Automation Portals

Electrical & Control Panels Portal

Articles

		Managing the risk of arc flash - 05/20/12 Control Engineering, May 2012 By Jack Smith Understanding arc flash risks requires knowing the data. Arc flash occurs five to 10 times a day in the U.S. Major injuries can be as serious as third- or fourth-degree burns. The average cost just for medical treatment is about $1.5 million. The total cost including litigation can easily be $8 million to $10 million.

		Specify Backup Power That Fits - 05/18/12 Maintenance Technology, May 2012 By Michael Kirchner, Generac Power Systems Adequate backup power contributes to peace of mind, because downtime means lost revenue. Thus, specifying a backup-power system that’s appropriate to a particular application requires attention to several details.

		Know Your Cables and Connectors - 05/13/12 Automation World, May 2012 By David Greenfield Although the physical layer of cables and transmission rates may often be the same, there are number of significant differences between industrial grade and commercial grade Ethernet cables and connectors.

		Industrial networks and their connections - 05/13/12 Automation, April 2012 By Gerd Klaiber, Molex There is an ever increasing number of levels within the automation industry, particularly in the area of networking. For each level, there are several techniques that have been developed for data transmission and processing – each is equipped with different connectors and cabling systems.

		Which is the best material for your application's enclosure? - 04/25/12 MachineBuilding.net, April 2012 By Chris Lloyd, Spelsberg It can be hard to pin down the enclosure type that is best for your application, both in terms of performance and cost, so what are the key considerations when specifying an enclosure’s construction material?


		Enclosures: Critical Specification Factors - 04/25/12 Automation World, April 2012 By David Greenfield When it comes to automation technologies, most of the focus is on the devices inside the cabinet. However, selection and assembly of the box that contains your critical electronic devices is no less important.

		PoE+ networks: how to keep a hot application running cool - 04/21/12 Industrial Ethernet Book, April 2012 By Siemon The advent of PoE Plus (IEEE 802.3at) brought to light a new problem in delivering power over structured cabling systems. The higher supply currents drawn by 802.3at devices has the potential to create a significant temperature rise within the cabling.

		What is the Condition of Your Insulator? - 04/18/12 Transmission & Distribution, March 2012 By Andrew Phillips, EPRI, et al Hot-stick tool identifies high-risk composite insulators prior to live work. An essential requirement for ensuring worker safety when performing live work with transmission composite insulators is to confirm both the electrical and mechanical integrity of installed polymer units as well as any replacement units.

		Control panel design: Easier access - 04/07/12 Control Engineering, April 2012 By Lynne Keener, Mencom Panel interface connectors (PICs) or access ports enable a user to test and maintain equipment without opening the panel. This arc mitigation solution alleviates the need for personal protection equipment (PPE) and the need for a trained electrician to de-energize the system.

		Single loop integrity: replacing devices while operational - 04/07/12 What’s New in Process Technology, April 2012 By Phoenix Contact Scalable fieldbus couplers can now be simply hot-swapped. As a consequence, the single loop integrity proven for parallel wiring is now also possible for fieldbus systems.

		How to select the right connector - 04/07/12 Process & Control Engineering, March 2012 By Bernd Horrmeyer, Phoenix Contact Whether classic fieldbus, Industrial Ethernet or the new High-Speed Ethernet, plug connectors must always be used depending on the particular application area, transmission medium and environmental requirements.

		What are the true costs of poor power quality? - 04/07/12 Process & Control Engineering, April 2012 By Chris Halliday The loss of power or poor power quality can significantly hurt a business in terms of lost production and disruption to operations.

		Arc Flash: Not My Fault - 03/21/12 Control Design, March 2012 By Aaron Hand End users are responsible for keeping workers safe from electrical hazards, but more of the onus is now on machine builders

		Smart Grid's Information Capabilities Help Control Energy Use - 03/14/12 Building Operating Management, March 2012 By Karen Kroll Smart grid devices and systems that can transmit information about a facility's energy use enhance a facility manager's ability to measure and manage building power use.

		Smart Grid: What Facility Managers Need to Know - 03/14/12 Building Operating Management, March 2012 By Karen Kroll By understanding energy usage patterns, facility managers can better adjust their use and reduce costs. As a result, the application of smart grid technology likely will change how facility managers operate their buildings.

		Terminations for the Apocalypse - 03/12/12 Industrial Networking, February 2012 By John Rezabek What if our workplaces are battered by plagues of locusts, floods, hurricanes and/or earthquakes? What's the likelihood your terminations will stay under the screws?

		Mobile Industrial Worker - 03/10/12 Control Engineering, March 2012 By Peter Granger, Cisco Technologies have enabled industrial workers to get mobile, and there’s no going back.

		Optimize Signal Clarity in an Industrial Network - 03/10/12 Control Engineering, March 2012 By Galen Gareis, Belden Physical layer issues account for more than half of network installation problems—noise, ground loops, signal reflection, and cross-talk among them. Improve signal clarity with this advice.

		How to Build the Control Room of the Future - 03/10/12 Control, March 2012 By Jim Montague Sleek flatscreens and sparkling consoles may be intoxicating, but designing and constructing a truly useful control room requires more forethought and planning and less impulse equipment buying.

		Pick Right, and Service Is Free - 02/25/12 Control Design, February 2012 By Dan Hebert Does it annoy you when automation suppliers charge for technical support? Do you think this service should be free, or at least built into the cost of the original product? Here’s how to get free service.

		7 cable management mistakes to avoid - 02/20/12 Automation.com, February 2012 By Igus To prevent unnecessary downtime, your cable management system must be correctly specified, designed, and installed. Here are seven common cable management mistakes and how you can avoid making them.

		Smarter marshalling - 02/17/12 South Africa Instrumentation & Control, February 2012 By Andrew Ashton The more terminations in a loop, the more the effort and cost of installation, the more potential there is for installation errors (open circuit/crossed wires) and the more the effort required for cold commissioning checks. Marshalling can help.

		Specifying Nuclear DCS Power Supplies - 02/17/12 Power, February 2012 By Paul E. Stanley, et al, Hurst Technologies Power supplies are critical to the success of converting analog instrumentation and control systems to digital control systems (DCSs). Careful planning is particularly necessary for nuclear power plants.

		Uninterruptible power supplies and cybersecurity - 02/04/12 InