge rectifier. So, you know, some uniqueness there. But then really, also the software side of it, you know, building the, algorithm to manage that power flow and assure efficient operation is what’s been done in the g two twenty drive. And yeah. With regards to nice looking waveforms, it’s a lights out, you know, the best looking waveform out there. And matter of fact, I’ve got one more slide here that shows just, you know, development team took one of our g two twenty products, you know. So this is what’s shown over on the left side here is just your standard our, you know, waveform. You can see kind of the double humped waveform there. If you put a passive harmonic filter in front of the g two twenty, you know, waveform starts to look pretty good. But now if you just use a clean power drive, you get a very nice looking waveform. All that worrying about what the effect of harmonics how they’re generated you don’t have to think about that anymore because right at the input terminals of the drive you know, we’re giving you very very low turn harmonic distortion. So and and also that near unity power factor. So that’s really the advantages of the clean power drive. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, and I you know, just for the audio audience, I mean, we’re looking at the standard g two twenty, right, your standard drive. You’re looking at a total harmonic distortion of, let’s say, 33. Well, you put that passive harmonic filter on, that’s standard drive. Now we’re down to around 4%. Right? But if you have a lot of those drives, that may not be enough. Right? So with the clean power g two twenty, we’re down to under 2%, 1.9 total harmonic distortion. And you see that I know you guys listening can’t see it, but you can see that in the waveforms. All the viewers who are watching can see the waveforms definitely the improvement as you go through each of these options. And, again, you’ll know if you need clean power. Right? I’m fairly sure that, you you know, if you don’t need clean power, you don’t need it. Right? But if you need it Right. And and this is something that I think we’ll see more and more because quite honestly, I mean, power fact, we all know how that affects your utility bill and how our company thinks about that. And so we can accept more stringent controls over time as, yes, the systems become more advanced. You know, you’re gonna get dinged if you have really bad power, you know, the quality of the power. If you’re causing problems down, you know, for the rest of the block or for the rest of the, business park, they’re gonna start tracking that. So let me turn it back to you, Evan. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Yep. We’re kind of to the end. I’ve got a couple of slides just to summarize what we’ve talked about here. You know, the the g two twenty is, a new drive for us. It’s our next generation SINAMICS product. And really this drive was designed and built on four pillars of digitalization. So in the form of you know, having a digital twin capability to help engineers shorten design and engineering efforts when sizing a drive system, and then tools to optimize operation once it’s up and running. You can see another pillar of secure, meaning security, with regards to cybersecurity and and safety that protects people from machines and protects machines from people as well and other sinister actors. And ease of use, you know, next generation product starting with a clean sheet of paper. Okay. Some things were done with regards to selection, configuring, commissioning, training, things like that with making the product as easy to use as possible. And then this fourth pillar of being sustainable, you know optimizing manufacturing resources and materials used, even operational efficiency during the life of the product and then even considering you know the end of the product life cycle. So all of those things designed into the Sinamics G220 and then if we look again specifically at the advantages of the clean power drive, you know that nice clean low low total distortion that complies with the harmonic standards, near unity power factor, and again, in that space saving design. And just to kinda give you an idea, I’ve I’ve been telling you it’s small, and I think I maybe let the cat out of the bag at the beginning of the, presentation as well. Yeah. Here’s here’s kind of a table that shows dimensions, and there’s that 200 horsepower drive that I referenced. So, yeah, this this technology, you know, it’s not like buy the drive and buy buy something else to add on to it. It’s all in one package. And, yeah, that that 200 horsepower drive, you know, 31 inches tall, less than 12 inches wide, and about 14 inches deep. That’s a 200 horsepower clean power drive that would yeah. You wouldn’t have to think about all this harmonic stuff. And I’m not gonna put up a chart that shows competitor a, b, and c and and our product next to it. But you can take that table and go find go look at other people’s solutions and you’ll see yeah. It’s it’s a very compact device. So that’s kind of the point of that slide there, Shawn. And, yeah, really my last slide then just kind of I have drawn heavily from a white paper that my counterpart, Nikun Shah, wrote. So we’ll give you a link to go download that, white paper. That discusses a little bit more. I’ve kinda mentioned on and off, I triple e five nineteen. That is by far the prevalent standard in this country for, yeah, describing what harmonics are, different medication techniques. And then, you know, there’s tables in there. It’s like, okay, if you’re being called to meet specification at triple eight five nineteen, you know, here are the harmonic current distortion levels and voltage distortion levels that that you need to meet. So that’s all laid out in that white paper. Yeah. And then we’ll give you a a link to our website, to the g two twenty catalog. I have another very useful feature shown that I’ll give you a link to is the seamless product selector where you can go and, you know put in a part you know very quickly pick a part number and then get to some you know CAD models of it. And then I’ve mentioned that energy savings calculator at all. So Shawn that’s kind of what I had for today. I hope that was interesting to you and, more importantly, interesting to your audience. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. And I just wanna remind the audience that we had you on to talk about the g two twenty a while back. We also had Jackie on that go through commissioning the one twenty and the two twenty. So if you’re kinda curious, how do you do that in TIA portal? Because I’ve never done that before. So Jackie came on, and she walked us through that for both of these two models. We also have received some samples from Siemens. So we will be, trying those out them ourselves here in the in the studio. Don’t know. Don’t have a date on that. We’re a little backed up here. But, definitely, they’re right in front of me every day, so I don’t forget about them. So we’ll be doing that as well. And, then we’ll make those available to our in person students who come to the school as well as we’ll add those as lessons to the online course over at the automation school. But so lots of stuff. We’ve had a lot of coverage. If you have any questions, check out this white paper. I’m sure we just touched the surface of what’s in there. And, of course, Ivan and all his colleagues at Siemens would love to hear from you. And, Ivan, let me, pass it back to you for the final word. Ivan Spronk (Siemens): Yeah. Just thank you so much for having me on, Shawn. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, I hope you enjoyed that episode. I wanna thank Ivan for coming on the show and giving us that very technical presentation, which I totally enjoyed. I hope you guys did too. Also wanna thank Siemens for sponsoring this episode because you guys know I love to really stem completely ad free and available to the entire public. So with that said, I also wanna thank you for tuning back in this week. If you think about it, please give me a thumbs up or a like or a five star review. That is the best way for me to find new vendors to come on the show. And with the exception of Thanksgiving week, we should have a show every week up until the last two weeks of the year, and we are already recording shows for next year. So I’m excited about that. If you know any vendors you think we should be on the show, please reach out to them. I’m working on a new media guide as well, and so, we’d love to have them on the show this coming year of 2026. So with that said, I just wanna wish you all good health and happiness. And until next time, my friends, peace. Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Shawn Tierney meets up with Michael Warren of Wieland Electric to learn about the Samos PRO MOTION Safety Controller in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 249 Show Notes: Special thanks to Michael Warren for coming on the show, and to Wieland Electric for sponsoring this episode so we could release it “ad free!” To learn about the topics discussed in this episode, checkout the below links: SAMOS® PRO Safety Motion Controller Safety Products Free Download of Samos Plan6 Programming Software Safety Training – Become a Safety Expert! Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): coming soon Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

At Automate 2025, Vlad and Dave take Manufacturing Hub inside the Siemens booth to explore how one of the world's largest industrial technology companies is shaping the future of manufacturing. From the latest S7-1200 G2 PLC to industrial copilots powered by AI, digital twins that simulate entire factories, and virtual PLCs redefining automation, this episode is packed with insights from Siemens leaders and engineers.In this conversation series, we uncover the evolution of hardware, software, and data-driven manufacturing with experts including Chris Stevens and Anna-Marie Breu on customer experience and digital twins, Bernd Raithel on software-defined automation and IT/OT convergence, Louis Narvaez on the next-generation S7-1200 G2 PLC, Kristen Sanderson on Industrial Copilot and AI agents, Sarah McGee on Sematic AX and modern PLC programming, Kevin Wu on Pick AI Pro, Ivan Hernandez on the G220 drives, and cybersecurity specialists Tilo and Gaurav on securing industrial networks.Throughout the episode, Vlad and Dave discuss how Siemens is transforming plant operations through tools that connect the physical and digital worlds. Topics include co-pilots for engineering and operations, lifecycle management, virtual commissioning, edge computing, harmonics and clean power, and the convergence of IT and OT teams.This conversation is a must-watch for engineers, integrators, plant managers, and decision-makers looking to understand how software-defined automation, AI, and digital twin technologies are merging to create resilient, data-driven factories.Timestamps:00:00 Siemens at Automate 2025 introduction02:45 Defining manufacturing resilience and digital twins09:32 Virtual commissioning and collaborative engineering environments15:10 Adoption of digital twins in small and medium manufacturers22:35 Co-pilots and natural language interaction in industrial systems30:28 Automation lifecycle management and version control for PLCs36:55 Virtual PLCs, software-defined automation, and IT/OT collaboration46:40 The new Siemens S7-1200 G2 PLC and migration from G157:20 AI copilots, agents, and secure Siemens cloud infrastructure1:08:05 Somatic AX and modern PLC programming for new engineers1:17:25 Pick AI Pro and real-world robotic vision applications1:29:10 G220 drives and clean power innovations1:35:45 Industrial cybersecurity and vulnerability management1:43:00 Cinemeric Run My Robot and CNC-robot collaboration1:50:20 Final reflections on Siemens innovation and future trendsReferences Mentioned:Siemens Digital IndustriesSiemens Industrial Edge Developer KitS7-1200 G2 InformationSematic AXIndustrial CopilotCinematic Run My RobotPick AI ProSiemens G220 DrivesCybersecurity SolutionsManufacturing HubModern Plant Network Requirements: Building Reliable and Connected OT Systems for ManufacturingAbout the Hosts:Vlad Romanov is an electrical engineer and manufacturing systems consultant with over a decade of experience modernizing plants and integrating SCADA, MES, and automation systems. He is the founder of Joltek and co-founder of SolisPLC, creating content that educates professionals in industrial automation.Dave Griffith is a manufacturing consultant and co-host of the Manufacturing Hub podcast, helping manufacturers navigate digital transformation, technology adoption, and operational excellence.

Shawn Tierney meets up with Gerry Abbey, Gavin Schalliol, and Kaitlin Lockridge of Copia Automation to learn about the new AI features added to DeviceLink, as well as review the new 2025 Industrial DevOps survey results and report in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 249 Show Notes: Special thanks Gerry, Gavin, and Kaitlin for coming on the show, and to Copia for sponsoring this episode so we could release it “ad free!” To learn about the topics discussed in this episode, checkout the below links: Second Annual State of Industrial DevOps Report Download Copia Demo Request Streamlining Cyber Insurance and Recovery with Industrial DevOps Ransomware Ready Playbook for OT Amazon Uses Copia to Connect 1000+ PLCs across 35+ Sites Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): coming soon Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Modern robotic picking is moving beyond neat rows and perfect lighting conditions. In this Automate 2025 conversation, Vlad and Dave sit down with Kevin Wu from Siemens to explore how Simatic Robot Pick AI Pro is tackling the messy reality of warehouses and factories. They discuss how the new edge architecture with the Simatic IPC BX 59 A and an NVIDIA GPU lifts pick rates to well over one thousand picks per hour, why multiple suction patterns matter for stability on large or flexible items, how camera agnostic support opens the door to new vision hardware, and why transparent objects are no longer a limitation in many applications.This episode also dives into digital thread and digital twin workflows using Siemens Process Simulate. These tools allow teams to test new products and layouts virtually before any hardware changes are made, helping reduce commissioning risk and shorten the path to production. The discussion highlights an on-booth demonstration that combines a robot with a secondary camera and a vision language model to identify products and read packaging details such as expiration dates. It is a clear example of how multimodal AI can complement traditional industrial vision systems.A major theme throughout this conversation is resilience. In real operations, products are rarely placed perfectly. Pallets shift, orientations vary, and lighting changes throughout the day. Traditional rules-based vision systems often struggle when small variances accumulate. Kevin explains how model-free 3D picking localizes unknown objects in clutter, selects stable suction patterns based on measured dimensions, and keeps production moving without forcing operators to maintain perfect alignment.For manufacturers in consumer packaged goods and medical devices, this is a meaningful advancement. It enables greater product variety and frequent SKU changes while maintaining engineering control. The difference is that the picking logic adapts to what the system sees rather than expecting the environment to remain static.We also talk about practical evaluation and proof of concept. Siemens runs application testing at its Berkeley, California lab where customers can send sample parts for quick feasibility checks. A short video of their parts being picked can provide the confidence needed to move forward with a pilot project while minimizing cost and risk. For quality inspection and defect detection, Siemens also offers an Inspector station capable of learning from as few as twenty samples to identify defects in real time.The discussion closes by looking at the future of digital manufacturing. Digital thread tools make it possible to simulate robots from multiple brands, test new configurations, and evaluate throughput virtually. Combined with edge AI and NVIDIA vision language technology, this creates faster experimentation cycles, improved reliability, and measurable gains in uptime and throughput.Kevin's key message is clear. Manufacturers do not need to replace existing automation to explore the benefits of AI. Start with one process, validate performance, and build from there.Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and why real-world picking matters 00:40 Introduction to Pick AI Pro and new throughput capabilities 01:30 Multi suction patterns for stable handling of large items 02:20 Camera agnostic approach and transparent object handling 03:30 Selecting components for high-temperature environments 04:15 Use cases in consumer packaged goods and medical applications 06:45 Digital twin and digital thread with Siemens Process Simulate 08:30 Feasibility testing and customer demos at the Siemens lab 10:30 Vision language model for product identification and labeling 12:10 Evaluating with real parts and rapid testing cycles 14:20 Siemens Inspector for defect detection and visual inspection 15:40 Key takeaways and future outlookReferences and Resources Mentioned Siemens Simatic Robot Pick AI Overview https://www.siemens.com/global/en/products/automation/topic-areas/tia/future-topics/simatic-robotics-ai.htmlSiemens Press Release on Simatic Robot Pick AI Pro https://press.siemens.com/global/en/pressrelease/siemens-presents-future-intralogistics-simatic-robot-pick-ai-pro-enables-machineSiemens Simatic IPC BX 59 A Industrial Edge Device with NVIDIA GPU https://www.automationworld.com/products/data/product/55287446/siemens-ag-siemens-simatic-ipc-bx-59a-industrial-edge-deviceSiemens IPC BX 59 A Operating Instructions https://support.industry.siemens.com/cs/attachments/109972660/ipcbx56a_and_ipcbx59a_operating_instructions_enUS_en-US.pdfUniversal Robots Example with Simatic Robot Pick AI https://support.industry.siemens.com/cs/document/109822788/simatic-robot-pick-ai-with-universal-robots-ur5Zivid Transparent Object Imaging Information https://www.zivid.com/zivid-omni-engine-transparency https://blog.zivid.com/zivid-omni-engineSiemens Digital Thread Overview and Tecnomatix Process Simulate https://www.sw.siemens.com/en-US/digital-thread/ https://plm.sw.siemens.com/en-US/tecnomatix/NVIDIA Vision Language Model Resources https://docs.nvidia.com/nim/vision-language-models/latest/introduction.html https://developer.nvidia.com/blog/vision-language-model-prompt-engineering-guide-for-image-and-video-understanding/Hosts Vlad Romanov is an electrical engineer and manufacturing consultant who leads Joltek and co-hosts the Manufacturing Hub Podcast. He focuses on practical strategies for SCADA, MES, and data-driven operations. Learn more at https://www.joltek.comYouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6JpBeS_6JhUwfGF8RgLCIQDave Griffith is a manufacturing consultant and long-time co-host of Manufacturing Hub. He helps teams align operations, engineering, and leadership around the projects that move the needle in real production environments.Guest Kevin Wu from Siemens discusses Robot Pick AI Pro and related digital thread workflows across robotics and vision. Learn more about Siemens automation and software at https://www.siemens.com https://www.sw.siemens.com

ICC 2025 was a clear level up for the Ignition community. In this conversation Vlad and Dave share on the ground insights from a week of packed sessions, vendor showcases, and ProveIt demonstrations that brought working integrations to life. They unpack why the move to a larger venue created more chances for deep technical conversations, how the community benefited from hands on demos that connected to a shared data backbone, and what record attendance means for the growth of modern SCADA and manufacturing data platforms. The episode then shifts into a focused discussion with Travis Cox from Inductive Automation on the launch of Ignition 8.3 and what it unlocks for builders who care about reliability, scale, and speed.We discuss how 8.3's configuration in the file system and the expanded REST API enable real version control and DevOps workflows in day to day projects. We explore practical AI opportunities through MCP servers that can safely expose context and operational data to large language models, with an emphasis on operator augmentation, faster troubleshooting, and responsible guardrails. We connect the dots between OT networking fundamentals and secure architectures by highlighting the growing need for segmentation, deterministic traffic, and resilient data movement. Throughout the episode we keep the focus on what matters in plants today clear outcomes for uptime, quality, and delivery rather than hype.Whether you are an engineer, integrator, or an operations leader, this episode gives you an actionable snapshot of where Ignition and the broader ecosystem are heading. You will hear what the community is building, which 8.3 features are worth testing first, how ProveIt style showcases help end users evaluate technologies, and why investing in networking skills remains one of the highest ROI moves for manufacturers.Timestamps00:00 Welcome and ICC traditions with stickers and community shoutouts01:25 What to expect today and why this episode includes a sit down with Travis02:30 First impressions of ICC 2025 tracks vendor hall and ProveIt showcases05:55 New Sacramento venue experience and why more space improved conversations07:25 Walk up tickets record attendance and what that signals about growth08:45 Why hands on ProveIt demos mattered for real integrations and learning12:05 Ignition 8.3 launch and what we will cover in more depth later this month13:25 AI themes across sessions and realistic use cases for builders and operators16:20 Why OT networking education is now a must have skill set18:05 DataOps and DevOps directions in Ignition 8.3 and what to trial first23:10 Travis Cox joins with ICC takeaways and how community scale changes the game28:35 Ignition 8.3 highlights configuration in files REST API and version control workflowsAbout the hostsVlad Romanov manufacturing modernization and data strategy consultant co host of Manufacturing Hub and founder of JoltekLinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladromanovJoltek https://www.joltek.comDave Griffith operations and digital transformation consultant co host of Manufacturing HubLinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/davegriffith23Website https://dave-griffith.comGuestTravis Cox Chief Evangelist at Inductive AutomationLinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/traviscox-automationInductive Automation https://inductiveautomation.comEpisode references and resourcesIgnition 8.3 What is new https://inductiveautomation.com/ignition/whatsnewIgnition User Manual 8.3 docs and upgrade guidance https://www.docs.inductiveautomation.comDownload Ignition free trial https://inductiveautomation.com/downloadsInductive University free Ignition training https://inductiveuniversity.comICC 2025 recap https://inductiveautomation.com/blog/icc-2025-recap-we-really-did-level-up-this-yearControl Global highlights from ICC 2025 https://www.controlglobal.com/industry-news/news/55321625/highlights-from-inductive-automations-2025-icc-build-a-thon-and-award-winnersProveIt Conference official site https://www.proveitconference.comProveIt at ICC background https://inductiveautomation.com/blog/proveit-showcases-are-coming-to-icc-2025Books and learning mentioned or implied in the discussionNetworking and cybersecurity training via Inductive University https://inductiveuniversity.comIgnition 8.3 videos and feature overviews https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qds7RI9-hxgConnect with Manufacturing HubApple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/manufacturing-hub/id1546805573Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/1gE6glbxdYIfG6KUeOCz22Call to actionIf you attended ICC this year or tested Ignition 8.3 in your environment, share your lessons in the comments. Tell us which features you want us to deep dive next and what ProveIt demonstrations helped you make decisions in your own stack. Subscribe for weekly conversations with practitioners who build real systems in real factories.

Shawn Tierney meets up with Connor Mason of Software Toolbox to learn their company, products, as well as see a demo of their products in action in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 248 Show Notes: Special thanks to Software Toolbox for sponsoring this episode so we could release it “ad free!” To learn about Software Toolbox please checkout the below links: TOP Server Cogent DataHub Industries Case studies Technical blogs Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): Welcome back to the automation podcast. My name is Shawn Tierney with Insights and Automation, and I wanna thank you for tuning back in this week. Now this week on the show, I meet up with Connor Mason from Software Toolbox, who gives us an overview of their product suite, and then he gives us a demo at the end. And even if you’re listening, I think you’re gonna find the demo interesting because Connor does a great job of talking through what he’s doing on the screen. With that said, let’s go ahead and jump into this week’s episode with Connor Mason from Software Toolbox. I wanna welcome Connor from Software Toolbox to the show. Connor, it’s really exciting to have you. It’s just a lot of fun talking to your team as we prepared for this, and, I’m really looking forward to because I just know in your company over the years, you guys have so many great solutions that I really just wanna thank you for coming on the show. And before you jump into talking about products and technologies Yeah. Could you first tell us just a little bit about yourself? Connor Mason (Guest): Absolutely. Thanks, Shawn, for having us on. Definitely a pleasure to be a part of this environment. So my name is Connor Mason. Again, I’m with Software Toolbox. We’ve been around for quite a while. So we’ll get into some of that history as well before we get into all the the fun technical things. But, you know, I’ve worked a lot with the variety of OT and IT projects that are ongoing at this point. I’ve come up through our support side. It’s definitely where we grow a lot of our technical skills. It’s a big portion of our company. We’ll get that into that a little more. Currently a technical application consultant lead. So like I said, I I help run our support team, help with these large solutions based projects and consultations, to find what’s what’s best for you guys out there. There’s a lot of different things that in our in our industry is new, exciting. It’s fast paced. Definitely keeps me busy. My background was actually in data analytics. I did not come through engineering, did not come through the automation, trainings at all. So this is a whole new world for me about five years ago, and I’ve learned a lot, and I really enjoyed it. So, I really appreciate your time having us on here, Shawn Tierney (Host): Shawn. Well, I appreciate you coming on. I’m looking forward to what you’re gonna show us today. I had a the audience should know I had a little preview of what they were gonna show, so I’m looking forward to it. Connor Mason (Guest): Awesome. Well, let’s jump right into it then. So like I said, we’re here at Software Toolbox, kinda have this ongoing logo and and just word map of connect everything, and that’s really where we lie. Some people have called us data plumbers in the past. It’s all these different connections where you have something, maybe legacy or something new, you need to get into another system. Well, how do you connect all those different points to it? And, you know, throughout all these projects we worked on, there’s always something unique in those different projects. And we try to work in between those unique areas and in between all these different integrations and be something that people can come to as an expert, have those high level discussions, find something that works for them at a cost effective solution. So outside of just, you know, products that we offer, we also have a lot of just knowledge in the industry, and we wanna share that. You’ll kinda see along here, there are some product names as well that you might recognize. Our top server and OmniServer, we’ll be talking about LOPA as well. It’s been around in the industry for, you know, decades at this point. And also our symbol factory might be something you you may have heard in other products, that they actually utilize themselves for HMI and and SCADA graphics. That is that is our product. So you may have interacted it with us without even knowing it, and I hope we get to kind of talk more about things that we do. So before we jump into all the fun technical things as well, I kind of want to talk about just the overall software toolbox experience as we call it. We’re we’re more than just someone that wants to sell you a product. We we really do work with, the idea of solutions. How do we provide you value and solve the problems that you are facing as the person that’s actually working out there on the field, on those operation lines, and making things as well. And that’s really our big priority is providing a high level of knowledge, variety of the things we can work with, and then also the support. It’s very dear to me coming through the the support team is still working, you know, day to day throughout that software toolbox, and it’s something that has been ingrained into our heritage. Next year will be thirty years of software toolbox in 2026. So we’re established in 1996. Through those thirty years, we have committed to supporting the people that we work with. And I I I can just tell you that that entire motto lives throughout everyone that’s here. So from that, over 97% of the customers that we interact with through support say they had an awesome or great experience. Having someone that you can call that understands the products you’re working with, understands the environment you’re working in, understands the priority of certain things. If you ever have a plant shut down, we know how stressful that is. Those are things that we work through and help people throughout. So this really is the core pillars of Software Toolbox and who we are, beyond just the products, and and I really think this is something unique that we have continued to grow and stand upon for those thirty years. So jumping right into some of the industry challenges we’ve been seeing over the past few years. This is also a fun one for me, talking about data analytics and tying these things together. In my prior life and education, I worked with just tons of data, and I never fully knew where it might have come from, why it was such a mess, who structured it that way, but it’s my job to get some insights out of that. And knowing what the data actually was and why it matters is a big part of actually getting value. So if you have dirty data, if you have data that’s just clustered, it’s in silos, it’s very often you’re not gonna get much value out of it. This was a study that we found in 2024, from Garner Research, And it said that, based on the question that business were asked, were there any top strategic priorities for your data analytics functions in 2024? And almost 50%, it’s right at ’49, said that they wanted to improve data quality, and that was a strategic priority. This is about half the industry is just talking about data quality, and it’s exactly because of those reasons I said in my prior life gave me a headache, to look at all these different things that I don’t even know where they became from or or why they were so different. And the person that made that may have been gone may not have the contacts, and making that from the person that implemented things to the people that are making decisions, is a very big task sometimes. So if we can create a better pipeline of data quality at the beginning, makes those people’s lives a lot easier up front and allows them to get value out of that data a lot quicker. And that’s what businesses need. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, I wanna just data quality. Right? Mhmm. I think a lot of us, when we think of that, we think of, you know, error error detection. We think of lost connections. We think of, you know, just garbage data coming through. But I I think from an analytical side, there’s a different view on that, you know, in line with what you were just saying. So how do you when you’re talking to somebody about data quality, how do you get them to shift gears and focus in on what you’re talking about and not like a quality connection to the device itself? Connor Mason (Guest): Absolutely. Yeah. We I kinda live in both those worlds now. You know, I I get to see that that connection state. And when you’re operating in real time, that quality is also very important to you. Mhmm. And I kind of use that at the same realm. Think of that when you’re thinking in real time, if you know what’s going on in the operation and where things are running, that’s important to you. That’s the quality that you’re looking for. You have to think beyond just real time. We’re talking about historical data. We’re talking about data that’s been stored for months and years. Think about the quality of that data once it’s made up to that level. Are they gonna understand what was happening around those periods? Are they gonna understand what those tags even are? Are they gonna understand what those conventions that you’ve implemented, to give them insights into this operation. Is that a clear picture? So, yeah, you’re absolutely right. There are two levels to this, and and that is a big part of it. The the real time data and historical, and we’re gonna get some of that into into our demo as well. It it’s a it’s a big area for the business, and the people working in the operations. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. I think quality too. Think, you know, you may have data. It’s good data. It was collected correctly. You had a good connection to the device. You got it. You got it as often as you want. But that data could really be useless. It could tell you nothing. Connor Mason (Guest): Right. Exactly. Shawn Tierney (Host): Right? It could be a flow rate on part of the process that irrelevant to monitoring the actual production of the product or or whatever you’re making. And, you know, I’ve known a lot of people who filled up their databases, their historians, with they just they just logged everything. And it’s like a lot of that data was what I would call low quality because it’s low information value. Right? Absolutely. I’m sure you run into that too. Connor Mason (Guest): Yeah. We we run into a lot of people that, you know, I’ve got x amount of data points in my historian and, you know, then we start digging into, well, I wanna do something with it or wanna migrate. Okay. Like, well, what do you wanna achieve at the end of this? Right? And and asking those questions, you know, it’s great that you have all these things historized. Are you using it? Do you have the right things historized? Are they even set up to be, you know, worked upon once they are historized by someone outside of this this landscape? And I think OT plays such a big role in this, and that’s why we start to see the convergence of the IT and OT teams just because that communication needs to occur sooner. So we’re not just passing along, you know, low quality data, bad quality data as well. And we’ll get into some of that later on. So to jump into some of our products and solutions, I kinda wanna give this overview of the automation pyramid. This is where we work from things like the field device communications. And you you have certain sensors, meters, actuators along the actual lines, wherever you’re working. We work across all the industries, so this can vary between those. Through there, you work up kind of your control area. A lot of control engineers are working. This is where I think a lot of the audience is very familiar with PLCs. Your your typical name, Siemens, Rockwell, your Schneiders that are creating, these hardware products. They’re interacting with things on the operation level, and they’re generating data. That that was kind of our bread and butter for a very long time and still is that communication level of getting data from there, but now getting it up the stack further into the pyramid of your supervisory, MES connections, and it’ll also now open to these ERP. We have a lot of large corporations that have data across variety of different solutions and also want to integrate directly down into their operation levels. There’s a lot of value to doing that, but there’s also a lot of watch outs, and a lot of security concerns. So that’ll be a topic that we’ll be getting into. We also all know that the cloud is here. It’s been here, and it’s it’s gonna continue to push its way into, these cloud providers into OT as well. There there’s a lot of benefit to it, but there there’s also some watch outs as this kind of realm, changes in the landscape that we’ve been used to. So there’s a lot of times that we wanna get data out there. There’s value into AI agents. It’s a hot it’s a hot commodity right now. Analytics as well. How do we get those things directly from shop floor, up into the cloud directly, and how do we do that securely? It’s things that we’ve been working on. We’ve had successful projects, continues to be an interest area and I don’t see it slowing down at all. Now, when we kind of begin this level at the bottom of connectivity, people mostly know us for our top server. This is our platform for industrial device connectivity. It’s a thing that’s talking to all those different PLCs in your plant, whether that’s brownfield or greenfield. We pretty much know that there’s never gonna be a plant that’s a single PLC manufacturer, that exists in one plant. There’s always gonna be something that’s slightly different. Definitely from Brownfield, things different engineers made different choices, things have been eminent, and you gotta keep running them. TopServe provides this single platform to connect to a long laundry list of different PLCs. And if this sounds very familiar to Kepserver, well, you’re not wrong. Kepserver is the same exact technology that TopServer is. What’s the difference then is probably the biggest question we usually get. The difference technology wise is nothing. The difference in the back end is that actually it’s all the same product, same product releases, same price, but we have been the biggest single source of Kepserver or Topsyra implementation into the market, for almost two plus decades at this point. So the single biggest purchase that we own this own labeled version of Kepserver to provide to our customers. They interact with our support team, our solutions teams as well, and we sell it along the stack of other things because it it fits so well. And we’ve been doing this since the early two thousands when, Kepware was a a much smaller company than it is now, and we’ve had a really great relationship with them. So if you’ve enjoyed the technology of of Kepserver, maybe there’s some users out there. If you ever heard of TopServer and that has been unclear, I hope this clear clarifies it. But it it is a great technology stack that that we build upon and we’ll get into some of that in our demo. Now the other question is, what if you don’t have a standard communication protocol, like a modbus, like an Allen Bradley PLC as well? We see this a lot with, you know, testing areas, pharmaceuticals, maybe also in packaging, barcode scanners, weigh scales, printers online as well. They they may have some form of basic communications that talks over just TCP or or serial. And how do you get that information that’s really valuable still, but it’s not going through a PLC. It’s not going into your typical agent mind SCADA. It might be very manual process for a lot of these test systems as well, how they’re collecting and analyzing the data. Well, you may have heard of our Arm server as well. It’s been around, like I said, for a couple decades and just a proven solution that without coding, you can go in and build a custom protocol that expects a format from that device, translates it, puts it into standard tags, and now that those tags can be accessible through the open standards of OPC, or to it was a a Veeva user suite link as well. And that really provides a nice combination of your standard communications and also these more custom communications may have been done through scripting in the past. Well, you know, put this onto, an actual server that can communicate through those protocols natively, and just get that data into those SCADA systems, HMIs, where you need it. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, I used that. Many years ago, I had an integrator who came to me. He’s like, Shawn, I wanna this is back in the RSVUE days. He’s like, Shawn, I I got, like, 20 Euotherm devices on a four eighty five, and they speak ASCII, and I gotta I gotta get into RSVUE 32. And, you know, OmniSIR, I love that you could you could basically developing and we did Omega and some other devices too. You’re developing your own protocol, but it’s beautiful. And and the fact that when you’re testing it, it color codes everything. So you know, hey. That part worked. The header worked. The data worked. Oh, the trailing didn’t work, or the terminated didn’t work, or the data’s not in the right format. Or I just it was a joy to work with back then, and I can imagine it’s only gotten better since. Connor Mason (Guest): Yeah. I think it’s like a little engineer playground where you get in there. It started really decoding and seeing how these devices communicate. And then once you’ve got it running, it it’s one of those things that it it just performs and, is saved by many people from developing custom code, having to manage that custom code and integrations, you know, for for many years. So it it’s one of those things that’s kinda tried, tested, and, it it’s kind of a staple still our our base level communications. Alright. So moving along kind of our automation pyramid as well. Another part of our large offering is the Cogent data hub. Some people may have heard from this as well. It’s been around for a good while. It’s been part of our portfolio for for a while as well. This starts building upon where we had the communication now up to those higher echelons of the pyramid. This is gonna bring in a lot of different connectivities. You if you’re not if you’re listening, it it’s kind of this cog and spoke type of concept for real time data. We also have historical implementations. You can connect through a variety of different things. OPC, both the profiles for alarms and events, and even OPC UA’s alarming conditions, which is still getting adoption across the, across the industry, but it is growing. As part of the OPC UA standard, we have integrations to MQTT. It can be its own MQTT broker, and it can also be an MQTT client. That has grown a lot. It’s one of those things that lives be besides OPC UA, not exactly a replacement. If you ever have any questions about that, it’s definitely a topic I love to talk about. There’s space for for this to combine the benefits of both of these, and it’s so versatile and flexible for these different type of implementations. On top of that, it it’s it’s a really strong tool for conversion and aggregation. You kind of add this, like, its name says, it’s a it’s a data hub. You send all the different information to this. It stores it into, a hierarchy with a variety of different modeling that you can do within it. That’s gonna store these values across a standard data format. Once I had data into this, any of those different connections, I can then send data back out. So if I have anything that I know is coming in through a certain plug in like OPC, bring that in, send it out to on these other ones, OPC, DA over to MQTT. It could even do DDA if I’m still using that, which I probably wouldn’t suggest. But overall, there’s a lot of good benefits from having something that can also be a standardization, between all your different connections. I have a lot of different things, maybe variety of OPC servers, legacy or newer. Bring that into a data hub, and then all your other connections, your historians, your MAS, your SCADAs, it can connect to that single point. So it’s all getting the same data model and values from a single source rather than going out and making many to many connections. A a large thing that it was originally, used for was getting around DCOM. That word is, you know, it might send some shivers down people’s spines still, to this day, but it’s it’s not a fun thing to deal with DCOM and also with the security hardening. It’s just not something that you really want to do. I’m sure there’s a lot of security professionals would advise against EPRA doing it. This tunneling will allow you to have a data hub that locally talks to any of the DA server client, communicate between two data hubs over a tunnel that pushes the data just over TCP, takes away all the comm wrappers, and now you just have values that get streamed in between. Now you don’t have to configure any DCOM at all, and it’s all local. So a lot of people went transitioning, between products where maybe the server only supports OPC DA, and then the client is now supporting OPC UA. They can’t change it yet. This has allowed them to implement a solution quickly and cost and at a cost effective price, without ripping everything out. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, I wanna ask you too. I can see because this thing is it’s a data hub. So if you’re watching and you’re if you’re listening and not watching, you you’re not gonna see, you know, server, client, UAD, a broker, server, client. You know, just all these different things up here on the site. Do you what how does somebody find out if it does what they need? I mean, do you guys have a line they can call to say, I wanna do this to this. Is that something Data Hub can do, or is there a demo? What would you recommend to somebody? Connor Mason (Guest): Absolutely. Reach out to us. We we have a a lot of content outline, and it’s not behind any paywall or sign in links even. You you can always go to our website. It’s just softwaretoolbox.com. Mhmm. And that’s gonna get you to our product pages. You can download any product directly from there. They have demo timers. So typically with, with coaching data hub, after an hour, it will stop. You can just rerun it. And then call our team. Yeah. We have a solutions team that can work with you on, hey. What do I need as well? Then our support team, if you run into any issues, can help you troubleshoot that as well. So, I’ll have some contact information at the end, that’ll get some people to, you know, where they need to go. But you’re absolutely right, Shawn. Because this is so versatile, everyone’s use case of it is usually something a little bit different. And the best people to come talk to that is us because we’ve we’ve seen all those differences. So Shawn Tierney (Host): I think a lot of people run into the fact, like, they have a problem. Maybe it’s the one you said where they have the OPC UA and it needs to connect to an OPC DA client. And, you know, and a lot of times, they’re they’re a little gunshot to buy a license because they wanna make sure it’s gonna do exactly what they need first. And I think that’s where having your people can, you know, answer their questions saying, yes. We can do that or, no. We can’t do that. Or, you know, a a demo that they could download and run for an hour at a time to actually do a proof of concept for the boss who’s gonna sign off on purchasing this. And then the other thing is too, a lot of products like this have options. And you wanna make sure you’re buying the ticking the right boxes when you buy your license because you don’t wanna buy something you’re not gonna use. You wanna buy the exact pieces you need. So I highly recommend I mean, this product just does like, I have, in my mind, like, five things I wanna ask right now, but not gonna. But, yeah, def definitely, when it when it comes to a product like this, great to touch base with these folks. They’re super friendly and helpful, and, they’ll they’ll put you in the right direction. Connor Mason (Guest): Yeah. I I can tell you that’s working someone to support. Selling someone a solution that doesn’t work is not something I’ve been doing. Bad day. Right. Exactly. Yeah. And we work very closely, between anyone that’s looking at products. You know, me being as technical product managers, well, I I’m engaged in those conversations. And Mhmm. Yeah. If you need a demo license, reach out to us to extend that. We wanna make sure that you are buying something that provides you value. Now kind of moving on into a similar realm. This is one of our still somewhat newer offerings, I say, but we’ve been around five five plus years, and it’s really grown. And I kinda said here, it’s called OPC router, and and it’s not it’s not a networking tool. A lot of people may may kinda get that. It’s more of a, kind of a term about, again, all these different type of connections. How do you route them to different ways? It it kind of it it separates itself from the Cogent data hub, and and acting at this base level of being like a visual workflow that you can assign various tasks to. So if I have certain events that occur, I may wanna do some processing on that before I just send data along, where the data hub is really working in between converting, streaming data, real time connections. This gives you a a kind of a playground to work around of if I have certain tasks that are occurring, maybe through a database that I wanna trigger off of a certain value, based on my SCADA system, well, you can build that in in these different workflows to execute exactly what you need. Very, very flexible. Again, it has all these different type of connections. The very unique ones that have also grown into kind of that OT IT convergence, is it can be a REST API server and client as well. So I can be sending out requests to, RESTful servers where we’re seeing that hosted in a lot of new applications. I wanna get data out of them. Or once I have consumed a variety of data, I can become the REST server in OPC router and offer that to other applications to request data from itself. So, again, it can kind of be that centralized area of information. The other thing as we talked about in the automation pyramid is it has connections directly into SAP and ERP systems. So if you have work orders, if you have materials, that you wanna continue to track and maybe trigger things based off information from your your operation floors via PLCs tracking, how they’re using things along the line, and that needs to match up with what the SAP system has for, the amount of materials you have. This can be that bridge. It’s really is built off the mindset of the OT world as well. So we kinda say this helps empower the OT level because we’re now giving them the tools to that they understand what what’s occurring in their operations. And what could you do by having a tool like this to allow you to kind of create automated workflows based off certain values and certain events and automate some of these things that you may be doing manually or doing very convoluted through a variety of solutions. So this is one of those prod, products as well that’s very advanced in the things that supports. Linux and Docker containers is, is definitely could be a hot topic, rightly fleet rightfully so. And this can run on a on a Docker container deployed as well. So we we’ve seen that with the I IT folks that really enjoy being able to control and to higher deployment, allows you to update easily, allows you to control and spin up new containers as well. This gives you a lot of flexibility to to deploy and manage these systems. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, I may wanna have you back on to talk about this. I used to there’s an old product called Rascal that I used to use. It was a transaction manager, and it would based on data changing or on a time that as a trigger, it could take data either from the PLC to the database or from the database to the PLC, and it would work with stored procedures. And and this seems like it hits all those points, And it sounds like it’s a visual like you said, right there on the slide, visual workflow builder. Connor Mason (Guest): Yep. Shawn Tierney (Host): So you really piqued my interest with this one, and and it may be something we wanna come back to and and revisit in the future, because, it just it’s just I know that that older product was very useful and, you know, it really solved a lot of old applications back in the day. Connor Mason (Guest): Yeah. Absolutely. And this this just takes that on and builds even more. If you if anyone was, kind of listening at the beginning of this year or two, a conference called Prove It that was very big in the industry, we were there to and we presented on stage a solution that we had. Highly recommend going searching for that. It’s on our web pages. It’s also on their YouTube links, and it’s it’s called Prove It. And OPC router was a big part of that in the back end. I would love to dive in and show you the really unique things. Kind of as a quick overview, we’re able to use Google AI vision to take camera data and detect if someone was wearing a hard hat. All that logic and behind of getting that information to Google AI vision, was through REST with OPC router. Then we were parsing that information back through that, connection and then providing it back to the PLCs. So we go all the way from a camera to a PLC controlling a light stack, up to Google AI vision through OPC router, all on hotel Wi Fi. It’s very imp it’s very, very fun presentation, and, our I think our team did a really great job. So a a a pretty new offering I have I wanna highlight, is our is our data caster. This is a an actual piece of hardware. You know, our software toolbox is we we do have some hardware as well. It’s just, part of the nature of this environment of how we mesh in between things. But the the idea is that, there’s a lot of different use cases for HMI and SCADA. They have grown so much from what they used to be, and they’re very core part of the automation stack. Now a lot of times, these are doing so many things beyond that as well. What we found is that in different areas of operations, you may not need all that different control. You may not even have the space to make up a whole workstation for that as well. What this does, the data caster, is, just simply plug it plugs it into any network and into an HDMI compatible display, and it gives you a very easy configure workplace to put a few key metrics onto a screen. So if I have different things from you can connect directly to PLCs like Allen Bradley. You can connect to SQL databases. You can also connect to rest APIs to gather the data from these different sources and build a a a kind of easy to to view, KPI dashboard in a way. So if you’re on a operation line and you wanna look at your current run rate, maybe you have certain things in the POC tags, you know, flow and pressure that’s very important for those operators to see. They may not be, even the capacity to be interacting with anything. They just need visualizations of what’s going on. This product can just be installed, you know, industrial areas with, with any type of display that you can easily access and and give them something that they can easily look at. It’s configured all through a web browser to display what you want. You can put on different colors based on levels of values as well. And it’s just I feel like a very simple thing that sometimes it seems so simple, but those might be the things that provide value on the actual operation floor. This is, for anyone that’s watching, kind of a quick view of a very simple screen. What we’re showing here is what it would look like from all the different data sources. So talking directly to ControlLogs PLC, talking to SQL databases, micro eight eight hundreds, an arrest client, and and what’s coming very soon, definitely by the end of this year, is OPC UA support. So any OPC UA server that’s out there that’s already having your PLC data or etcetera, this could also connect to that and get values from there. Shawn Tierney (Host): Can I can you make it I’m I’m here I go? Can you make it so it, like, changes, like, pages every few seconds? Connor Mason (Guest): Right now, it is a single page, but this is, like I said, very new product, so we’re taking any feedback. If, yeah, if there’s this type of slideshow cycle that would be, you know, valuable to anyone out there, let us know. We’re definitely always interested to see the people that are actually working out at these operation sites, what what’s valuable to them. Yeah. Shawn Tierney (Host): A lot of kiosks you see when when you’re traveling, it’ll say, like, line one well, I’ll just throw out there. Line one, and that’ll be on there for five seconds, and then it’ll go line two. That’ll be on there for five seconds, and then line you know, I and that’s why I just mentioned that because I can see that being a question that, that that I would get from somebody who is asking me about it. Connor Mason (Guest): Oh, great question. Appreciate it. Alright. So now we’re gonna set time for a little hands on demo. For anyone that’s just listening, we’re gonna I’m gonna talk about this at at a high level and walk through everything. But the idea is that, we have a few different POCs, very common in Allen Bradley and just a a Siemens seven, s seven fifteen hundred that’s in our office, pretty close to me on the other side of the wall wall, actually. We’re gonna first start by connecting that to our top server like we talked about. This is our industrial communication server, that offers both OCDA, OC UA, SweetLink connectivity as well. And then we’re gonna bring this into our Cogent data hub. This we talked about is getting those values up to these higher levels. What we’ll be doing is also tunneling the data. We talked about being able to share data through the data hubs themselves. Kinda explain why we’re doing that here and the value you can add. And then we’re also gonna showcase adding on MQTT to this level. Taking beta now just from these two PLCs that are sitting on a rack, and I can automatically make all that information available in the MQTT broker. So any MQTT client that’s out there that wants to subscribe to that data, now has that accessible. And I’ve created this all through a a really simple workflow. We also have some databases connected. Influx, we install with Code and DataHub, has a free visualization tool that kinda just helps you see what’s going on in your processes. I wanna showcase a little bit of that as well. Alright. So now jumping into our demo, when we first start off here is the our top server. Like I mentioned before, if anyone has worked with KEP server in the past, this is gonna look very similar. Like it because it is. The same technology and all the things here. The the first things that I wanted to establish in our demo, was our connection to our POCs. I have a few here. We’re only gonna use the Allen Bradley and the Siemens, for the the time that we have on our demo here. But how this builds out as a platform is you create these different channels and the devices connections between them. This is gonna be your your physical connections to them. It’s either, IP TCPIP connection or maybe your serial connection as well. We have support for all of them. It really is a long list. Anyone watching out there, you can kind of see all the different drivers that that we offer. So allowing this into a single platform, you can have all your connectivity based here. All those different connections that you now have that up the stack, your SCADA, your historians, MAS even as well, they can all go to a single source. Makes that management, troubleshooting, all those a bit easier as well. So one of the first things I did here, I have this built out, but I’ll kinda walk through what you would typically do. You have your Allen Bradley ControlLogix Ethernet driver here first. You know, I have some IPs in here I won’t show, but, regardless, we have our our our drivers here, and then we have a set of tags. These are all the global tags in the programming of the PLC. How I got these to to kind of map automatically is in our in our driver, we’re able to create tags automatically. So you’re able to send a command to that device and ask for its entire tag database. They can come back, provide all that, map it out for you, create those tags as well. This saves a lot of time from, you know, an engineer have to go in and, addressing all the individual items themselves. So once it’s defined in the program project, you’re able to bring this all in automatically. I’ll show now how easy that makes it connecting to something like the Cogent data hub. In a very similar fashion, we have a connection over here to the Siemens, PLC that I also have. You can see beneath it all these different tag structures, and this was created the exact same way. While those those PLC support it, you can do an automatic tag generation, bring in all the structure that you’ve already built out your PLC programming, and and make this available on this OPC server now as well. So that’s really the basis. We first need to establish communications to these PLCs, get that tag data, and now what do we wanna do with it? So in this demo, what I wanted to bring up was, the code in DataHub next. So here, I see a very similar kind of layout. We have a different set set of plugins on the left side. So for anyone listening, the Cogent Data Hub again is kind of our aggregation and conversion tool. All these different type of protocols like OPC UA, OPC DA, and OPC A and E for alarms and events. We also support OPC alarms and conditions, which is the newer profile for alarms in OPC UA. We have all a variety of different ways that you can get data out of things and data’s into the data hub. We can also do bridging. This concept is, how you share data in between different points. So let’s say I had a connection to one OPC server, and it was communicating to a certain PLC, and there were certain registers I was getting data from. Well, now I also wanna connect to a different OPC server that has, entirely different brand of PLCs. And then maybe I wanna share data in between them directly. Well, with this software, I can just bridge those points between them. Once they’re in the data hub, I can do kind of whatever I want with them. I can then allow them to write between those PLCs and share data that way, and you’re not now having to do any type of hardwiring directly in between them, and then I’m compatible to communicate to each other. Through the standards of OPC and these variety of different communication levels, I can integrate them together. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, you bring up a good point. When you do something like that, is there any heartbeat? Like, is there on the general or under under, one of these, topics? Is there are there tags we can use that are from DataHub itself that can be sent to the destination, like a heartbeat or, you know, the merge transactions? Or Connor Mason (Guest): Yeah. Absolutely. So with this as well, there’s pretty strong scripting engine, and I have done that in the past where you can make internal tags. And that that could be a a timer. It could be a counter. And and just kind of allows you to create your own tags as well that you could do the same thing, could share that, through bridge connection to a PLC. So, yeah, there there are definitely some people that had those cert and, you know, use cases where they wanna get something to just track, on this software side and get it out to those hardware PLCs. Absolutely. Shawn Tierney (Host): I mean, when you send out the data out of the PLC, the PLC doesn’t care to take my data. But when you’re getting data into the PLC, you wanna make sure it’s updating and it’s fresh. And so, you know, they throw a counter in there, the script thing, and be able to have that. As as long as you see that incrementing, you know, you got good data coming in. That’s that’s a good feature. Connor Mason (Guest): Absolutely. You know, another big one is the the redundancy. So what this does is beyond just the OPC, we can make redundancy to basically anything that has two things running of it. So any of these different connections. How it’s unique is what it does is it just looks at the buckets of data that you create. So for an example, if I do have two different OPC servers and I put them into two areas of, let’s say, OPC server one and OPC server two, I can what now create an OPC redundancy data bucket. And now any client that connects externally to that and wants that data, it’s gonna go talk to that bucket of data. And that bucket of data is going to automatically change in between sources as things go down, things come back up, and the client would never know what’s hap what that happened unless you wanted to. There are internal tasks to show what’s the current source and things, but the idea is to make this trans kind of hidden that regardless of what’s going on in the operations, if I have this set up, I can have my external applications just reading from a single source without knowing that there’s two things behind it that are actually controlling that. Very important for, you know, historian connections where you wanna have a full complete picture of that data that’s coming in. If you’re able to make a redundant connection to two different, servers and then allow that historian to talk to a single point where it doesn’t have to control that switching back and forth. It it will just see that data flow streamlessly as as either one is up at that time. Kinda beyond that as well, there’s quite a few other different things in here. I don’t think we have time to cover all of them. But for for our demo, what I wanna focus on first is our OPC UA connection. This allows us both to act as a OPC UA client to get data from any servers out there, like our top server. And also we can act as an OPC UA server itself. So if anything’s coming in from maybe you have multiple connections to different servers, multiple connections to other things that aren’t OPC as well, I can now provide all this data automatically in my own namespace to allow things to connect to me as well. And that’s part of that aggregation feature, and kind of topic I was mentioning before. So with that, I have a connection here. It’s pulling data all from my top server. I have a few different tags from my Alec Bradley and and my Siemens PLC selected. The next part of this, while I was meshing, was the tunneling. Like I said, this is very popular to get around DCOM issues, but there’s a lot of reasons why you still may use this beyond just the headache of DCOM and what it was. What this runs on is a a TCP stream that takes all the data points as a value, a quality, and a timestamp, and it can mirror those in between another DataHub instance. So if I wanna get things across a network, like my OT side, where NASH previously, I would have to come in and allow a, open port onto my network for any OPC UA clients, across the network to access that, I can now actually change the direction of this and allow me to tunnel data out of my network without opening up any ports. This is really big for security. If anyone out there, security professional or working as an engineer, you have to work with your IT and security a lot, they don’t you don’t wanna have an open port, especially to your operations and OT side. So this allows you to change that direction of flow and push data out of this direction into another area like a DMZ computer or up to a business level computer as well. The other things as well that I have configured in this demo, the benefit of having that tunneling streaming data across this connection is I can also store this data locally in a, influx database. The purpose of that then is that I can actually historize this, provide then if this connection ever goes down to backfill any information that was lost during that tunnel connection going down. So with this added layer on and real time data scenarios like OPC UA, unless you have historical access, you would lose a lot of data if that connection ever went down. But with this, I can actually use the back end of this InfluxDB, buffer any values. When my connection comes back up, pass them along that stream again. And if I have anything that’s historically connected, like, another InfluxDB, maybe a PI historian, Vue historian, any historian offering out there that can allow that connection. I can then provide all those records that were originally missed and backfill that into those systems. So I switched over to a second machine. It’s gonna look very similar here as well. This also has an instance of the Cogent Data Hub running here. For anyone not watching, what we’ve actually have on this side is the the portion of the tunneler that’s sitting here and listening for any data requests coming in. So on my first machine, I was able to connect my PLCs, gather that information into Cogent DataHub, and now I’m pushing that information, across the network into a separate machine that’s sitting here and listening to gather information. So what I can quickly do is just make sure I have all my data here. So I have these different points, both from my Allen Bradley PLCs. I have a few, different simulation demo points, like temperature, pressure, tank level, a few statuses, and all this is updating directly through that stream as the PLC is updating it as well. I also have my scenes controller. I have some, current values and a few different counters tags as well. All of this again is being directly streamed through that tunnel. I’m not connecting to an OPC server at all on this side. I can show you that here. There’s no connections configured. I’m not talking to the PLCs directly on this machine as well. But maybe we’ll pass all the information through without opening up any ports on my OT demo machine per se. So what’s the benefit of that? Well, again, security. Also, the ability to do the store and forward mechanisms. On the other side, I was logging directly to a InfluxDB. This could be my d- my buffer, and then I was able to configure it where if any values were lost, to store that across the network. So now with this side, if I pull up Chronic Graph, which is a free visualization tool that installs with the DataHub as well, I can see some very nice, visual workflows and and visual diagrams of what is going on with this data. So I have a pressure that is just a simulator in this, Allen Bradley PLC that ramps up and and comes back down. It’s not actually connected to anything that’s reading a real pressure, but you can see over time, I can kind of change through these different layers of time. And I might go back a little far, but I have a lot of data that’s been stored in here. For a while during my test, I turned this off and, made it fail, but then I came back in and I was able to recreate all the data and backfill it as well. So through through these views, I can see that as data disconnects, as it comes back on, I have a very cyclical view of the data because it was able to recover and store and forward from that source. Like I said, Shawn, data quality is a big thing in this industry. It’s a big thing for people both at the operations side, and both people making decision in the business layer. So being able to have a full picture, without gaps, it is definitely something that, you should be prioritizing, when you can. Shawn Tierney (Host): Now what we’re seeing here is you’re using InfluxDB on this, destination PC or IT side PC and chronograph, which was that utility or that package that comes, gets installed. It’s free. But you don’t actually have to use that. You could have sent this in to an OSI pi or Exactly. Somebody else’s historian. Right? Can you name some of the historians you work with? I know OSI pie. Connor Mason (Guest): Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. So there’s quite a few different ones. As far as what we support in the Data Hub natively, Amazon Kinesis, the cloud hosted historian that we can also do the same things from here as well. Aviva Historian, Aviva Insight, Apache Kafka. This is a a kind of a a newer one as well that used to be a very IT oriented solution, now getting into OT. It’s kind of a similar database structure where things are stored in different topics that we can stream to. On top of that, just regular old ODBC connections. That opens up a lot of different ways you can do it, or even, the old classic OPC, HDA. So if you have any, historians that that can act as an OPC HDA, connection, we we can also stream it through there. Shawn Tierney (Host): Excellent. That’s a great list. Connor Mason (Guest): The other thing I wanna show while we still have some time here is that MQTT component. This is really growing and, it’s gonna continue to be a part of the industrial automation technology stack and conversations moving forward, for streaming data, you know, from devices, edge devices, up into different layers, both now into the OT, and then maybe out to, IT, in our business levels as well, and definitely into the cloud as we’re seeing a lot of growth into it. Like I mentioned with Data Hub, the big benefit is I have all these different connections. I can consume all this data. Well, I can also act as an MQTT broker. And what what a broker typically does in MQTT is just route data and share data. It’s kind of that central point where things come to it to either say, hey. I’m giving you some new values. Share it with someone else. Or, hey. I need these values. Can you give me that? It really fits in super well with what this product is at its core. So all I have to do here is just enable it. What that now allows is I have an example, MQTT Explorer. If anyone has worked with MQTT, you’re probably familiar with this. There’s nothing else I configured beyond just enabling the broker. And you can see within this structure, I have all the same data that was in my Data Hub already. The same things I were collecting from my PLCs and top server. Now I’ve embedded these as MPPT points and now I have them in JSON format with the value, their timestamp. You can even see, like, a little trend here kind of matching what we saw in Influx. And and now this enables all those different cloud connectors that wanna speak this language to do it seamlessly. Shawn Tierney (Host): So you didn’t have to set up the PLCs a second time to do this? Nope. Connor Mason (Guest): Not at all. Shawn Tierney (Host): You just enabled this, and now the data’s going this way as well. Exactly. Connor Mason (Guest): Yeah. That’s a really strong point of the Cogent Data Hub is once you have everything into its structure and model, you just enable it to use any of these different connections. You can get really, really creative with these different things. Like we talked about with the the bridging aspect and getting into different systems, even writing down the PLCs. You can make crust, custom notifications and email alerts, based on any of these values. You could even take something like this MTT connection, tunnel it across to another data hub as well, maybe then convert it to OPC DA. And now you’ve made a a a new connection over to something that’s very legacy as well. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. That, I mean, the options here are just pretty amazing, all the different things that can be done. Connor Mason (Guest): Absolutely. Well, I, you know, I wanna jump back into some of our presentation here while we still got the time. And now after we’re kinda done with our demo, there’s so many different ways that you can use these different tools. This is just a really simple, kind of view of the, something that used to be very simple, just connecting OpenSea servers to a variety of different connections, kind of expanding onto with that that’s store and forward, the local influx usage, getting out to things like MTT as well. But there’s a lot more you can do with these solutions. So like Shawn said, reach out to us. We’re happy to engage and see what we can help you with. I have a few other things before we wrap up. Just overall, it we’ve worked across nearly every industry. We have installations across the globe on all continents. And like I said, we’ve been around for pushing thirty years next year. So we’ve seen a lot of different things, and we really wanna talk to anyone out there that maybe has some struggles that are going on with just connectivity, or you have any ongoing projects. If you work in these different industries or if there’s nothing marked here and you have anything going on that you need help with, we’re very happy to sit down and let you know if there’s there’s something we can do there. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. For those who are, listening, I mean, we see most of the big energy and consumer product, companies on that slide. So I’m not gonna read them off, but, it’s just a lot of car manufacturers. You know, these are these are these, the household name brands that everybody knows and loves. Connor Mason (Guest): So kind of wrap some things up here. We talked about all the different ways that we’ve kind of helped solve things in the past, but I wanna highlight some of the unique ones, that we’ve also gone do some, case studies on and and success stories. So this one I actually got to work on, within the last few years that, a plastic packaging, manufacturer was looking to track uptime and downtime across multiple different lines, and they had a new cloud solution that they were already evaluating. They’re really excited to get into play. They they had a lot of upside to, getting things connected to this and start using it. Well, what they had was a lot of different PLCs, a lot of different brands, different areas, different, you know, areas of operation that they need to connect to. So what they used was to first get that into our top server, kind of similar to how they showed them use in their in our demo. We just need to get all the data into a centralized platform first, get that data accessible. Then from there, once they had all that information into a centralized area, they used the Cogent Data Hub as well to help aggregate that information and transform it to be sent to the cloud through MQTT. So very similar to the demo here, this is actually a real use case of that. Getting information from PLCs, structuring it into that how that cloud system needed it for MQTT, and streamlining that data connection to now where it’s just running in operation. They constantly have updates about where their lines are in operation, tracking their downtime, tracking their uptime as well, and then being able to do some predictive analytics in that cloud solution based on their history. So this really enabled them to kind of build from what they had existing. It was doing a lot of manual tracking, into an entirely automated system with management able to see real views of what’s going on at this operation level. Another one I wanna talk about was we we were able to do this success story with, Ace Automation. They worked with a pharmaceutical company. Ace Automation is a SI and they were brought in and doing a lot of work with some some old DDE connections, doing some custom Excel macros, and we’re just having a hard time maintaining some legacy systems that were just a pain to deal with. They were working with these older files, from some old InTouch histor HMIs, and what they needed to do was get something that was not just based on Excel and doing custom macros. So one product we didn’t get to talk about yet, but we also carry is our LGH file inspector. It’s able to take these files, put them out into a standardized format like CSV, and also do a lot of that automation of when when should these files be queried? Should they be, queried for different lengths? Should they be output to different areas? Can I set these up in a scheduled task so it can be done automatically rather than someone having to sit down and do it manually in Excel? So they will able to, recover over fifty hours of engineering time with the solution from having to do late night calls to troubleshoot a, Excel macro that stopped working, from crashing machines, because they were running a legacy systems to still support some of the DDE servers, into saving them, you know, almost two hundred plus hours of productivity. Another example, if we’re able to work with a renewable, energy customer that’s doing a lot of innovative things across North America, They had a very ambitious plan to double their footprint in the next two years. And with that, they had to really look back at their assets and see where they currently stand, how do we make new standards to support us growing into what we want to be. So with this, they had a lot of different data sources currently. They’re all kind of siloed at the specific areas. Nothing was really connected commonly to a corporate level area of historization, or control and security. So again, they they were able to use our top server and put out a standard connectivity platform, bring in the DataHub as an aggregation tool. So each of these sites would have a top server that was individually collecting data from different devices, and then that was able to send it into a single DataHub. So now their corporate level had an entire view of all the information from these different plants in one single application. That then enabled them to connect their historian applications to that data hub and have a perfect view and make visualizations off of their entire operations. What this allowed them to do was grow without replacing everything. And that’s a big thing that we try to strive on is replacing and ripping out all your existing technologies. It’s not something you can do overnight. But how do we provide value and gain efficiency with what’s in place and providing newer technologies on top of that without disrupting the actual operation as well? So this was really, really successful. And at the end, I just wanna kind of provide some other contacts and information people can learn more. We have a blog that goes out every week on Thursdays. A lot of good technical content out there. A lot of recast of the the awesome things we get to do here, the success stories as well, and you can always find that at justblog.softwaretoolbox.com. And again, our main website is justsoftwaretoolbox.com. You can get product information, downloads, reach out to anyone on our team. Let’s discuss what what issues you have going on, any new projects, we’ll be happy to listen. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, Connor, I wanna thank you very much for coming on the show and bringing us up to speed on not only software toolbox, but also to, you know, bring us up to speed on top server and doing that demo with top server and data hub. Really appreciate that. And, I think, you know, like you just said, if anybody, has any projects that you think these solutions may be able to solve, please give them a give them a call. And if you’ve already done something with them, leave a comment. You know? To leave a comment, no matter where you’re watching or listening to this, let us know what you did. What did you use? Like me, I used OmniServer all those many years ago, and, of course, Top Server as an OPC server. But if you guys have already used Software Toolbox and, of course, Symbol Factory, I use that all the time. But if you guys are using it, let us know in the comments. It’s always great to hear from people out there. I know, you know, with thousands of you guys listening every week, but I’d love to hear, you know, are you using these products? Or if you have questions, I’ll funnel them over to Connor if you put them in the comments. So with that, Connor, did you have anything else you wanted to cover before we close out today’s show? Connor Mason (Guest): I think that was it, Shawn. Thanks again for having us on. It was really fun. Shawn Tierney (Host): I hope you enjoyed that episode, and I wanna thank Connor for taking time out of his busy schedule to come on the show and bring us up to speed on software toolbox and their suite of products. Really appreciated that demo at the end too, so we actually got a look at if you’re watching. Gotta look at their products and how they work. And, just really appreciate them taking all of my questions. I also appreciate the fact that Software Toolbox sponsored this episode, meaning we were able to release it to you without any ads. So I really appreciate them. If you’re doing any business with Software Toolbox, please thank them for sponsoring this episode. And with that, I just wanna wish you all good health and happiness. And until next time, my friends, peace. Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

In today's world of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and emerging artificial intelligence (AI) solutions, there's a growing need to share operational technology (OT) data from supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems and integrate it with the business information typically found in information technology (IT) systems. Much of this data originates from legacy control hardware performing dedicated functions that aren't directly compatible with evolving IT environments supporting AI and other initiatives. What are the key considerations for bridging this data divide to enable new applications in a safe, efficient and economical way? Control Amplified spoke with Barry Baker, vice president of Trihedral Engineering, about the benefits of adopting edge-based solutions for existing applications.

Shawn Tierney meets up with Lauton Rushford of Endress+Hauser to learn about new innovations in Coriolis Flowmeter Technology in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 247 Show Notes: Special thanks to Endress+Hauser for sponsoring this episode so we could release it “ad free!” To learn about Endress+Hauser, and Coriolis Flowmeters, checkout the below links: Learn more about Endress+Hauser Learn more about flowmeter products Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): Welcome back to the automation podcast. Shawn Tierney here from Insights and Automation, and I wanna thank you for tuning back in. This week on the show, I meet up with Lawton Rushford from Endress and Hauser to learn all about the latest innovations in Coriolis flow meters. And I also wanna thank Endress and Hauser for sponsoring this episode so I could bring it to you completely ad free. With that said, if you’re interested in learning about what’s the latest in technology used in Coriolis flow meters, I think you’ll enjoy this episode. I know I did. And with that, let’s go ahead and jump right into this week’s show. I wanna welcome to the show, Lawton from Endress and Hauser. Lawton, it’s great to have you on. This is the first time you’re on the show. We plus, we’ve had your company on before. But, Lawton, if you don’t mind, could you, before we jump into Coriolis flow meters, which is an extremely important technology in our industry, could you first introduce yourself to our audience? Lauton Rushford (E+H): Yeah. Absolutely. Thank you. My name is Lawton Rushford. I am the flow product marketing manager here at Anderson Hauser, based in Greenwood, Indiana, which is about twenty minutes south of Indianapolis, Indiana at our, national headquarters, for Anderson Hauser. I’ve been with Anderson Hauser for seven years now, a whole bunch of different roles, but, for the last three years, I’ve been in this role, a flow marketing manager. Today, I I really wanted to highlight a couple of awesome innovations that we’ve had in Coriolis flow technology, over the last, we’ll see, about year or so, because I think there’s a lot of, use cases and a lot of awesome, insights we can get from from our Coriolis flow meters. And, yeah. So I guess we can we can kick it off. I did wanna highlight Anderson Hauser as the the manufacturer that I work for, and we have a history, a long history of, of innovation. And so I’m gonna kinda highlight that, initially, talk about what sort of portfolio we have currently with our Coriolis flow meters, and then talk about a couple of new cool things that that we have released over the last couple of couple of months. And then finish off with, what we call heartbeat technology. It’s our advanced diagnostic system in all of our flow meters and all of our products across the board. It started with flow. So I think there’s a lot of you cool use cases, and I’ll I’ll highlight a couple of those as well. And then, of course, Shawn is the the audience here. Anytime there’s questions or anything, please feel free to to let me know, and I can I can try and address them as they come up? Shawn Tierney (Host): Sounds good. Yeah. Lauton Rushford (E+H): Awesome. Great. So I guess our first Coriolis meter that we introduced into the market was back in, 1986. So it’s been some time. As you can tell by the the slide here, there’s a lot of different designs of Coriolis flowmeters. There isn’t one right way to do it, but I think that the way that Anderson Houser has approached innovation is is pretty pretty awesome and pretty impressive. Everything from a single tube, design to a dual tube design, dual straight tube design versus a dual bent tube design. There are a lot of different types of Coriolis meters out on the market, and we’ll talk about a couple of, differentiators that we that, Anderson Hauser has on, on some products that we’ve recently released. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, just by looking at the, the slide here, the one that, like, really attracts my eye is the ProMASS. That’s the one that I I think I’ve seen the most in the field. Lauton Rushford (E+H): Yep. Yep. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, walking around the different plants, and, that was launched in 1998. So that’s been out for quite some time. So just wanted to throw that out there for those listening. That may be the one you’ve seen the most of as in your in your travels. Lauton Rushford (E+H): Yeah. Yeah. Definitely. There’s a lot of a lot of ProMasses out there. Our endpoint was the first one, but, shortly after that, we released our ProMasses. And we’ve just been you know, we’ve we’ve had a lot of iterations, which I think is also part of the impressive thing in terms of innovation that Anderson Hauser continues to to to, do in terms of research and development on that. And the one that I always think about is is the the one that kinda looks like a UFO. That is our ProMASS X. It’s a high capacity, large diameter, Coriolis meter with four tubes in there. So it’s kind of bent two separate sys systems and then put together in one, large device, and I always I always think that one’s cool because it kinda looks like a like something out of Star Wars or something. Yep. Yep. So, yep, so I I think that’s that’s really, really cool. There’s a lot of new things that we’ve released, and this is, I mean, this is a short timeline of of some of the innovations that we have. But, you know, over the last year or so, we’ve we’ve definitely invested a little bit more, into specific applications, and that kind of leads us into our entire portfolio of Coriolis flow meters. We have 17 different sensors. So that is not a normal thing in the industry. I I think that to some people, it it can be confusing if you’re looking at them all at the same time, a little overwhelming. But I I think it’s really important that I that I kind of talk about this in terms of every application that we look at. We’re not trying to put one flow meter into that application. We’re taking the application and the requirements of that application and designing a device that’s meant for it. So, in certain applications, you may not have to choose between 17 different sensors. You really have probably two or three that you’re trying to to decide between and weigh, both pressure drop, accuracy, density specifications, things like that that that will ultimately give you the the best meter for that application. But we we don’t wanna take a an approach of trying to, cram a a sensor into an application. We would prefer to design the sensor in and meant for certain applications. So it does I guess there’s two questions on here. Why so many sensors? Well, because we wanna design our our sensors for specific applications. There’s a lot of different applications out there. Doesn’t that make it confusing? Well, of course, it makes it a little confusing if you’re looking at it from from the high level 17 different sensors. But, every application that we look at, we’re we’re trying to, there’s a lot of different requirements of of applications in oil and gas versus life sciences, and we wanted to design sensors that fit the market and fit the application that they’re supposed to go into. And in general, all of them work the exact same way. As a as a general rule of thumb, your Coriolis flow meter measurements are mass flow, density, and temperature as a as a starting point. We’ll talk about a couple of features that we’ve started adding to some of our flow meters that that, create more of a multivariable device. Instead of just measuring those three things, we can add viscosity or, we can do other things or concentration, things like that, with the meters. But in general, the mass flow is is using, the phase shift between your inlet and outlet pickup coils and taking that into account to relate it directly to the amount of mass that’s within those tubes. And then similarly, as the tubes are oscillating, a more dense fluid is going to have a lower resonant frequency. And based around resonant frequencies, we can understand how dense the fluid is inside of the, inside of those flow tubes. And then we also have on every single one of our Coriolis flow meters, PT 1,000, temperature probe that’s attached directly to the inside of the, the outside of the tube within the secondary containment, for additional values, additional multivariable, use uses. I mean, for for example, on a on a concentration measurement, really what you’re using is density and temperature in conjunction, to relate that to a concentration. So that’s something that that we would that that would add to the use cases for for a a Coriolis flow meter. And one of the the current biggest innovations that we’ve had recently is with our our ProMaths queue. The ProMaths queue is a a little bit of a different design than some of the other ProMasses that you may have seen on on some previous slides. We actually, have a little bit, longer tube that’s, has a more harsher bend in it. Mhmm. The reason for that is because what we’re trying to do is we’re trying to oscillate these two sensors or these two flow tubes at two at the same frequency, but in two different modes. So in multiple frequencies, at the same time. So, essentially, what we’re doing is our our historic use of a a pro mass meter is kind of in that that top visual where we’re oscillating in one frequency, and one one specific frequency depending on the fluid that’s going through it. And then on the at the bottom, we show an additional mode of oscillation, so an additional frequency that we’re oscillating at that gives us additional information for, specifically challenging applications. So in in in a lot of these cases, what we what we see in most of these applications is, a lot of whipped products, purposeful entrainment of of air into into, applications. So cement in general, let’s say, as an example, we can start there. Well cement, you’re it’s aerated all the time. So as you are are moving that cement around, air pockets can be filled in inside of that cement and can cause challenges as most things with air cause challenges, especially as as you’re moving into a multiphase fluid. Anytime you have one or more than one fluid phase within the the the meter, the meter can is it’s it’s almost like, the meter is kind of confused. It it’s not really sure what it’s supposed to be reading and what it is reading and why it’s reading that. So with with multi frequency technology, we can actually compensate internally compensate because we’re oscillating in two modes. We can compensate for the air that’s present and give a, a corrected mass flow and a corrected, density. So Right. A lot of milk milk applications, cream cheese, well cement, anything like that. Shawn Tierney (Host): That’s awesome. Could you back up one slide for a second? Sure. Lauton Rushford (E+H): Sure. Shawn Tierney (Host): I just I find this so interesting, but I I know that the audience, not everybody’s on the same page. So I think this would be a great slide. Could you just, like, vary what the basic the basic operation of a Coriolis flow meter is? Okay. We know we’re trying to measure typically the flow rate, the flow rate. Right? And, you know, there’s all these variables that go into it. But could you really just, you know, give us the the introductory, you know, how does this thing work? Lauton Rushford (E+H): Sure. So there are exciters, if if you will, or vibrating electronics that’s going to oscillate those flow tubes. Shawn Tierney (Host): Okay. Lauton Rushford (E+H): And they’re gonna if there’s no flow in it, the oscillation is going to basically be, very in line, in sync. Your tubes are going to move out and then move in. And, again, it’s these are a little exaggerated in terms of videos, but the actual tubes will will start vibrating, almost like a tuning fork or you hit a wine glass on the side of a table and you get the vibration out of the wine glass. That’s kind of the same vibration that’s happening. And now as we start flowing product through those flow tubes, we get these these waves that are created. And the inlet and outlet pickup coil are now not in sync, meaning that we’re using the Coriolis force or we’re essentially looking at a phase shift as those tubes start to create those waves, where where there’s a time difference between the inlet and the outlet pickup coil. And that time difference is ultimately what’s related to phase shift, which is ultimately what’s related to that mass flow that’s inside the tubes. Similarly, as we’re oscillating those tubes, if we have water going through that, those tubes, well, we know what the resonant frequency should be of water. We also know what the resonant frequency is of a more dense or a lighter, less dense fluid. So now we can start understanding what the density is specifically as well. So that’s where kind of the multivariable, measurements happen within the flow tube. But, essentially, all of it’s based around a time measurement. It’s all based around when does this, this pickup coil pick up this tube, and when does this pickup, outlet pickup coil pick up the the tube coming back. Yep. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. And so we talked about the ProMASQ having two modes because when the liquids or, you know, like, the substance, like cement or dairy, you know, cream or whatnot, have a lot of ear in it, that could be a challenge. So you have this other mode. We also talked about having a, the temperature sensor thermocouple built in. Mhmm. Is is temperature always and I know I’m asking a lot of crazy questions here, but is temperature always a factor? Because I can see definitely products operate very differently than based on the temperature. Is temperature always a factor in, coming up with the calculation? Lauton Rushford (E+H): So, typically, temperature is going to affect not only the fluid. It’s also going to affect the properties of the tubes themselves. So that’s something that’s often overlooked. And and when when we’re when we’re looking at applications, yes, we care about what the the the temperature of the fluid is because, the density of that fluid may change. There may be more or less mass flow depending, on, how close a pump is. There’s a lot of installation effects as well. But, ultimately, the the as those tubes are oscillating, if you’re if the temperature is low enough or the temperature is high enough, those tubes are have the potential to move more or less Yeah. As you’re oscillating them. So that’s where temperature plays a really big factor, not only in in measuring temperature, that’s a great added value, but also in the, the thermal, properties of the actual tube’s material themselves. Shawn Tierney (Host): Thank you for taking my questions. I just find this interesting. Lauton Rushford (E+H): Yeah. Oh, that’s that’s great. That’s a great question. That is something that that isn’t really thought about, but, we always we always have to take that into account. And and that’s part of, ensuring that the the stated accuracy, their specifications of the device are met throughout the entire, temperature range of the meter’s specification. So if we know that we’re gonna be operating, this meter is rated for negative 40 degrees f to 300 degrees f, well, we have to make sure that we understand how the tubes will react throughout that entire range. And that’s that again goes back to that innovation that goes back to the research and development that goes into the design of these sensors. So, a lot of important things there. So with that, I guess there’s there’s another added value that that comes into play when, we talk about oscillating that Pro Mask Q at a, at two modes. There’s actually an additional effect that happens to the tubes, And as those tubes because of how long those tubes are, as the tubes start oscillating, at the end of their oscillation, at their maximum amplitude of oscillation, you get a slight twisting motion in the tubes themselves. And so we have a device that is called our ProMass I that directly measures, viscosity directly out of the meter. And that is using a similar, a similar technology in a torsional oscillation mode. Whereas the ProMAS Q, just by nature of design, actually has some slight twisting motions. So, you know, our our r and d g experts and geniuses over, over over overseas, they they came up with this idea. Well, why couldn’t we do a similar thing with our ProMask Q? Why couldn’t we look at how much shear we’re placing on the fluid or how much twisting we’re placing on the on the fluid and understand maybe a little bit more about the individual properties of that fluid that’s going through the meter? And that’s where the oscillation the the torsional oscillation or the rotational oscillation, of that that flow tube can give us a little bit more insight into the viscosity of the fluid itself. And so this is where kind of another innovation, which is on the ProMascue, the hydrocarbon viscosity monitoring. We do what’s called we stated it’s for hydrocarbon viscosity, and the reason for that is because hydrocarbons have a very known, viscosity profile across all different pressures and and temperatures. And so we can we can verify on water and ensure that the meter is going to react properly, and and maintain the accuracy that we stated it’s going to have. And, again, this is a monitoring point. It’s not necessarily a calibrated point. It is plus or minus 10% accuracy, which isn’t very high, but it’s it’s enough to where you can start seeing when you have the difference between a very heavy crude oil and water or a very light crude oil or, like, light hydrocarbon. And the repeatability is ultimately where where the the use case comes in. So this is one of the highlights that I wanted to to point out because I think not only on the monitoring side, it gives us more values, it gives us more information on on what’s happening inside the meter, without us having to open up the meter, and and or open up the the pipe and and look at it. So a couple of applications, typically you’re gonna see them both, in all parts of oil and gas, which is upstream, midstream, and downstream, all the way into, refining products. A lot of these applications, in in midstream, especially in pipelines, is going to be the addition of some sort of drag reducing agent. So we can understand as adding that as we start adding that drag reducing agent into pipelines, how much effect is it actually having? Are we changing the properties enough of the product, or is it, are we not changing it? Are we changing it too much? It gives us, more of a, a qualitative understanding of the product that’s going through the meter. So and, you know, I’d I’d mentioned earlier, you know, we do, a lot of industries, but, you know, I guess the two completely opposite industries would be something like oil and gas and, life sciences or pharmaceutical, And that kind of plays into this transition here into our, ProMASS U. This is our, is a relatively new product, that we’ve had out for less than a year at this point. But our ProMASS U is our single use Coriolis technology. In a lot of pharmaceutical applications, there’s a lot of challenges in terms of cleaning, in terms of making sure that there’s no risk of cross contamination. And the biggest thing with that is, the introduction of single use production. So taking cells, biology, all the way through to a, a marketed medicine or a product, but using all single use products. And that saves on risk for cross contamination, especially in large factories. And, it also actually does save some money because of the amount of chemicals and and cleaning that has to go on in a lot of these pharmaceutical companies. A single use technology kinda fits the need in in that industry very, very well. Shawn Tierney (Host): So what I’m looking at here is it looks like a a lab tabletop type device Yep. And the the u, right, the the the pipes is replaceable. So Yes. It looks like a cartridge where you would, like, you know, turn a lever. You could let’s say you ran product one and you ran that for a while and then you’re done. You would turn this lever, release the cartridge, pull it out, and those pipes don’t have to be cleaned. They can be disposed of. And now you put in your new one, and you can run a different product. And we all know, like, a few years ago, we all heard the horror stories of a pharmaceutical that makes two different batches of medicine, and it was like nightmares. Thank god. That never get out into the real world because only only god knows what would happen. So that’s that’s I like you can’t we can’t exclude that type of cross contamination just can’t happen in Yeah. The twenty first cent in the twenty first century. So but this this is so interesting. Is this c is this something that would be in a I’m just looking at such a nice looking desktop device. Would this be something that was only used in a lab or could it actually be used in a production line? Lauton Rushford (E+H): Yeah. So there’s there’s two versions. Okay. There is a tabletop, which is what you can kinda see on the screen where we have this chassis built around, the the there’s really three components in this. There’s a a transmitter that’s kind of sitting at the top there. There is a base unit, which is where the sensor goes into, that has all the electronics, and then you have your disposable sensor. So the sensor is where all your fluid is gonna be flowing through. Shawn Tierney (Host): Mhmm. Lauton Rushford (E+H): The base unit is doing all of the, manipulation on the tubes themselves. So we talked about how a Coriolis meter works or oscillating those tubes. The base unit is actually doing that, and then the transmitter is taking all of that raw data, understanding it all jumbled up, and giving it out a flow rate, a very accurate flow rate. And there’s two different versions of this. There is a test desktop version and a panel mount version. So the panel mount version would be, you know, in a skid of some sort. Mhmm. That would be permanent, but then the the single use cartridge would be pulled out, disposed of, and then a a new one would be replaced there. And and that’s kind of kind of what we’re gonna get to too in a little bit once we start seeing some of the challenges in this industry. So this industry really is is it’s not new, but it is in terms of process instrumentation. There’s not a lot of manufacturers out there who who have single use flow technologies. So there’s a challenge from our perspective as as the the manufacturer to try and meet all of the requirements of the industry, while providing a robust, accurate, reliable sensor for these applications. And so that’s where our r and d kind of, hit a hit a snag at at one point almost because they’re they’re so used to making robust products that last ten, twenty, thirty years in process. Now we have to look at a product that we want to also do all of those things, but also be disposed of. And so there’s there’s some challenges there. Similarly, there’s a challenge of of calibration in a lot of pharmaceutical plants because certain products require calibration before they’re even installed. Certain products require calibration before they’re installed and while on-site. And then, if there’s ever a replacement that goes in, there’s an additional calibration that might have to happen. And so what we wanted to do was take all of those constraints, all of those challenges, and try and check the boxes of all of them. And I think that’s kinda where our single use landed. There are still some, you know, some certain applications that are challenged, but they’re always gonna be a challenge, until there’s some innovation that comes out that that truly meets that need. But, I guess, in general, really, if if you look at a high level, it’s a half a percent accurate device. We have four different sizes of of sensors that can go into the same base unit. We have an eighth inch, a quarter inch, a half inch, and a one inch sensor that will go into this base unit. They all fit into the same base unit. So as we talked about it with an example, using product A, maybe you’re only flowing at 10 liters per minute, but then product b, you’re flowing at 75 liters per minute. Well, technically, those should probably be two different flow meters, but we can just change the different cartridges out, and and there’s no risk of of contamination, and there’s no need to change anything other than the sensor itself. It is gamma sterilizable, especially in pharmaceutical. That’s really important to make sure that there’s no contamination at all from anything in production, from any anybody’s hands getting on it or anything like that. We don’t do it as a manufacturer. We would kind of rely on our OEMs, on our, tube set manufacturers to actually put these skids together, and part of that package would be to gamma sterilize all of the fittings, all of the tubing, as well as as well as the the flow sensors. And then we also talked about the different the different designs that we have. It is stainless steel tubes, which is different, and it’s polycarbonate flow splitter. So if you see that purple part on the screen, where our tubing would come into, that is a plastic or a polycarbonate product. And then the tubes themselves where we’re actually performing the measurements is a stainless steel, three sixteen l, material, which is different because at when you think about single use, you think about plastic. You think about, bags that are plastic, bioreactors that are plastic, because they’re easy to throw away and they they’re inexpensive. But we felt like in order to meet all of those challenges and all of those, constraints in terms of, current, sensor designs, we felt like the most robust way to do that would be to use stainless steel. And we have a long history of of manufacturing stainless steel devices, and so this is just, another way that we could, show our our expertise in in in products and in especially in Coriolis meters. So there are, as I mentioned, three components. You have your base unit or your single, single use disposable sensor. Down at the bottom there, you have your base unit, which is again where all your electronics are, and then you have your, and then you have your transmitter. And there’s a cable going from the the transmitter to the the base unit. There’s a couple of things I want to highlight on the inside of what the meter is and how it what it looks like. The first thing and probably the most important is that barcode scanner. So every single one of these disposable flow tubes gets calibrated at our factory and then gets imprinted a QR code on the inside of the flow meter. And that QR code, that two d barcode scanner actually scans that information. So it can it can accurately pull in the calibration information. It can pull in the serial number of the tubes. It can pull in the line size of the tubes. It can pull in a lot of information related to those tubes. And then it can relay that back to the transmitter, and the transmitter can check to make sure everything seems functional. And that kind of falls into where our heartbeat technology, conversation may come in in in just a little bit. And then again, all the electronics are our sensor electronics boards, our, ISCM or our sensor electronics module, all is based inside that base unit, inside this very large not not very large, but a a very heavy bodied base unit to ensure stability, across the board. And so here’s an example of what that QR code kinda looks like on the on the backside of that that flow tube, and then another, look into kind of what the the the inside of the base unit looks like. You see coil inlet one, coil inlet two, or coil outlet two. Similarly to kind of what we talked about before, we really care about what’s hap what’s going on in between those tubes, in between those those two coils. And so we’re magnetically oscillating the, the Coriolis flow tubes inside at that back piece, that back, what is that? It’s like a gray type ceramic piece in the back, and that’s ultimately giving us giving us that oscillation that we’re looking for. And then our inlet and outlet, pickup coils are also magnetically coupled to to the sensors, and, we can detect very small changes in those at that oscillations those oscillations. So very very cool, very innovative. It’s a product that we’ve had out for a while in, a while, less than less than a year, but long enough. And there’s been a lot of interest in in the pharmaceutical space, especially as people are trying to save costs, go closer to maybe a personalized medicine approach, where there’s gonna be smaller, amounts of product going through, more expensive amount of product going through. Accuracy is gonna be the most important there. And so this is where, we kinda talk about a little bit more about how to maintain that data trail, that automated data trail from the cal the calibration in the factory all the way into production. And so in this case, what we what we’re looking at is, here’s the process of what would happen in in in a in a system. We would calibrate the tubes at our factory. The tubes would go to a tube set manufacturer. The tube set manufacturer puts all of these pieces together. They double bag them in a class seven ISO, ISO class seven environment. Super clean area, no risk of contamination there. And then just to be even more safe, they’re going to gamma sterilize it there. Then they’re going to bring it on-site where they have their skid created, and they’re gonna plug everything in. And then once they plug everything in and turn the entire skid on, they’re gonna, they’re gonna notice that on the flow meter, it says, hey, we’re doing a function check right now. What does that mean? That’s ultimately what we call heartbeat technology, and that’s doing some advanced diagnostics behind the scenes. And it’s checking information like electronics in the bit in the base unit. It’s checking, tubes, making sure the tubes are aligned and weren’t damaged in shipping, and ensuring that the the factory calibration is still valid on the current device. So all of that is happening kind of behind the scenes before you, even start running product through it, to ensure that we are fully CGMP or, current good manufacturing practice and operation, on a production side. And that kind of maybe leans leads a little bit into, another product that we’ve recently released, which is our Anderson Hauser ProMASS k 10. It’s the first Coriolis meter, in the world that has IO Link as an output. And now IO Link, I I think it’s really important to start with a really good basis about what IO Link is, and IO Link is something I call it the three wire digital communication, but it it’s not a 100% accurate. So we’ll maybe dive into that a little bit and talk about what IO Link can do, and how it is, is being accepted in industries, specifically in farms, in in food and beverage and pharmaceutical industries. As a general rule of thumb, most large smart factories are using Ethernet based protocols. So that means that their their the devices that they have, the control system that they have is all digital, which means you can get a lot more data and get a lot of data. You can get so much data you have no idea what to do with. There’s also, these Ethernet switches that are typically either remote Ethernet switches or switches that are out in the plant that, that are pulling in a lot of this data and then sending it up to whether it’s their asset management system or a control system, and ultimately can give us the most amount of information about the health of the device, any sort of multivariable, values that we have coming out of the device. And then similarly, on the op on the right side here of this screen, you see an IO Link system. IO Link also does a very similar thing where you have a remote, what’s called an IO Link master. It’s connected to a flow meter or connected to a level switch or connected to, a temperature probe, and it pulls all that information in, and then it outputs that information back to their control system. And so historically, we’ve had a lot of Ethernet four wire devices, whether that’s Ethernet IP, PROFINET, Modbus, any sort of digital heart as a as an option as well. That’s historically been where our Ethernet four wire and two wire devices come from. Now IO Link hasn’t really been a focus for us, but because of our our diversity in different industries, we’ve had to look at IO Link as a feasible, cost efficient choice for basic process needs in under in in flow meters, in pressure transmitters, in a lot of devices, and a lot of a lot of different applications. And so there’s some benefits and pros and cons to both. Ethernet, you have a lot of process devices versus simple simple measurement points. The, the IO Link, you have a specific range in terms of distances. That’s only about 60 feet, which means it’s really, really good for those skid solutions, that are put out in into many, many factories and especially especially in food and beverage. The IO Link masters are really where the integration happens. And then the data that’s recorded and aggregated is happening inside that IO Link master where typically on a, Ethernet based system, you all have full transparency from, device level all the way up to your your control system, DCS system, throughout and anywhere throughout that system as well. There is uses for both even in the same plants. There’s uses for both in in similar applications, but I I think one of the benefits is being the first, Coriolis manufacturer to have a IO Link device. What does that mean? Really, what it means is we can get some very good data, not all the data, but in many cases, we don’t need all of the data, and we can be super accurate, extremely fast in terms of data data transmission, and, make things a little easier in terms of of integration and installation of the devices. So typically what a a system or a subsystem might look like with IO Link, you have your IO Link master, that’s where power is is brought to, and it’s also where our connection to that overarching enterprise system or DCS system is. So that IO Link master is a must. You have to have that. You also have to have a flow meter that is or any device that is capable of outputting in an IO Link protocol, in an IO Link communication method. And then there’s a specific three wire cable that goes from the device to the master. And there this is the often overlooked thing, but it’s an IODD. Essentially what that means is it’s an IO Link device driver. So that device driver is gonna tell the IO link master what and how is this device sending information to me. So it’s almost like a little roadmap for the IO Link master to understand what’s happening on the on the base the base level of, of that IO Link device. Ultimately, these are the four things to have that you have to have for, basic subsystem components. And then, as you start integrating it to into an overarching system, there’s a little bit more that would be needed as well, but this will at least get you started, and understanding kind of why there’s IO Link masters, and why there’s IO Link protocols and technology in the first place. So again, this is our Coriolis k 10, with our IO Link master. It’s a line size three eighths of an inch all the way up to three inch. It also has what we call heartbeat technology. It has, three a. It has all of our, approvals for hygienic applications, for food and beverage applications, for pharmaceutical applications as well, and gives us a little bit more flexibility in terms of what we can offer our customers that will meet the need of where they’re at, but also prepare them for for future, expansions and, and and large scale DCS turnarounds and things like that. So, there is a couple of things here, mass flow as a standard with density, temperature, and you get a standard totalizer one as an output. There is, again, food contact materials, eHedge three a, all hygienic process connections as well as standard process connections, available with this device. And then one other key factor here is when we’re in actually interacting with this device, there’s a couple of ways we can interact with it. We can, of course, use a a touch screen. We can push the device and and be right in front of it. There’s also a method for using a free app that we have on on the Android store and the Apple Apple Store. That’s called SmartBlue. That’s available for a lot of different devices, but it is using a Bluetooth technology to, tap into the device and configure, everything. And then the other option is using a, a device manager, with a CDI port that’s built inside the transmitter as well. So all different ways to to interact with the same device, even, interacting with it using IO Link is possible as well. So a lot of different functionalities, a lot of different, options, so we can meet the needs where meet the customers where their needs are, and then also where their they wanna get get to. So that kind of takes us into what heartbeat technology is. And we actually we talk about heartbeat technology as a story because I think if we start talking about what it is before we talk about the story, it’s, it’s it’s it’s hard to to wrap your head around. There’s a lot going into it. And part of that that discussion really starts with a a marketing phrase, which is called taking the pulse of your measurement. And what that really does is is it’s trying to understand how the device is operating currently, and how the device may be operating in the future based on current conditions. And so all all of that is is started with what our customers expect out of a flow meter, expect out of a pressure transmitter, expect out of a pH probe. All of our customers’ needs and our users’ needs are expanding. So not only do they need excellent measurement performance from a device, they also need a reliable device. I I need to know when something’s going wrong. They also wanna be available. If the device itself isn’t always available, they can’t trust it. We want our customers to not only trust our device, but trust the measurement performance that they’re getting out of the device. And they also want it easy to easy to use. As we’ve seen in a lot of industries, the, the operations teams, the operators that are on on the plant floor are getting less and less, and maybe they’re moving more towards engineering. But there are a lot of plants that are running extremely lean. And so running lean means they have to run efficiently and they have to run effectively. And if our devices are not easy to use and easy to understand, we’re we’re kind of failing at at that point. So we also wanna make sure our devices are safe. We wanna make sure our devices are predictive, and we wanna make sure our devices potentially can be connected in the future. And so all of those together is now now we’ve got a difficult puzzle we’ve gotta try and solve, with any one of our measurement devices. And that’s where we think kinda heartbeat technology meets a lot of those needs and bridges the gap between, the excellent measurement performance and and all of these, needs that we have. So we split heartbeat technology into kind of three categories. We have diagnostics, which is, current, current status, current device diagnostics, advanced diagnostics. That’s the basis of everything. So if we don’t have a good basis of diagnostics, we can’t do verification. We can’t do monitoring. We can’t provide in, improved process insights, very effectively if we don’t have a good base unit. So that happens from that happens from the the design of our devices all the way down to the raw components that go into all of the devices as well. And then verification is kind of a what’s happening to my device right now, and can you give me a PDF printout of what that looks like. So that’s that’s part of the verification. And then again, monitoring how we look at certain values over time trended over time, so we can start understanding, predictively when certain process conditions or process upsets may happen or could happen, and how will they affect our measurements. So all of that together is really bridged on the diagnostic coverage. It’s based around how we can detect our, any alarms, alerts, failures, things that happen inside the device that weren’t expected. All of that needs to be, really, really important. And so our IO modules, our sensor electronic modules, our sensor, inlet and outlet pickup coils, and our divi our ex the entire excitation system that’s happening inside of a of a Coriolis meter, all are really, really important to understand the health of the device. If we can understand the health of individual components of the device, we can try and better understand the health of the entire device as a whole. Kind of the sum of, sum of equal parts or the sum of parts is is greater than the than the sum of the the system. So, that’s ultimately what we’re trying to do here. And what that means is that this value, the heartbeat sensor integrity parameter is always generated and can be used as a direct value for, understanding process related concerns as well as meter concerns. So in a similar way, we talked about, oscillation modes with our PROMAS Q, with our PROMAS I, and other flow meters as well. The frequency or the oscillation frequency that we’re actually doing for this HBSI value is a fixed diff distance from that frequency. And so at any one time, we’re we’re oscillating these tubes at one, two, almost, three every, three different frequencies every time. And so the part of this this parameter is ultimately giving us a little bit more information related to the health of the sensors, related to, even the health of the process as well. And we’ll talk about a couple of use cases on on how that, and what that means, and and can ultimately mean for you. So as a general rule of thumb, when we calibrate and design a new sensor, our HBSI value, is 0% at reference conditions, and that may fluctuate depending on if you’re operating at reference conditions or not. But right around zero, it could be negative point one to positive point one, percent, but there’s no no cause kind of for concern there. We do have kind of a stated bandwidth in which we expect the flow meter to operate well within its its factory calibration and well within its specification. But if that value shows very, very low, or values, like, right around zero as a reference condition, your HBSI value is related directly to sensor components that aren’t affected. So if our exciter current, if our pickup coils, if our, sensor tubes are not damaged, likely that HBSI value is going to remain at zero or right around zero. Now when we do have something like a wear mechanism, something like corrosion or erosion or abrasion inside the tubes, ultimately, there’s things that are going to be affected by that. Now how do we actually detect that? Well, that’s where using this HBSI value, we can actually understand individual components of the the flow meter, individual, components like the sensor tubes. For example, if we were to have a corrosion instance, your wall thickness of the tubes would change. And so what what would happen there is as we start oscillating these tubes, you would start to see that value increase because your tubes are moving moving more and more and more because we’re oscillating at the same frequency or at the at the same frequency, but the tubes is not our tubes are not as heavy. Right? So, that’s where that that HBSI value can give us information related to, kind of the health of all of our devices or all of our our components within the device. So there’s multiple ways to observe that HBSI value, and this is where trending comes into play, looking at something and trying to be predictive and preventative, in the long term. There’s no process interruption. This this entire thing happens. This entire, HBSI value is generated, automatically by the device itself. It remained the measurement remains completely available, continuously available, and it happens in situ behind the scenes, if you will, of a of your measurement. And then you’re gonna improve efficiency, obviously, and and reduce risk if you understand what’s happening and what’s going on inside the flow meter without you actually visually seeing what’s happening to the device. So, all of that to say, there’s a lot of ways to observe it, but there is also important ways, that we can use it. So, yes, knowing that the HVSI value is zero is just that’s great. That’s awesome. But what does that ultimately mean? And here’s a couple of examples. Here’s a couple of use cases. So we’ve had an application, in the past where, it was an abrasive fine slurry. And so anytime you have abrasive fine slurries, you have to be extra cautious of using bent tubes, and also the velocities in which you’re flowing those those those processes through there. So the initial one, they had was a dual bent tube that failed six months in the service, and they replaced it with a single straight tube. So they expected to see some abrasion, but because of the design of the flow meter, that HBSI parameter was taken over time, and it’s been installed for for four years now and shows a relatively flat line behavior for the the HBSI value, meaning there’s no wear mechanism going on inside that device, be because of the process. So that’s a that’s a use case there. Another use case that that we talk about a lot is is the presence of abrasion in general. We know that in some applications, there is going to be abrasion. And that’s on us as the manufacturer, that’s also on, the customer to understand what their levels and limits are, and are capable of handling. And if they don’t know, that’s that’s where we we should probably step back and say, hey, let’s let’s talk about this as a as a at a high level. What happens when something goes wrong? Do you just automatically remove the device? Is it are you down in terms of, not being able to produce properly? Things like that. And that’s where in this case we used, kind of predictive maintenance every ten, twelve, fifteen, eighteen months. We know we have to replace this device because of the abrasion, or we have to decrease our velocity, through the meter. So either way, that’s ultimately this use case and showing showing that there is a wear mechanism happening, and we need to understand at what point do we need to start replacing these devices. And lastly, here’s one that was an unexpected wear mechanism. So customer used a Coriolis flow meter, and for five days, everything was great. No worries. Everything was totally fine. Customer didn’t expect anything to be wrong, which is exactly what was shown. And then once they did a cleaning cycle with a new product a new cleaning product, they noticed that this value increased. And so over time, I mean, think about twenty five days, you’re increasing your HBSI value because you’re performing your regular scheduled cleaning. Well, that wasn’t understood, and that wasn’t, that didn’t the the customer didn’t know that was going to affect things. We didn’t know that was going to affect things, but this ultimately shined light on, here’s what’s happening. Now can we change cleaners, or can we use a material that’s more compatible with that cleaner, or can we just live with the the, the risk that the the values will last long enough for us to get really, really good good data, and then we can, and look at replacing it, things like that. So this was another, application where we weren’t expecting to see any sort of drift, but we did because of, the the wear mechanism that that wasn’t, very well known or or present at at the time. So, ultimately, I think, you know, using, something like heartbeat technology as a, a confidence boots booster in your measurement is is really the the key there. Because I think the more that we can increase confidence in our measurements, the more that our customers, will continue to want to to work with us and collaborate with us on on applications and and talk, about, different, industry applications and things like that. As as the working for a manufacturer is currently my my first my first job, I think I think, out of college, I think there’s a there’s a really cool benefit of of a privately owned company that continues to invest in research and development for the products that we have. And, I think that, you know, Anderson Hauser has has done a great job of, showing some innovations that we can within our Coriolis flow flow meter technologies. That’s all I got. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, I thought that was very interesting, especially the HBSI, how you guys have in included that in your product so you can see that everything’s good, or if something is starting to go out of out of, you know, out of I don’t wanna say out of whack. You know, something’s starting to go out of alignment, you know, with Yeah. What you were expecting. And that example of cleaning, you know, nobody would have thought, you know, this, you know, this product is designed to run this fluid through it, but the cleaner, they’ll finding out that the cleaner was the problem. That’s priceless. Right? That’s priceless. And you can you like you said, there’s different options you can take to address that issue, but now that you know what the problem is. If you didn’t know there was a problem, then your values would be off over time, and that wouldn’t be good at all. Right. So Right. Just such an interesting topic to talk through. And I I appreciate you not only to take us through your products, but also taking us through some of the technologies that are built in the products and that make them work. And I you know, there’s a lot there between the, field bus, the PROFINET, and the Ethernet IP on your really high end, high accuracy, you know, type of installations versus maybe a smaller installation where you can use IO Link because it’s slower cost. We just had the IO Link folks on the podcast. If you guys missed that, just, check back, a podcast or two ago. We had the IO link guys on talking about what they do and how they do it, and I think you summarized it very well in this presentation. And so I think that makes a lot of people happy because in many cases, that’s a lower cost. Yeah. I mean, you’re not gonna get the same performance as you’re gonna get over Ethernet, but you’re it’s a lower cost, and it’s, you know, maybe enough information for your application. So it’s good to see that option there, especially for those skid manufacturers who can utilize those products. You know, with that, I I don’t have any other questions. Was there anything else you wanted to say before we close out the show? Lauton Rushford (E+H): No. All I have to say is thank you. I appreciate the the time and the the the platform. I think this is, awesome, and thank you for asking all the questions you did. I think there was a lot of a lot of really good information that you mentioned, as well there too. So, thank you. That’s all I have to say. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, Lon, thank you for coming on. I, I just like the first time we had Anderson Hauser on, it was just really just so intellectually interesting. So it’s our pleasure to have you on, and we really appreciate you guys. Lauton Rushford (E+H): Thank you. Appreciate it. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, I hope you enjoyed that episode, and I wanna thank Lawton for for coming on the show, not only to bring us up to speed on Coriolis flow meters, but also answering my questions because I know I interrupted there, especially at the beginning with a lot of questions. So really appreciate him, taking my questions and also bringing us up to speed on the technology. Now Now I also wanna thank E and H for sponsoring this episode so I could bring it to you ad free on all platforms. I don’t like ads, but, you know, you gotta pay the bills. And when a vendor comes in and they sponsor the show, it really underwrites our cost to edit it and publish it. So I’m super appreciative to them and to all our sponsors who do that. And please let them know if you see E and H anywhere out there, if you’re talking to one of their reps or you’re talking to, somebody from E and H, please let them know how much I appreciate and maybe you appreciate that they sponsored this episode. I also wanna mention that you may not know this, but I brought my other podcast back, the automation news podcast. I renamed the automation tech talk. And anytime I have an episode that is, one of my shorter episodes that I think will do good on audio, be a good listen. Right? I am publishing it on that automation tech talk podcast. And on this podcast, you probably notice every once in a while, I’m releasing an episode of the automation show. Some episodes of the automation show, there’s so much hands on that I don’t think they’d make a good audio addition, but some of them are like presentations and discussions. And I think those would make a good episode of the automation podcast. So I’m releasing them on this podcast channel, but I’m keeping the name, the automation show. So you know, hey. This is, originally was a video that was turned into a podcast. So give me feedback. If you don’t like those, I’ll stop doing it. But I thought because, some weeks we can’t always bring you a new episode, we may have an episode of automation show that I think would make a good listen. So I wanted to bring those to you on this platform as well. And, again, I always love your feedback, and I wanna thank everybody who’s given a five stars or thumbs up. You guys are great. I you know, last time I checked on it, you had so many people, had given us five stars. And that you know, that’s really how we find new vendors come out, like E and H and other vendors. Right? They specifically said you guys were such had such great feedback on the previous podcast that they wanted to come back on. So please take a moment. I know a lot of you listen while you’re driving. But when you get home or get to some place where you can look at your phone, please give us a thumbs up or a five star rating because that really helps us grow the audience and find new vendors to come on the show. And with that, I’m gonna end the show right there. I wanna wish you all good health and happiness. And until next time, my friends, peace. Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Shawn takes a look at the ET 200SP line of Distributed I/O from Siemens in Episode 19 of The Automation Show, Season 2. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Show from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Show on The Automation Blog: The Automation Show, Season 2 Episode 19 Show Notes: The links mentioned in the video are listed below: ET 200SP Website ET 200SP Manual Collection Shawn’s Siemens S7 Course Programming Note: Due to scheduling conflicts, episodes 17 & 18 and releasing after episodes 19-2x :-O Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): Hey everybody. Welcome back to the show. My name is Shawn Tierney from Insights and Automation. And today, we’re talking e t 200 s p distributed IO from Siemens. Before we go any farther, I do wanna thank Siemens for sending in the samples and for sponsoring this episode so it will be ad free, and that’s as far as it goes. Everything else is my own opinion and thoughts. And, although I do appreciate them making this ad free and sending in the samples because I wanna be able to show them to you if I didn’t have them. And, this is one of the reasons I’m doing this is I just put these hands on demos together for my students who come out to the automation school for hands on training. So I wanted to have something they could bring to their station and program with an s seven twelve hundred or 1,500. And, so I’m creating a bunch of these, and you’ll see more and more of these as the weeks go on. But in any case, I we previously covered a couple on IFM, but now I’m doing the e t 200 s p. So we’ll take a closer look at the hardware in a little bit. But But before we get into the hardware, I did wanna run through some slides that do a great job of explaining what e t 200 s p I o is. And, again, I call it distributed IO, not remote IO because here in America, most of us know there is a remote IO product from Rockwell Automation that is trademarked, Rockwell. So we don’t wanna confuse people by using the term remote IO when possible. So let’s go ahead and go to the slide deck now. And, the first slide is and, again, these this is a slightly of a couple three year old slide deck from Siemens that we’re gonna be going through. And, you know, the first thing is, hey. E t 200 s p and e t 200 m p I o or I p 20 in cabinet I o. They’re not on machine or machine mount IO. And, of course, the e t 200 MP is the full size IO that’s about the same size as the 1,500, whereas the SP is the smaller. They’re like the slice IO you see from all the different vendors. A matter of fact, a couple of big vendors are coming out with new IO this fall or have already come out with it, and we’ll be covering those as well in the coming weeks. But today, we’re focusing on e t 200 s p. And so I wanted to, talk about, you know, this is a marketing slide that Siemens puts in their presentations, and it makes sense. All the vendors wanna have IO for all the different applications, and Siemens is no different. And, actually, they got some stuff that other vendors don’t have. But I’m gonna go right beyond this one and jump right into, you know, the main selling points of this product line where it’s compact, it’s fast, it’s any of NG efficient, it’s easy to wire, and I can attest to that having done three, four hundred wires here. It was very easy to wire. I really liked it. They say it has a great environmental coverage. There actually is, some extreme modules. We’ll talk about that towards the end. And then built in diagnostics. Again, depending if you buy the high function and standard or basic modules, right, will depend on what kinda diagnostics you get. In any case, here is what it looks like now. The coloring of this slide, I think that the pictures colors the gray is a little lighter, almost it’s almost like a light green. It’s darker in person as we saw. Let me switch over here. As you can see here. So, I don’t know what’s going on with that, but one of the things you do see on this slide is, one of the first things you’ll notice is a fail safe module, so safety modules. So, yes, you can mix standard and fail safe modules in the same rack or same lineup. The other thing you’ll notice is it’s compact like most of the Slice I o that’s out there. Energy efficient ruggedness, there is an extreme version of this available. Intelligent, you can get high functionality modules. Right? Push in terminals, which I really liked, very easy to use, tool free connections. Of course, if you’d put a wire in the wrong place, which happened to me once or twice out of 400 wires, you can use a screwdriver and get it out really quick, and then, reduced parts of variance. So that’s their marketing on this product line, but I also wanna call attention all the different ways you can actually mark up the products. You can put labels in the front, right in the front of the module itself. You can put labels on top and on the back as well. So a lot of different labeling options is also a color coding you can put over the terminals as well. We’ll see that a little bit later. In any case, this is the physically how it goes together. So first of all, it doesn’t you they don’t all just slide together like tongue and groove. You do have to put them on the DIN rail and slide them into each other from right to left. So keep that in mind. Okay. And we always start the leftmost part is what we call an interface module. And so think of that if you’re a Rockwell guy, that’s your adapter. Okay? Now the interface module, most of these take a bus adapter. In other words, you can choose copper or you can choose fiber, or you can choose copper and fiber. And I love this design because, well, I’m sure it adds a little cost to the product. Being able to swap out copper for fiber if you need to or do one copper one fiber if you need to, I think it’s a great idea. That kind of flexibility is great. Now there is a low cost interface module that has that bus adapter built in, but in any case, most of them, as you’ll see, what was what I’ll show you here on the workbench, it’s module. You choose the one you want and this basic and advanced and we’ll take a look at all those. Then you have the bases and the IO modules and we’ll look at this in real time here on the workbench in a moment, but you can see here the basis of what the IO modules plug into. If you look there on the the fourth item there, it’s just a base module without the IO. And, that’s what clips onto the DIN rail and slides together, and then we stick our IO modules in. Also, share the keying. A lot of people leave that out, but I think it’s pretty cool what they do there. And at the very end, they have something called a server module. The name for this, I’m thinking of servers like a computer server. So I don’t know what happened with the translation there, but it’s like an end cap. If you’re a Rockwell person, it’s like an end cap. You gotta have that at the end. It doesn’t really serve up anything, but, in any case, you gotta have it. So in any case, then you can see kinda how it’s laid out there. Let’s go ahead and go to the next slide here. And, these are all the different type of interface modules they have. So the very basic one, right, if you needed a low cost drop of IO, it only does up to 12 modules, but, you know, it’s an all in one unit with two Ethernet ports built in, and you can use all the modules with it except for safety modules. K. So that’s important to know. Then we have the standard interface modules, which do up to 32 modules. Right? You can use safety with them. You can actually expand them to e t 200 a l if you needed to have some, on machine products or machine mount I o. I’ll show you the a l in a future video. We’re gonna cover that separately. And you can hot swap any single module at a time, which is very cool. And then, of course, if we go to the high featured, we get up to 64 modules. You can multi hot swap, multiple modules. You can actually set it for asynchronous mode so you can get the speeds up to two hundred fifty microseconds. So it’s, very cool there. And you can see the other options there including the CPU, which we will cover. That’ll probably be next week, though. Alright. So, one of the cool features they have is this was new at the time of this, you know, two, three years ago of this presentation is they added a, a unit that actually could use three Ethernet ports. So why would you do that? Well, think of it. Right? You maybe you’re daisy chaining from one interface module to the next and you have a station where you either need a bulkhead connector so you can program from or you have an HMI. You need that third connection. Right? And so this allows you to have three connections. Now the downside of this is you actually have four connections, but you can only use three and I’ll show you what I mean here. Let’s go back to the overhead, and I actually have that module right here. Thank you, Siemens, for sending him in. And you can see I have my two bus adapters, but I can only use three of the four. Okay? So it’s it’s just a limitation. And, you know, I don’t really know why they’re limited to that. I’m sure there’s a reason. I was thinking about that earlier. It’s like, maybe they wanted to prevent this or that or the other thing, but in any case, it’s still cool. It’s so much cheaper than buying a switch and putting it in that place. Well, in most cases, it would be. Right? There’s also the optional, grooves here. Let me switch back. There’s also optional grooves here. I don’t know if you can see them very well. We’ll zoom in later. But that is for, strain relief, if you need to have that as well. You can see those plastic pieces go in, and then you can, you know, zip tie your cables right to them. So very interesting new product there. And then these are all of the different, bus adapters. So you can see there’s, basic ones with two RJ 45 ports, two FastConnect ports. There’s, units with, one RJ forty five one fiber optic and so on. So lots of different options there to choose from. And, again, not a lot of people do this. You have to replace the whole interface module with other companies’ products, like in Rockwood would be an adapter to get a difference. Right? And here, you don’t have to. You just replace the, the, bus adapter. Okay. Now here’s just showing the different type of modules. So if you’re familiar with Siemens, you know, all their modules come well, most of their modules come in different flavors. You have the standard, you have the basic, and you have the high feature. Right? And they’re also showing, a safety module there with the yellow, and then you can also get high speed. So lots of different options here. And we’ll take a look at that. But, they all have different, article numbers or part numbers for us Americans. And so, you know, if you’re in OEM, you’re just doing a lot of clickety clack, maybe you get all the basics. If you’re in process, you’re probably gonna want the high features, advanced diagnostics, and so on. So in any case, and this is what the front of them looks like. Of course, they have digital in and digital out. They have analog in and analog out. They also have what I call specialty. So they have technology modules and communication modules. I love, that they have, BACnet and IO Link and PROFIBUS, Aussie in this form factor as well as conning modules, position modules, energy management, weighing modules, all those different modules. And here’s some of the other things too. So tool free, I did all three or 400 wires. It was all tool free. I just put my wire in. Boom. It clamped a really good across your pool test every single one. Right? And so I’ve been one of the guys who’ve driven hours and hours to find out the problem wasn’t with the product. It was with the guy who wired it. He didn’t screw them down tight enough. So you pool test everyone, make sure they’re in there solidly, and, I didn’t have any problems at all. Very easy to take out. I have a couple that I forgot to run them through the Panduit. I just looped over the Panduit and and over the top of the box. And I’m like, Shawn, if you put it in that way, you won’t be able to close the cover. So So when you’re doing so many, sometimes you get distracted. So in any case, very easy to get them back out if you put them in the wrong and you need to rewire them somewhere else. They say they’re 50% narrower. I would say that versus the e t 200 m p. I think they’re about the same size as, everybody else’s slice IO, very close. And then you can see there the marking, at the bottom. Those reference identification labels, that those are pretty cool, if you need the color code, the wire, terminals. Okay. So let’s go on from there and, this one is really cool too. Now this is a fairly new not everybody knows about this, but this is the multi field bus version of the interface module. I think this is so cool. It does Ethernet p. It does Modbus TCP, and it does PROFINET all in one module. It does set up a little differently. When I was testing it out, I was like, wow. That does set up a little differently than the other interface modules. But, I didn’t have to use the, the separate tool to get it working. So in any case, very cool, and it can talk all three at the same time. So if you had a couple of the of people who needed to listen to the traffic, but you need one station to control it, then, you could have all three running at the same time. I just think that’s so cool. And we do have one here. We’re gonna do it use it first with the Siemens and then maybe use it with the Rockwells if time permits. But, definitely wanna do that, in another episode of the show. But, very cool. I’m I matter of fact, we just, did an episode. It’s not released yet, but, it will be out shortly with the METTLENOTO I n d three sixty, and that also supports multiple protocols. So so cool. I love it when vendors do that all in the same part number. So cool. And so you can see more information about that here. I’m not gonna go into details. We’ll talk about later, when we actually have the episode on that. And another thing I noticed with their high function modules, it says firmware 4.1 and up is that you can, so on the HF modules, you could do module to module communications. So you’re talking, like, screw to screw, like, two hundred fifty microseconds. I think that’s so cool. That’s something else if time permits. In the coming days, we’ll, do a demo on that too if we can get, if we have the time to do it. I just think it’s a cool feature. I’d love to see it in action. There’s other things in here about, other types of modules. I’m not gonna go through all this. This one I thought was pretty interesting. It’s 48 24 to 48 volts AC or 48 volt DC. So eight inputs either AC or DC in those ranges and it has a built in fuse which I think is so important. Right? So, an interesting new module that does both AC and DC. Right? Looked like it was really designed for transportation and that kinda wraps up the PowerPoint slide. And, again, this is just one of many of their lines. Oh, I do wanna mention this. This should have been before that. This is the extreme version of what they call their psi plus extreme, where you get the minus 40 to 70 degrees c. You can install it, up to 5,000 meters. You know, the air is thinner up there. It can, handle salt mist, chemical, active substances. You know, this is a lot of people would think of this as conformally coated. So, you can see all of those different, regulations that the extreme version, makes. Okay? The Ciplas Extreme. So with that, let’s see. Last slide here. So this is just one of many products. So we’ve covered this in the past. We covered the 1,200 to 1,500. This is the t 200 s p. We will be covering the a l and the Eco PN. I think these are both Eco PN, in the future. But with that, I wanna actually give you a physical demo of how this stuff works. So in any case, let me move the modules around here a little bit, and we’ll be zooming in and out. So this is the unit I, I, you know, wired up this weekend, and we’ll zoom in on her. And this is the one that gives you the, up to threes that I put, so you have two bus adapters. Okay? And it’s a little bit wider. If you look at one of the other ones, you can see it’s a lot narrower. Right? That’s actually the multi field bus model, which is about the same size as the standard model. Well, long here, I might as well bring that one in too and show you that one. K. So in any case but, let’s focus on this guy, and, we’ll take a look at I wanted to show you this one because this one also has the analog in, even though I haven’t put the analog operators and make gauges on the panel. I do have them wired up. Right now, I just have them wired to each other. But in any case, so let’s go ahead and zoom in on this a little bit. Okay. First thing you’re gonna notice is the first terminal block here, the first base is is a light style, and then they go to the darker style. And that’s because you can bring power into these light bases. Right? Like an a zero. And, I go through all the part numbers in my course. You guys can find that in the literature. But and it passes power to these other bases. Okay. So you’ll typically start with a light style. You’ll go through as many bases as you can power until you need another or you need isolation until you need another, light style base. And then here, you can see the modules themselves. I love the fact that everything has a QR code on it. So if you need the manual, you just you just, you know, get your phone out and and it’ll link right to it. But I want the wire in here, so I was able to wire everything based on just, the little label here. And again, this is where you can slide in your own labels if you want. And then the indicators here, they all worked when we when we actually do in a next video, we actually do the integration. You’ll see these lights come on. They’re very easy to see. You can also see here some version information. I did run into some of these modules being too new for version 16. So I usually default to version 16 because that’s what I started with. But, if you have 16.1, you can get the new GSD file and it supports most of the I think almost all the new modules. In any case, up here and I do have a mix of new and used because back when I was, getting ready to do this, we had the whole component sort shortage, so I had to pick up some modules myself. But, in any case, you’ll see the type here. Digital in, and this is a basic. Okay? So eight by 24, eight inputs at 24 volts DC. And then you have the digital output, DQ. This is a standard eight by 24. Eight u, I believe that means voltage, and, u for voltage. But in any case and then if we come over here, we have an a q. This is a standard, s t, and this is for UI, so voltage or current. And so you can see those there. And down here is the article number, which we typically refer to as, like, a, catalog number here in The US. K. And so when I’m sending these up, I take a picture of the front of the unit, and that’s what I use to set them up in the software. But in any case, you can also see the versions here as well. I love that all that information is on the front of the module. And then at the top, we already looked at that. And so we already looked at the top. And then over here, we have the server module, or what we may call an end cap here in The US. Alright. So one of the cool things about this, these modules is the keying. So I’m going to take these out just by squeezing in. I’m gonna pull it out, pull this one out too. Okay. And in there, you can see I know the lighting’s a little tricky, but in there, you see those black little wheels, those circular black things? Those are the keys. And you can see how they’re let’s see if I go up to the camera. If I put the overhead light on, it just gives too much glare. So hopefully, you guys can see that. Well, the cool thing about that is that those come pre installed on the modules. Like, they clipped in there really good, and they don’t come loose until you stick them in all the way, and then they stay in the base. And I love that. So you don’t have to turn anything. You don’t have to memorize what position it’s in. You just put the module in and boom. Now I did have a couple modules put in the wrong position, so I was able to get out with a screwdriver, get in that little, notch there and get it out. But you can see there’s two notches in each, but I it doesn’t feel like when I was doing that, it didn’t feel like it was designed for those to be reused. So I probably say that not, but let’s go ahead and try to put this module in the wrong place. Yeah. You can. So, I really like that design feature, automatic keying, and, yeah. That’s great. And they really go in. You’re gonna make sure they’re all the way in, but once they’re in, they’re in. Now let me zoom out a little bit and show you how to take them apart and put them back together. So there are these, push in buttons here on the top. Right? So these latches, these releases. And so what I’ll do is let me push in the first two, the the server module and the module, and I’m gonna slide them to the right. Okay? And I know it has all the, wiring on it. But in any case, that’s how easy it is to assemble and disassemble. Quick or disassemble like this. Okay. And now to get them on and off the DIN rail, I’m gonna push in those two, tabs at the top there. I’m gonna lift the bottom up. Okay. Now I can get it off the DIN rail. Alright. And so when you’re pushing in that top tab, it’s doing two things. Okay? It’s gonna release the, DIN rail, but it’s also gonna release the connection to the module on the side of it. Alright? And so you’re gonna be cognizant of that. Alright? You can’t just release it release the module off the DIN rail. You have to release it from the side as well. Okay. And, you can see that here. Well, let’s see if we can get him off. He’s a little sticky. I don’t know why. He could be used. But in any case, get him off. Okay. And it’s the same for the sky too. Let’s see here. So let’s go ahead and put it back together again. We’ll put the top on first and then we’ll click it on to the bottom. Okay. And then we’ll slide it in. Nice. Then we’ll do the same thing for the server module and cap. Okay. It’s not called the end cap. That’s my race. Okay. And this one, sometimes this might be a useful one. There we go. It’s all in together and working great. You gotta make sure you get those modules all the way in. Okay. And there’s a lot of great, diagnostics when you get the system up and running. It’ll tell you if it’s missing a module. It’ll tell you if you chose the wrong base in the software. If let’s say you chose the light colored base versus the dark colored base. I mean, the new power versus the power pass on. It’ll tell you if you get the wrong firmware or the wrong style. Maybe you chose a standard and it’s a basic. So you get all that kind of stuff that you would normally get when you’re, you know, to make sure you have the right IO modules. And so with that, that is a, look at e t 200 s p. I hope it makes sense to you now. Now if you’ve been using this for a long time, longer than I have, and you have some more tips, please leave them in the comments. I do appreciate everybody who comments on the videos wherever the video is. Also, we do have more content coming out about this. We’re gonna go through each of these in a separate video and get each of these up and running from scratch. And then after that, there’ll be new lessons at the Automation School for anybody who’s interested in maybe a longer version of this with more details and support. Right? So in any case and, of course, if you guys wanna call me and, have a group of your guys come in and do some hands on training, these are actually ready to be used in the training room with all the s seven twelve hundreds and 15 hundreds. So if you wanna do some hands on training. It’s, we’re very unique here because of having the automation show and podcast and blog and all the vendors we work with. We have a lot of equipment that you will find almost in nobody else’s training, rooms. So with that, I wanna thank you all for tuning in. I wanna wish you all good health and happiness. And until next time, my friends, peace. Vendors: Would you like your product featured on the Podcast, Show or Blog? If you would, please contact me at: https://theautomationblog.com/contact Until next time, Peace ✌️  If you enjoyed this content, please give it a Like, and consider Sharing a link to it as that is the best way for us to grow our audience, which in turn allows us to produce more content

Shawn Tierney meets up with Michael Bowne of PI to learn what IO-Link is, how it works, and when to use it in this episode of The Automation Podcast. For any links related to this episode, check out the “Show Notes” located below the video. Watch The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: Listen to The Automation Podcast from The Automation Blog: The Automation Podcast, Episode 246 Show Notes: To learn about our online and in-person training courses please visit TheAutomationSchool.com. Read the transcript on The Automation Blog: (automatically generated) Shawn Tierney (Host): Thank you for tuning back in to the automation podcast. My name is Shawn Tierney from Insights in Automation. And this week on the show, we have a special guest, somebody who hasn’t been on in four years. We have Michael Bone from PI. They’re the folks who manage technologies like PROFINET and IO Link. And Michael’s come on this week to talk specifically about IO Link. We’re gonna talk about what it is. We’re gonna talk about when you should use it, and we’re gonna talk about the technical details of IO Link, like, all the things, like, engineering minds like to know about. So I think you guys are gonna enjoy this. It took about two to three hours to edit this one, and I really enjoyed going back through it. You know, we recorded it, I think, four weeks ago. So I hadn’t seen it in four weeks, but I really did enjoy it. I really think you guys will enjoy it too. And that brings up another point. Organizations like PI and ISA and other organizations, they’re not vendors. They don’t sell stuff. Right? And so this episode is not sponsored by a vendor. And, you know, as I was going through it yesterday, I was like, you know, there’s a lot of great slides in here. I wanna share it with the public. So I’ve decided to sponsor this episode myself, and I’ll use this as an opportunity to tell you a little bit about my company and the automation blog, the automation school, and the content I have planned to release this fall, including content on these products right here, all focused on IO Link. And I just actually did a live stream with these, products in front of me. I’ll be doing more tomorrow, and I’ll be adding lessons to my, courses as well on these products. So in any case, but before we get to that, let’s go ahead and jump right into the show and hear from Michael and learn all about IO Link. I wanna welcome back Michael to the show. It has been four years. He was last on in podcast 76, back in September 2021. So just going on four years. Michael, thank you for coming back on the show. If you could, a lot of people may not remember four years ago. Mhmm. So before we jump into your presentation, which which I am so excited about talking about IO Link again. But before we jump into that, could you please tell me a little bit about yourself and a little Michael Bowne (PI): bit about PI? Yeah. Sure. First of all, my pleasure, to be back on on the podcast. It was a lot, a lot of fun. I remember that back in in 2021, and, I’m glad to be be back doing it again. I started with PI North America in 2011 as the technical marketing director. And since 2016, I’ve been the executive director running the show and chairman of the board since last year. I, have the, let’s say, pleasure to serve as the deputy chairman of PI on a global scale since 2015, and I come from a prior to working for PI, I worked for a sensor manufacturer who had some interfaces on there that that brought me an introduct to to Profibus and Profinet. And before that, I studied, physics and and math at at Penn State University. Just, really quick for those. I’m I’m sure many of you are familiar with with PI, but, it was started in the late eighties. Half a dozen companies and universities got together, and they wrote the PROFIBUS spec, and that evolved into the into into PROFIBUS DP and PROFIBUS PA for process automation in the early two thousands. PROFINET came under the umbrella. And the reason I bring all this up is because there are some newer technologies under our umbrella that I I think the audience might wanna know about. Of course, EyeLink is is the one that we’ll talk about today, and that was in 02/2009. But there are some others like Umlocks, which is a location tracking standard. There’s one called MTP, module type package, NOAA, NAMR open architecture, also under our umbrella. And, basically, what we do is promote, maintain, write the specs, turn them into standards, and the work on those specs is done in working groups, which are staffed by volunteers, engineers from member companies. They donate their time to to develop the specs, for these technologies we have under our umbrella. And we’re a little bit unique in that we’re decentralized. So we have competence centers and test labs and training centers located throughout the world. It’s not all just in one headquarter kind of place, and they’re all independent. But they have a contract or quality of services agreement with PI that says, hey. If you have a question about the technologies, go to a competent center. If you want further training, go to a training center. If you want to to test the device, go to a test lab. And then they are all working with regional PI associations of which we PI North America is one of them. We were founded in 1994 by a guy by the name of Mike Bryant. At that time, we were called Probibus Trade Organization. And we are the and now I didn’t come up with this this name. We are the North American Rio League. This is a an IO Link designation, a regional IO Link interest group, which means that we have a a separate contract and and quality of services agreement with the IO Link community to to promote and and work with members, specifically for IO Link here in in North America. And we’re nonprofit, member supported. I got nothing. So you’re talking about products and and and stuff at the beginning. I got nothing to sell today. We’re we’re working solely on on technology. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, I do wanna throw out there, though, you have a great update every month about all the new products that fall in the buckets of IO Link, PROFINET, PROFIBUS, and a lot of those new products across our IO Link. So while they may not have products of their own, they do keep the, industry up to date on who’s joining up and signing up, for these new these you know, the jump on board and release new products that, that, you know, meet these specifications. And you know what? Maybe you’re not using PROFINET because you’re using brand x or y. You still probably use an IO Link. So Oh, that’s for sure. Very interesting very interesting updates that you publish every month and, as a blog. And, I know when I was doing the news for a couple years, I would always, go to your site to look for new updates. Michael Bowne (PI): Cool. Yeah. Yeah. I guess, I got a slide on that at the end, but the the you’re referring to the, the PROFINews. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yes. The PROFINews. Yeah. Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. That’s a that’s that’s been a baby and a labor of love, for a while now. And and, oh, man, it’s it’s it’s incredible because every month, the most when we track this kind of stuff, obviously, the most popular article is the new products. Well, because that’s what, right, that’s what people want is the stuff they can buy, the stuff they can use. Yeah. Yeah. That’s and we got another one coming out next week, and every month, we we push that out, and it’s always half a dozen or a dozen new products, half of which are are IO Link. I mean, it’s just growing like crazy. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. And you guys have had some good articles. I think you had a great series, and I’m now I’m stretching it. So stretching the old memory here. I thought you had a great series on on, MTP, which I really enjoyed. Did did I remember that correctly? Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. We we try and, you know, we try and get some editorial content in there. It’s it calls it falls into, like, three main buckets. What’s new products? What are new trainings and events that are coming up? And then and then some editorial content. I think I think what we’re driving at is I think we need to do maybe an MTP podcast here at some point in the down the road. Shawn Tierney (Host): Probably. Yeah. Down the road. Definitely. Definitely. I I’m still you know, I still have a very casual understanding of it. But, let me throw it back to you because I kinda jumped in and interrupted your your your, update. Michael Bowne (PI): No. It’s good. It saves it saves us at the end when when that slide, we can just just jump over it. Now we’ve we’ve got it covered, and it’s and it’s an and it’s an important one. But you kinda you kinda gave me a nice lead into the to the next one, which talks about, the Ireland community. And I’ll start from the bottom, work my way up as being fieldbus independent. Shawn Tierney (Host): I just wanna break in here for a moment and thank you folks in the audience who’ve signed up for my membership program. Really, really appreciate you all. Eighteen months ago, after reviewing ten plus years of being on YouTube, you know, it was pretty obvious that there’s no real revenue on YouTube. I mean, it comes in at maybe 1% of my monthly expenses. And so that ad revenue there is just not something to rely on going forward because it’s not something that’s been reliable in the past. And so I set up the membership program both on YouTube and at the automationblog.com. And I wanna thank all of you who signed up. I, we have a $5 tier, which I know most people sign up at, and then we have a couple other higher tiers. And so I just wanted to thank you all for doing that. You are actually the membership program’s probably 3% of my monthly, revenue. And so that’s, you know, one or two times more, than, what the YouTube revenue was. So thank you all for that. And I hope that, some of you who are not part of the membership program will consider becoming a member, supporting my work so I can do videos that are not always sponsored videos. Now I love sponsored videos. I love it when a vendor sends me a piece of hardware and then sits down with me and teach me how to use it so I can create a video ad free and share with you on how to use that product, or maybe they just come on the podcast and sponsor it to make it ad free so we can tell their story about their product or service. And I I will continue to do that going forward, but I would really also like to do more audience generated type of, content. So content where you generate the idea and say, Shawn, why don’t you try this? Or, Shawn, why don’t you do this? And a lot of those topics that the audience wants to see, they’re not necessarily topics that the vendor wants to promote with advertising dollars. Okay? And so that’s the whole purpose of the, membership program. Like I said, right now, it’s around 3% of my monthly income comes from and I’m talking about the business income, not my personal income, the business income. 3% of what the business needs to, to move forward and pay its bills every month. But, still, I that that, you know, so many of you have decided to jump in and support me. I just wanted to stop and say thank you very much from the bottom of my heart. And if you’re not part of the membership program and you’re doing financially well, please consider if you enjoy. This is episode two forty six of the automation podcast. Every episode has been free. The audio has been free for all 246 of them. And most of those episodes I funded myself just by well, you can understand how you fund something when you don’t have the income coming in. But in any case, if you enjoy it, please consider becoming a member, and we can branch out and do other things together. And with that, let’s go ahead and jump back into this week’s episode and learn more about IO Link. Michael Bowne (PI): So like you said, yeah. I mean, organizationally, the IO Link community came to PI in 2009 and organizationally under PI because we have the infrastructure for working groups and and IP policies and contracts and things like that. But the IO Link community has their own steering committee, and from the from the outset and from every IO Link event that we do and everything that we do is is independent of, of any Profibus or Profinet stuff. And we try really, really hard to maintain that independence, no matter what vendor you’re using. And there, at this point, we’ve got 500 companies in the IO Link community, and it’s really just growing by by leaps and bounds. So we kinda track this stuff by nodes and all the IO Link companies. They send their node count to an independent auditor, collects the counts, and gives us back an an an anonymous total. So we don’t know where or who is selling them, but we get the total. And you can just see this this hockey stick exponential growth. Particularly in 2023, there was some supply chain over purchasing that that went on. I mean, that’s like we’re looking at a a growth rate of 89% there, which is obviously unsustainable. But still, last year, 9,700,000 nodes were added. Again, because it’s field bus independent, it really has no competitor. And that’s what’s kinda cool about IO Link. I mean, you wanna do and and you don’t need to choose a field bus and therefore get IO Link. You can use any field bus or industrial container protocol, and IO Link works with it. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, I wanna just, mention for the audio listeners. If we go back to 2012, it looks like we’re probably at the 1,000,000 mark or below it. And as you go to, you know, 2022, you look like you’re 35,700,000. Is that 2022 or 2023? Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. That’s the 2022. Exactly. 35,700,000.0. Yeah. Shawn Tierney (Host): And then at, the end of twenty twenty three, we’re at 51.6. So you talked about that, you know, overbuying. And then at the end of 2024, we’re at 61,300,000.0. So you can just see from, you know, 2022 to, 2024, you went from 35 to 61. So the adoption, like you said, it’s a hockey stick. The adoption has really picked up. And I think you you hit the nail on the head because it is fieldbus independent. It’s a way to just get more information out of our devices, like sensors and photo eyes, you know, and it’s just you know? I mean, though, these chipsets that come in these, devices now are just amazing. Michael Bowne (PI): And that’s what, I mean, that’s what the whole point of this is. You’re you’re not gonna put a $5 ethernet chip, like, enter $5 ethernet interface on a $15 proximity sensor. But computing and memory has gotten really, really small and really, really cheap that it’s on just about everything. And so this proximity sensor not only can tell you if, like, for example, let’s say it’s on a conveyor belt. It cannot only tell you if the box is there or not, but it can tell you how many blue boxes would buy or how many red boxes would buy or if the box that’s going by is off kilter or or misaligned or something like that. But how do you get that data out in in inexpensively, and here we are. IO Link is is the way to do it. Shawn Tierney (Host): I’m sad to see a lot of these sensors too come with humidity, temperature, and all these other things should be like, really? I can get that out of my Michael Bowne (PI): photo eye. But yeah. Multivariable. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. You know, traditionally, with an analog interface, how did you get that? You couldn’t get it. Mhmm. But now with a digital interface, which is what we’re talking about, digitalization in the last meter, now you can get that informate that data, that information, and do some pretty cool stuff with it. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yes. You can. Yeah. I’ll talk Michael Bowne (PI): a little bit about the architecture a little bit here to kind of get a little bit into the technical side of things about how IO Link works, but it they’re kind of some main devices, and that’s the IO Link masters and the IO Link devices. And these IO Link masters are available for we have here 16 different industrial Ethernet or field bus systems. 21 manufacturers offer central PLC, like an IO Link master built into the backplane of the PLC if you so desired. And the number of devices that so that hockey stick we showed before is just exploding. I mean, we’ve got 60 something million sold, and we have tens of thousands of unique IO Link devices from hundreds of different device manufacturers that have implemented this interface. And for those that if there’s anybody on the podcast that wants to do this and add this to their sensors, there are a number of different companies that help with, product design, either with the chips, the transceivers, the software stacks, and then a number of companies that help provide technical support in order to do that. So an IO Link system kind of is made up of four parts. Like I said, you have the IO Link master. That’s the gateway between the IO Link devices, the IO Link interface, and the higher level communication system, such as the fieldbus or the in industrial Ethernet protocol or backplane. You have the devices. This is the exciting part. Your sensors, your switch gears, your valves, your signal lamps, maybe some simple actuators, whatever the case may be. You’ve got a IO Link cable, just a three wire unshielded, super simple connection between the master and the devices. And then every device has an IODD or IO Link device description file, and I’ll explain how that gets used to engineer and parameterize the IO Link system and the and the devices. And what this kind of enables you know, traditionally, communication only reached the IO level. You had connection between the PLCs and the and the the the IO, and then it kinda stopped there because all those sensors and actuators were not accessible. They were analog, and you got your one process data. You brought process signal, and that’s where it ended. But with IO Link, what we do is we enable that communication bidirectional, cyclic and acyclic, and that’s the cool part, all the way from higher level systems, not only to the PLC or especially from the PLC, but down all the way down to the simple sensors and actuators, which are now accessible. And you kinda touched on this before where these chipsets have gotten really, really smart and really, really powerful. And it’s not that the it’s not that any of these use cases that are that are being solved with IO Link that none of them are new. What’s new is the ease with which they can be solved. So because you can get all this extra data out, things like OEE, showing things like downtime tracking, track and trace, predictive maintenance, for example, remote monitoring, recipe management, SPC, all these things. It’s not that these use cases are now being solved. The you know, we’ve we’ve been doing this for a long, long time. It’s just the ease with which because because it’s a standard and because all this stuff is standardized in how it gets from the the the device to the master and upwards to the controller, it just makes it easier. If you spend all your effort trying to gather and collect and sanitize the data because every device is different and, you know, that’s just that’s just a mess, and the ROI disappears really fast on any kind of project to do that. But if we have a standard on how to do that, then we make it very, very easy to do, and everything can come in, quite nicely. And and and it just and it just works a whole lot easier. You start getting access to that data. And so what we’re starting to see is connections being made. You know, you talk about the the flattening of the traditional automation hierarchy where now not only is that IO block or that sensor connected to a to a PLC, but it’s got some extra data. Like you said, like, this little photo I might have a a a temperature or a a moisture, you know, sensor also in there, just because it’s part of the the chipset. But the PLC don’t care about that. He just wants to know about the, you know, the information from the photo eye. So what do you do with all this extra beautiful information that isn’t necessarily processed data? Well, maybe the MES wants to know about that. So how do you get that? And in a running factory, in a brownfield environment, rule number one is don’t touch the running PLC. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. Michael Bowne (PI): And rule number two is see rule number one. That thing is running, and any minute of downtime costs more than any one thing on the on the factory floor. Shawn Tierney (Host): Before we go on, I did wanna break in here and tell you a little bit about my website, theautomationschool.com, where I do my online training. I also do in person training. And you probably don’t know that that all started back in 2014 with a Kickstarter I ran for my first PLC basics course. At the time, it was called microprogrammable controller basics, and I ended up changing it just the PLC basics. But in any case, since then, I’ve had added a dozen courses on a various number of topics, and you’ll find them all at the automationschool.com. But what I really wanted to talk to you about is why. Why did I do that? Well, I had spent twenty five years as a certified authorized Rockwell Automation distributor specialist covering PLCs, HMIs, SCADA, MES, and other stuff too. Right? And I knew from visiting, customers in the plant every single workday, almost every workday, that there was a real need for affordable training. So the first thing is, you know, large companies have large expensive, large paychecks, and lots of overhead, so they gotta charge a lot. Right? And so that was a problem because a lot of the people I was working with, you know, the controls engineers, automation engineers, high end electricians and technicians, they had to fund their training themselves. Their company was sort of like, no. We trained this guy back in the nineties, and then he will have to get a better job. So we’re not spending money on training. And so all these people were having to train themselves, and it was unaffordable to either, you know, buy the the, vendors courses. Or even if the the company did have training dollars, it was unaffordable to send them away for a week to a $3,000 course somewhere halfway across the country, probably $3,000 worth of travel and hotels too. Right? And then they go where without one of their smartest guys, right, one of their best people, because you you that’s usually who you’re gonna train and and uplift through the through the organization. Either people are doing good on the lower level, you wanna bring them up and train them on automation. And so that’s why I started the the, automationschool.com because of the the try to provide I knew the the courses would never be Hollywood quality. I mean, this isn’t Hollywood quality. Right? But I knew it could be helpful and and, you know, be affordable by just filming them in my garage. Right? And, you know, picking up some used equipment and putting together the episodes. And the site has grown so much. We have thousands of, students from over a 150 countries. We have hundreds of, vendors we work with. But the other thing I did is, is made up by one’s own forever. Right? So more like an ebook or an audiobook or an m p three album. Right? And the reason I did that and I understand why the vendors don’t do that because they’re like, well, they’ll sign up one guy in the I and e shop, and he’ll share his password for everybody. You know, that could happen. Right? People could rob a bank too. But I’m like, you know, most people, when they buy a course and I saw this. I was on an independent platform for a while, and on that platform, they showed you how the progress of every student. Most people buy the course well before they’re ready to take it. And I’m like, I’m not gonna charge people a monthly fee or only give them access to to a short window if, you know, they have good intentions now, but it takes them a while to actually free up their schedule to get into the course and take it. So that’s why my courses are buy one’s own forever. And it can you know, as they grow, the price goes up because I’m adding more and more content, and I do split them out and make cheaper versions over time. But, those people who buy in early, they get the like, my s seven course. Like, I think it originally came out at 40 or $50, and now it’s $200 because I’ve added so much to it over the years. But in any case, same with ControlLogix and CompactLogix. And then the other thing too is I want them to be able to take it more than once. Right? So if you take a let’s say you take a ControlLogix course. Right? You don’t use it for a couple years, you probably gonna have to take it again. And I don’t want you to feel like you have to pay a monthly fee to do that. It’s like an ebook or an m p three album. You bought it. You bought access to it, I guess I should say, and now it’s yours. Right? And the other thing too is I support my students personally. Okay? So I check the website every day for questions, every work day. I should say, you know, I do take Sundays off. So in any case, if you’re if it’s a work day, though, and I’m working, I’m not on vacation or traveling for business, I’m up there. I’m answering questions. And I should say, even when I’m traveling on business, I’m I’m on there answering questions. So although if I don’t have any hardware, there’s some questions you can’t ask. Right? I guess I should have said some questions you can’t answer. But in any case, I just wanted to share that with you. Theautomationschool.com, a high quality online courses, five star rated, buy once, own forever, and guess what? I’m updating all the PLC courses, and if you already own or buy one of the existing PLC courses, you not only get the updated lessons that get added to that course, you get the new course completely free. So I’m not gonna charge you for just an updated version of a class on the same core on the same product. Right? That would be kinda silly in my opinion. So, I hope you guys appreciate that. Again, if you didn’t know any of this, if you have any questions, if you go over to the automationschool.com, at the very top of the site, you’ll see links to contact me, set up a meeting, leave me a voice mail, fill out a form. You know, I have many ways you can get in touch with me. And if you have multiple people you wanna sign up, I do have multiple seat discounts starting at three seats. And, I do actually work with a number of Fortune 500 companies who, you know, enroll maybe 10 people at a time to get that discount. And you know what? Unlike the big vendors, if somebody you sign somebody up and they all take the courses, I’ll let you replace that person for free of charge. You don’t have to pay anything extra. If you sign up Joe and he decides to quit or leave or not to learn, you can put Bob in his place. That’s not a problem. Now I have said some situations where the same spot kept getting replaced or replaced or replaced. At some point, I do charge a maintenance fee to to switch the names out. And then, hey. Look. If Joe leaves and he took, you know, two out of three courses, I’ll prorate refilling that seat with the new person. Right? So whatever percentage of the lessons he took versus the total number of lessons, I’ll prorate it. So, you know, we’ve had number of cases where somebody goes through half of the content then leaves, so we can reset that seat for half price. And I that’s something you won’t find, any major vendors doing as well. So if you have any questions about that, reach out to me over at the automation school dot com. And with that said, let’s jump right back into this week’s episode of the automation podcast. Michael Bowne (PI): In a brownfield installation, what we’re seeing these these cool little edge gateways, And what they’ll do is they’ll grab the bus, they’ll collect some data, and pump it out the other side via, you know, maybe an IT protocol that that the IT guys wanna know about or, you know, like an MQTT or an OPC UA. Of course, in a in a greenfield, in a new installation where you’ve got a brand new PLC, yeah, get the data there. That guy has all the brains, has all the all the information in one ply in all in one place, so get it from the PLC. But in Brownfield, I the edge gateways, even some IO Link masters are being put on the market that have not only an industrial Ethernet interface, you know, just on one port, on the same port, industrial Ethernet interface for control, but that interface will also speak like a higher level IT protocol like an MQTT or an OPC UA, so you can get it even from the IO Link master that data is is accessible. So the different ways to get it, and, and that’s kind of the whole point is is getting that data from the sensors to the to the master and then further upwards. Shawn Tierney (Host): We actually covered a product on the show that had two ports. It had one for your fieldbus Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. And then it Shawn Tierney (Host): had a separate one for your IT or your IOT or your MQTT, which I thought was so inventive too because now the control system gets its data, and it’s under control. But reporting wise, you know, that’s kind of the best of both both worlds. You don’t have to have two sensors. You can send it to data both ways. And, yeah, just it’s the way you can do with these things and, you know, a lot of the sensors you probably have out there, I’ve noticed that some vendors, every sensor they sell is IO Link. So Yeah. You may already have it installed and not know it because the price difference to add it to some products. Once you get up to the fanciest sensors, of course, not the simplest sensors, but once you get up to the fanciest sensors, it’s it’s, you know, there’s a lot of horsepower in that chipset. So, you know, they can add IO Link for for pennies on the dollar. So very interesting stuff, though. Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. That’s that’s a good point. And and, you know, of course, we could spend all day talking about IT, OT, and the segmentation of networks and all who’s who owns the IP addresses. And we I mean, that’s a whole separate topic. But in cases like that, yeah, it’s cool. You got a separate port. IT can do what they want on their one port. And if but, hey, don’t touch me in the control realm because Mhmm. This is my this is my realm. And and you bring up another good point, and that’s kind of there’s a I don’t I don’t wanna say that, you know, there’s there isn’t, like, a thick black line between, okay, this sensor is simple, therefore, should have IO link, or this sensor is complex, therefore, should have its own industrial Ethernet, interface. There’s almost a little bit of a gray area, but you’re right. I mean Mhmm. We kinda leave it up to the vendors to decide. Hey. My thing needs the horsepower that and it’s so complex that I need something like, like, an industrial Ethernet protocol. But, oh, you know what? This other central line is tailored for low cost, and so, therefore, I’m gonna put IO Link on it. But that’s, you know, that’s up to them to to decide. So when we talk about IO Link in terms of benefits, we kinda like to make the analogy with USB because everybody knows USB. You got your USB cable. You plug it into your computer on one end. On the other end, you plug it into your you know, you plug your mouse in or you plug your keyboard in, and you plug your key your printer in. Automatically, it it uses the same cable. It’s always the same. Everything everybody’s using that interface, and we kinda see the same thing with IO Link where it’s just a unified, unshielded three wire sensor cable, and it can use be used with all IO Link devices. Up until now, you know, if you had smart devices, right, memory and computing power is smaller and cheaper. Up until now, to get that extra information out, you would need multiple cables. The wiring is time consuming. It’s expensive. They’re large, costly to to install and maintain. But But with iolink, you just you just plug it in. It’s a simple m 12 plug, and then you don’t have all these spare parts of different cable types. It’s just one cable and, easy to maintain, thin, flexible. I’ve got a I’ve got an example here I’d like to highlight, and I’ll try and talk through it for those that are that are listening instead of instead of viewing. This is an example of 256 IOs via 16 fieldbus modules. So, like, fieldbus like remote IOs or whatever the case may be. So we’re connecting them to a PLC out in the field. And to do that, we would need 16 fieldbus modules in order to do that. These are just let’s let’s call them simple DI, you know, digital input proximity sensors. Mhmm. Shawn Tierney (Host): Mhmm. Michael Bowne (PI): With IO Link, we can do that via just one fieldbus module. So that’s just one IP address or one IO Link master. So already you’re cutting out 15 of those more expensive devices. And then we use what are called so called IO Link hubs, which bring those DI signals, put it all on one IO Link connection, put it into IO Link master, and send it out the other side. And with that, we can connect if you imagine these 272 IOs as shown here via just one fieldbus module. So it’s showing just huge, huge, huge savings simply on cost alone, due to the wiring. And, that that one cable, it fits all sensor types. So simple sensors, like a proximity sensor all the way up to complex devices like pressure, temperature, signal lamps, and even simple actuators all use the same IO Link cable. Shawn Tierney (Host): So where an IO Link device would be giving you not just on or off, but a lot of other information and some of that analog information. If all you had was a dumb device, well, now I can put 16 of them or so, you know, some number of them together Mhmm. Bring them into a hub. And each since each device only has an on or off, where a regular IO Link device would have lots of other information, you can now just join them all together and say, okay. Here we go. Here’s inputs one through x. Michael Bowne (PI): It’s, almost like multiplexing, put it all together on one and then Mhmm. Pump it out the other side. Yeah. Shawn Tierney (Host): Perfect. Michael Bowne (PI): The other way we relate IO Link to USB is kind of in the the identification and parameterization. So if we look at how you plug your printer into your computer, you plug it in, and automatically, your computer says, oh, okay. I know that that’s a HP something something desk check printer and and okay. How do you wanna do you wanna do color or black and white? Do you wanna do full duplex? Do you wanna do back and white, back and front on on the printing? And the same is true for for IO Link. So you plug in that IO Link sensor into your IO Link master. It reads it. It says, hey. The dialing says, hey. This is who I am. This is my type. This is my serial number. Every device has a vendor ID and a device ID. And then the IO Link master goes up and gets the IODD file, and I’ll show that here in a little bit, and then you can start that parametrization. And it’s just like it’s just like a USB. It’s it’s, no special knowledge is required. You can format changes very, very easily. You can even do them on the fly, for example, with an HMI on the on the machine. And, the identification methods make sure that you don’t plug in a wrong device into an IO Nialink port, which could stop the machine. It’ll it’ll it’ll recognize that and prevent, incorrect connections. It allows you to exchange devices very easily of the same type or the the same same manufacturer, same same device. So just like USB, it it it kinda works in that way. And then the other way, it’s kind of like USBs in the diagnostics, and this is a really, really powerful part of IO Link. So when your printer says, I’m out of paper or I’m out of toner or there’s a paper jam, it sends that signal, standardized signal to the to the computer, to your computer, your PC, and you know exactly what what to do, how to fix your your printer, why your printer isn’t working the same as true for IO Link. We’ve standardized these diagnostics. So this is a, a photo eye saying, hey, under voltage or over temperature or the the window on the photo eye has gotten dirty, so signal quality is deteriorating. So we standardized all this, so that these diagnostics all come in the same way, and, you can, you know, fix any any problem as fast as possible to to to, minimize downtime. And in the case of things like signal quality, hey. The the the window’s getting dirty. This enables things like preventative maintenance. Oh, I know I’m going into a planned shutdown next week. Now’s the time to go out and clean those sensors kind of thing, because I know that they’re I know that the signal’s going is deteriorating. So some cool things like that, that wouldn’t be possible with a traditional analog signal, which we’re showing here. And it also makes really no sense. I mean, in this example, what we’re showing here is a generic this is a pre pressure sensor. You know, it does its measurement. It then does some amplification, and then to stabilize the signal, it does an a to d, puts it into a micro, which does some temperature compensation linearization. But then, traditionally, prior to IO Link, what you do is then do another data a to send it out via zero to 10 volts or four to 20 milliamps, whatever, into the into a, an a to d card on the backplane of the PLC, I mean, this is just this is just crazy. It’s it’s time consuming. It’s, the the signal is still susceptible to interference. The the analog inputs on the cards on the PLC are expensive. There’s manual calibration of the signal. But with IO Link, it just makes sense. You take that signal right from the micro, pump it out digitally via an IO Link inexpensive interface to your, to your IO. And, we use that unshielded three wire inexpensive cable, Shawn Tierney (Host): and Michael Bowne (PI): then you get all those parameters and diagnostics. And, really, that’s the point of using IO Link is all that extra data, all that extra information that that comes along with the the process data. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. And so those of you who are listening, I mean, what we saw there was to to shoot out a four to 20 milliamp signal or zero to 10 volt signal, it had to convert it from the digital value that was inside the device to analog, then I have to pump it out. And, you know, we always have to worry about noise and, you know, shielding and all that, you know, depending on the length of the run. And then in the PLC analog card, it’s converting it from analog back to digital, so you have that zero to 32,000 value or zero to 64,000, whatever your PLC does. And so IO Link does eliminate that. It eliminates the noise of your traditional analog. And I know I’ve met so many customers say we have no noise issues on our analog, and that’s great. But not everybody’s in that same boat. So you’re eliminating that d to a and then a to d, and that’s that’s you’re keeping everything digital. So you’re not only getting a cleaner, more accurate value from your device, you’re also getting all those additional pieces of information and the ability to be maybe configured to products. Some of these products need to be changed based on the type of product they’re sensing, you know, the type of fluid going through, the recipe that’s being drawn, the lighting, the colors. So all those different things, you you know, with a typical analog signal, you’re not gonna be able to send back and do a configuration to it. So, go ahead. Back to you, Michael. Michael Bowne (PI): No. You’re right. Exactly. We we have I I took this line out of this deck for the for, you know, for for brevity, but we show examples of of particularly food and bev, right, where you have batches, different I’m running a different batch. I’m running a different product. I need a different label on the on the bottle or whatever I’m running through the the the machine. You reconfigure that via the HMI. It sends all that stuff down to the sensors. Okay. Now I know I’m looking for I should be sensing this instead of this. Shawn Tierney (Host): Yeah. It could be a clear bottle sensor, the clear bottle detector that the bottles change colors. So it’s has a different setting, or it could be background suppression depending on the color of the product. You need a different setting or a color sensor. Maybe you’re making different products and the different colors, and so, you know, all this is now configurable through your PLC, through your control system, through your HMI, which I just think is so cool. Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. It’s it’s it’s super cool. Alright. Let’s get a little bit technical here. I think for some of the engineers, that might be nice. The IO Link signal and 24 volt power supply, like like we talked about before, it’s it’s an m 12 connector. So you’ve got five pins. Your pin one is your high, pin three is your low, and then pin four is your CQ line. That’s that’s where the IO Link digital signal lives. It’s serial. It’s bidirectional. It’s point to point. And then we also have on that same pin four, if you so desired, you could also parameterize your device via IO Link, set it all up, and then put it in what’s known as a CO mode or simple IO mode. And I’ll show that on the next slide too if maybe you’ve just got a digital IO, that you want a fast switching interface. So pins one and three are our power. Pins two and five are freely assignable. So for example, if you wanted to use that pin four for your IO Link signal and then separately have your own DI or DQ line, you could do that using a three wire, four wire, five wire cable. And then what’s cool also in IO Link and we’re starting to see this more and more is we call this port class b, same m 12 connector, same five pins, but pins two and five provide a separate power supply for additional power because and this is cool. We’re starting to see more and more IO link just, like, simple actuators Mhmm. On the market. And that’s really neat. So let’s say you’ve got some simple linear actuator, not not a complex, you know, driver, you know, or motor or something like that, but a a simple linear actuator. You can drive that via IO Link if you just gotta move something really, you know, maybe maybe even within connected to the same ports, on the master as some other sensors, and so you can do that logic in the master itself, you know, simple simple stuff like that. But that’s also possible with IO Link where you can drive it, not just sense it, but also actuate it with with IO Link. So that’s that’s some cool stuff that’s coming down the line. Shawn Tierney (Host): You know, and I found that all the IO Link devices I had here, they came with the SIO mode already set up. So I was able to use the photo eyes and the proxies and all the other devices just as simple IO devices and without even touching the IO Link side of it, which I think is cool because, you know, in in many cases, you just need a photo eye to get up and running. Right? Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. And that’s and that’s how they come out of the box. So out of the box, it’s in that CO mode. And I think you you kinda touched on this before. Maybe many customers have IO Link devices Yeah. On their machine. They don’t even know it Mhmm. Shawn Tierney (Host): Because they Michael Bowne (PI): took it out of the box. They needed that photo. They plugged it in and away they went. But there’s also that all all that extra stuff. If they wanted to, they could get down into the IO Link part of it. Mhmm. Maybe to reparameterize it, or what if you got to change, you still wanna use the CO mode. You just want that digital input. What if you wanna change the switching distance, for example, something like that? I don’t want it to switch at one meter. I want it to switch at two meters or whatever. So all that all that can be configured via IO Link. So on the if we if we talk about the the IO Link communication itself, there are three transmission speeds, comms one, two, and three. Comm one is 4.8 kilobits per second. COM two is 38.4 kilobits per second, and COM three is 230.4 kilobits per second. IO Link masters support all three comm modes, but devices are free to choose based on what they’re sending. If it’s temperature, maybe you don’t need COM three because that’s changing more slowly than something like like like we’re talking about a proximity sensor, which may want to send that a little bit more quickly and uses that that COM three mode. Many, many devices use COM three mode because still two hundred two hundred thirty kilobits per second, that’s, you know, that’s not gonna that’s not gonna kill you. And then a typical cycle time, because this is the question we get all the time, is what kind of cycle time can be achieved? It’s about a millisecond at at com three. So if you’re, you know, trying to go submillisecond, you know, maybe IO Link is not is not the solution at that point. But for many, many applications, that one millisecond cycle time can can, can accomplish whatever they need to. And then what’s cool is that from the EyeLink master’s perspective, it’ll have eight or 16 sensors connected to it. Each device can be set independently. So on this port this device, I’m talking at this comm rate and this cycle time. This other port number two, I’m speaking at a different transmission speed and a different cycle time and so on and so forth, you know, so that you’re not sending data unnecessarily that is simply just being sent for the purposes of being sent. And that’s and that’s pretty cool. Shawn Tierney (Host): And a lot of times, you don’t because you’re not reading a digital on off, you don’t the speed, you’re you’re actually getting a value, and that value a lot of times your PLC is not gonna be running faster than a millisecond scan time. So if you’re getting your value updated, you know, faster than the PLC, then that’s a then then that’s really what you need. Do you know how fast is your PLC running? How fast can your program controller use that value? And, you know, I’d be hard pressed to see a lot of applications where they’re breaking that one millisecond update rate. The other thing too is just because we’re talking at the speed doesn’t mean the actual calculation is even possible in a millisecond. So, you know, temperature changes, things that that sensors there’s limit limitations to the physical world. You know? And, you know, I I don’t know if anybody’s ever said this to you before, Michael, but when I first saw the whole comm thing, I thought that was confusing because having grown up with PCs, I always thought of comp one, comp two, comp one group. Right? And these are really just bought what I would call from the old days, sewer rates. Right? Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. Exactly. Shawn Tierney (Host): Exactly. Insight why why they is it just maybe because it was the standard started overseas or any idea why they went with CALM? Michael Bowne (PI): I’m not gonna lie to you. That’s the first time I’ve gotten that question. Shawn Tierney (Host): Really? Okay. Michael Bowne (PI): Why they’re called that yeah. Let’s just let’s just rewrite this. They call it BOD one, BOD two, BOD three. Shawn Tierney (Host): I know. It’s just so weird. But, anyways, sorry sorry, audience. I just have Michael Bowne (PI): That’s a good one. That’s a good one. Nope. I’ll take that one back. Alright. So IO Link data comes in a couple different flavors. You have your process data. That’s your bread and butter, what you’re using to run the run the factory. Transmitted cyclically in a Telegram, the the data size is defined by the device, and it can be up to 32 bytes for each device, both input and output. Along with that comes a value bit indicating whether the process data is valid or invalid, and this can be transmitted is transmitted cyclically with the the process data. And then you have things that happen acyclically. These would be device data like parameters, identification data, diagnostic information, and these happen on request of the IO Link master. Obviously, a lot of that happens during startup, but also can happen during runtime if, as shown here on the slide with the with the last case, events can be error messages. So the the, the device will set a flag. Hey. There’s a short circuit or so, and then the the master can pull that device for more information, more diagnostic information, based on that event flag that’s that’s set by the set by the device. And so, the the question we always get at this point is, how do I make this all work? How do I integrate this stuff into my into my plant? Shawn Tierney (Host): Before we go any further, I did wanna jump back and tell you about a service I’m doing that I don’t think I’ve talked about very much, and it’s comes in two different flavors. First of all, I’ve actually had some vendors and companies reach out to me and say, Shawn, I know you don’t wanna travel all around the country with all your equipment. Right? That’s not what you do, but we want you to come out and teach us something. Would you come out and do a lecture? We’ll set up our own equipment. And, can you come out and just run us through some of the products and teach us some of your knowledge, and you don’t have to worry about bringing all the equipment with you. And so that’s something I really don’t talk about much, but I do wanna tell you that if you’re looking for training and you need it on-site, of course, you do have to pay for my travel time. But if you do want me to come out for a day or two days or for a week and do training on any of the products I train online now. Now if you want me to come out and do training on a product I don’t already have a curriculum on, I can’t do it. The building the curriculum is where all of my costs is on the training. Right? I shouldn’t say that. The web service in in in the back end does cost something every month as well, but most of the time it goes into and that’s really what being self employed is it’s time. Right? Most of the time goes into build building the curriculum. So if you have a need for somebody like Shawn, we can’t do a webinar. We can’t do a Teams meeting. We we can’t do online training. We want you to come out. And, again, I just got a call on this yesterday. Yes. I can do that. As long as the curriculum I’m gonna teach you is something I already have existing. And, I’m not gonna hand out lab books. We can buy you lab books if you want. People sell great lab books for $80.90 dollars a pop. If you want lab books, I’d be more than happy to include that in the quote. But in any case, I that’s one thing I do. The other thing I’ve been doing with vendors is they’ve hired me to come out and interview them at their trade show. So, usually, what happens is somebody will sponsor a podcast for $5.99. They’ll come on. We’ll do the interview. I’ll edit it all up. I’ll put their links in. We’ll talk about the thumbnail, and then we’ll release it ad free. Right? And so that covers my cost of producing that episode roughly. Right? We just raised it from $4.99 to $5.99 because most of the shows were were actually upside down on, so we need to raise it a little bit to make sure we’re covering our cost. But in any case, sometimes vendors have, you know, they have their own trade show, and they may have all of their product specialists there. And they’re like, hey, Shawn. We would like to do six or seven interviews at the trade show. Would you come out and actually record them there? We’ll pay your flight. We’ll pay your hotel and your expenses to get there and back. And so that’s another thing I haven’t talked about much that I’m doing. I’m working with some, you know, top five vendors to do that, and I’ve done it in the past. And so I did wanna explain it to you if you’re a vendor listening or if you are, talking to your vendor, like, you should have Shawn come out and interview all your people. You have them all in one place. Let them know that they can contact me about doing that. Again, you can contact me at theautomationblog.com, LinkedIn, YouTube, theautomationschool.com, pretty much any way you want. You can write me snail mail if you want. But in any case, I do wanna share that, and we also have in person training. I think I’ve talked to you guys about this quite a bit. We do custom in person training for as little as two people, $900 a day up to four people. And so if you wanna get some people in here, we can actually do Allen Bradley and Siemens in two days back to back. One day Allen Bradley, one day Siemens. So if you wanna learn two PLCs in two days back to back now I do have somebody ask me, hey, Shawn. Where’s your schedule of upcoming courses? And back in my previous life of twenty five years, we were always trying to sign people up and then canceling, you know, events and classes because, we wouldn’t get enough people to meet the vendors minimum. So I don’t wanna do that. So I don’t have actually any dates now. I have been talking with doing a intensive POC boot camp, but, you know, I just got so much things going on in my life right now that I don’t think I could pull that together this fall. But in any case, if you need some training, you wanna send your people here, we can even start at, like, noontime and then end the final day at noontime so you can get your flights and travel and all that. We’re one hour away from Albany, New York, and that’s a great little airport to fly in and out of. Actually, I’m flying out of it in November. They’ll go to a trade show, to interview vendors, vendors, product people. But in any case, I just wanna break in. There’s something about my company. I don’t think I ever talked to you guys about much, and so I just wanted to insert it here since I’m sponsoring this episode and eating the cost to produce it. I wanted to share that with you. And now, I won’t be back until the end of the show, so please enjoy the rest of this episode. Send any feedback you have to me, and, we’ll talk to you at the end of the show. Michael Bowne (PI): And it kinda works like this. So you have your IO Link device, which has an IODD file, which we mentioned earlier, that gets ingested by a parameterization tool. The parameterization tool comes with the IO Link master. Could be a separate piece of software. In some cases, could be a web page built into the IO Link master itself. Depends on depends on the vendor. But then what happens after that, how that data goes from the IO Link master to the controller, the PLC, is fieldbus specific. So you have your own, fieldbus file, you know, GSD or EDS or ESI, whatever the case may be, which is ingested by the engineering tool of the of the PLC and kind of outside way outside the scope of of of IO Link. And so the EDS file, the GSD file, and and that is the that data then gets sent via fieldbus, and that’s the sum of all the IO Link device data from all the ports on the IO Link master, where that IO Link communication as as defined by the IODD file, configures the port for the master and for the devices. And so an IODD file is provided by the devices, and every device manufacturer must provide an IODD for their device. It can be downloaded from the IODD finder, which is a website, and, it it describes what the entire device does. It describes the process data length, the process data structure, the parameter the name of the parameters, what range to expect, the data types, the addresses of the parameters in the in the in the indexes and subindexes. It can talk about GUI information, pages on which a parameter shall be displayed, names of parameter pages, all this kind of stuff is in an IODD file. It’s a it’s a zip file where you have that IODD as an XML. So that’s how we format the file. So it’s it’s both and this is the key part, both machine readable and and human readable. It’s got a little picture of the device, picture of the manufacturer logo. And with your permission, maybe I can show the IODD finder. It’s, ioddfinder.io-link.com. Mhmm. Looks simple enough. Let’s say we wanna look at a I’m gonna type in something here. Max ref. Let’s pick this. So this is just a this is a reference design, not an actual product that that, an end user would employ in their in their factory, but a reference design of something that maybe a device manufacturer would use. And it’s shows the manufacturer name, the article name number, the product name, the device ID. All that stuff is ingested by the parameterization tool, which then uses that information to go up to this IODD finder and grab the IODD file shown here, which can be downloaded if you wanted to look at it yourself. But in the past few years, we implemented what’s called an IODD viewer, which is pretty cool, which takes that nice XML file and parses it. So in human readable form, if you wanted to compare quickly, hey. I’m an end user. I wanna compare the IODD file from device vendor a to device vendor b to kinda see what kind of features they have. You could do that all very easily, and that’s shown here in the IODD viewer. What’s really what’s really neat about this IODD finder is that it has two ways it it it gets accessed. That’s this website that I just showed here. So as in humans are are accessing it, but it’s also accessible via API. And we we track the the traffic to the Audi divider, and the vast, vast majority of the traffic comes via API. So these are IO Link masters that just had a device connected to them. Parameter is I’m sorry. Parameterization tool that has a you know, or connected to the IO Link master that had device connected them. They go up to the AudiD finder, and they pull down that IODD file for the device that was just connected so that now they they can be, configured. And that’s really, really cool stuff. So all these IODD files are in one spot, in one database up there for for viewing or via the IODD viewer or for access from any number of IO Link tools out there. Shawn Tierney (Host): So when we’re talking about API access, we’re talking about the tool we’re using to configure the master. So it could be a web page built into the master, or it could be a separate software program. Do I have that correct? Michael Bowne (PI): Yeah. Right. So the parameterization tool, yeah, is usually is usually a software package that’ll run on your computer connecting to your, IO Link master that parameterizes the IO Link master. Yeah. Shawn Tierney (Host): Excellent. Or Michael Bowne (PI): through the network somehow. Maybe through the network. Yeah. Goes out and grabs that IODD file from the IODD finder to, you know, to parameterize that port in that device. Shawn Tierney (Host): Which is excellent because in previous iterations of smart networks and smart devices, you always have to go searching a vendor’s website, and then people would get the wrong file, and then I would be in the field saying this is never gonna work because you get the wrong device file. If they can’t give you the right device file, you’ll never get it to work. You know? And so this is much better having the organization have everybody require everybody who has IO Link to put their IODD files in the one place so everybody can always find it. And so the software tools can find it automatically for you, which is just a huge a huge change versus what we went through in the nineties. Michael Bowne (PI): Exactly. We came on a CD or something or what I mean, God only knows. I’m gonna switch gears a little bit here, talk about two topics subtopics within the IO Link domain, and one of them is IO Link wireless. This is, what we call is bridging the gap. So it’s an IEC standard, six eleven thirty nine as of November 2023, Shawn Tierney (Host): and Michael Bowne (PI): it’s enabling connections that simply weren’t possible before for IO Link. And in an example here, we’re showing a a smart machine tool where the IO Link sensor is integrated into the chuck of the lathe. Now that guy is spinning at 6,000 RPMs. That connection simply couldn’t be possible couldn’t be done any other way than with IO Link wireless or, let’s say, independent movers. So you’ve seen these moving systems where you’ve got the either floating or on a on a rail the other track systems exactly. If you integrate the smarts of IO Link onto the movers themselves instead of using, SCARA or Delta robots to do the to I mean, that’s you’re saving huge amounts of cost Mhmm. That way if the if those guys can move on their own, and they use IO Link wireless to do that. Slip rings where certainly sending power, is is well known, but sometimes communication can be tricky via slip ring. Mhmm. Yeah. End of arm tooling, like robot robot end of arms where you have a you’re gonna change the tool at the end of the arm. It’s more lightweight, saving on on robot cost that way. Less fewer lighter robots can be used, but it’s it’s, it’s cool. It the architecture looks pretty much the same, where you have your field level, your IO, and instead of wired connections, it’s it’s simply a wireless connection. Is that wired? It’s it’s wireless. And and what’s different about IO Link Wireless is that it was built for industry. So I think in the past, people have been burned by wireless technologies that made some promises that didn’t maybe you know, they they couldn’t meet the the the the the rigorous environment and and requirements of of industry, but that was different. It was built for industry from the start. So it uses the two point two point four gig license free ISM band. And what we do is a is this frequency hopping so that we use the same IO link, you know, data structure. We do this frequency hopping, and it’s it’s a cycle of five milliseconds. So you’re not going to get that one millisecond time that you get via wired IO link. We do a five millisecond cycle time, and then it’s using this frequency hopping method. It’s basically cable grade, connection, 10 to the minus nine error probability. You can have hundreds of wireless devices in a machine, and it’s deterministic. It’s designed it is designed from the outside for both for control, of course, but, of course, also for for monitoring and maybe, like, a brownfield. You wanna you can’t get IO Link to a sensor or something that you can maybe use IO Link wireless to get access to some some hard to reach sensor. Shawn Tierney (Host): Well, you know, I thought that I think this is so

This episode of the Pipeliners Podcast features a discussion with Marissa Anderson of Magnolia River and Gary Choquette of PRCI about the Pipeline Open Data Standard (PODS) and the new SCADA Link module. The conversation explores how PODS provides a geospatial framework for managing pipeline data, the value of linking SCADA data to precise pipeline locations, and the broader implications for leak detection, hydraulic modeling, and asset management. The guests also highlight the importance of data standards and governance in advancing safety and efficiency across the pipeline industry.   Visit PipelinePodcastNetwork.com for a full episode transcript, as well as detailed show notes with relevant links and insider term definitions.

Send us a textWe take a special tour of the IBW 357 Southern Nevada Chapter NECA Electrical Training Facility in Las Vegas, exploring their comprehensive apprenticeship programs and state-of-the-art training labs for ICT professionals.• Tour guide Matthew Apfel, Assistant Training Director, showcases the 25,000 square foot facility with 10 classrooms and 10 attached labs• The facility houses two separate apprenticeship programs: telecommunications installer technician (6,500 hours) and inside journeyman wireman (8,000 hours)• Hands-on training includes access control systems, where students interact with live systems and networks• The PoE and fault managed power lab features multiple racks that simulate live networks and installations• Students learn fusion splicing using equipment from partners like Fiber Fox, including training on specialized OPGW (Optical Power Ground Wire)• Training incorporates both legacy systems (66 blocks, Krone blocks) and modern technologies• Fire life safety system training prepares students for Nevada State Fire Marshal certification• The instrumentation and cybersecurity lab teaches students about modern building automation, SCADA systems, and secure network-connected devicesIf you're watching this show on YouTube and you like this content, please hit the bell button and subscribe to be notified when new content is produced. If you're listening on one of the audio podcast platforms, please leave us a five-star rating to help us take on the algorithm.Support the showKnowledge is power! Make sure to stop by the webpage to buy me a cup of coffee or support the show at https://linktr.ee/letstalkcabling . Also if you would like to be a guest on the show or have a topic for discussion send me an email at chuck@letstalkcabling.com Chuck Bowser RCDD TECH#CBRCDD #RCDD

Episode Summary: In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, host Benoy Thanjan sits down with Daniel Dus, CEO of Clean Tech Industry Resources (CIR) and founder of Solar Fight Night. Daniel shares his unique perspective on how his company is reshaping solar development through “Development as a Service” and “Construction as a Service” models, making it easier for developers, financiers, and EPCs to scale projects efficiently. Benoy and Daniel dive into industry trends, lessons learned from years of experience, and how CIR is positioning itself as a critical partner in today's fast-changing renewable energy landscape. The conversation also highlights one of the largest renewable-energy fundraising events coming up at RE+ in Las Vegas, Solar Fight Night, and why community and collaboration are more important than ever.   Biographies Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, solar developer and consulting firm, and a strategic advisor to multiple cleantech startups. Over his career, Benoy has developed over 100 MWs of solar projects across the U.S., helped launch the first residential solar tax equity funds at Tesla, and brokered $45 million in Renewable Energy Credits (“REC”) transactions. Prior to founding Reneu Energy, Benoy was the Environmental Commodities Trader in Tesla's Project Finance Group, where he managed one of the largest environmental commodities portfolios. He originated REC trades and co-developed a monetization and hedging strategy with senior leadership to enter the East Coast market. As Vice President at Vanguard Energy Partners, Benoy crafted project finance solutions for commercial-scale solar portfolios. His role at Ridgewood Renewable Power, a private equity fund with 125 MWs of U.S. renewable assets, involved evaluating investment opportunities and maximizing returns. He also played a key role in the sale of the firm's renewable portfolio. Earlier in his career, Benoy worked in Energy Structured Finance at Deloitte & Touche and Financial Advisory Services at Ernst & Young, following an internship on the trading floor at D.E. Shaw & Co., a multi billion dollar hedge fund. Benoy holds an MBA in Finance from Rutgers University and a BS in Finance and Economics from NYU Stern, where he was an Alumni Scholar.   Daniel Dus 18 years in renewable energy C-suite and Board roles, overseeing the completion of over $1 billion worth of renewable energy projects spanning 23 states nationwide. MBA, Stanford Certified Project Manager, Villanova Certified Six Sigma Master Lean Blackbelt, Certificates in Energy Hedging, NERC, Grid Security and SCADA. Previously led the US division of a $32 billion top-three global, fully integrated renewable energy platform, which encompassed PV manufacturing to asset ownership, and was a vital part of a $100 billion multinational corporation. Achieved notable project honors, including a Congressional Certificate of Recognition from the US House of Representatives, Recognition for an Innovative Public-Private Partnership from The White House, and the title of Best Solar Collaboration by Solar Power Generation USA. Served a diverse array of clients, including JP Morgan Chase, Hertz, Westfield Malls, Bridgestone, UCLA, Intuit, Hilton, Panasonic, Macerich, CBS Studios, and numerous cities, such as Los Angeles, Pasadena, San Diego, Santa Monica, Breckenridge, Aurora, Orange, and Southbridge. Seasoned executive with extensive experience in the renewable energy sector. Recognized as the Founder of Shared Estates and Co-Founder of Solar Fight Night, the largest renewable energy non-profit fundraiser worldwide.   Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com  LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com    Daniel Dus Linkedin:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielrdus/ Website:  https://cleantechindustryresources.com/ Solar Fight Night:  https://www.solarfightnight.org/   This episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast is brought to you by Leo Berwick. Leo Berwick is a tax, valuation, cost segregation, modeling and financial due diligence advisory firm focused on infrastructure, energy, renewables, and private equity. They are a carefully curated team of top talent within each of these core disciplines. Their sector focus and coordinated teams allow them to move fast, stay efficient, and get deals done.  Whether it's tax structuring, due diligence, financial modeling, valuations, or post-deal support, Leo Berwick covers the full deal lifecycle.  With decades of experience and an acute awareness of commercial considerations that can make or break a deal, Leo Berwick is helping investors unlock value in some of the most important sectors of the future.  To learn more, visit leoberwick.com.

⚡ Collapse Chronicles – Episode: EMP / Solar Event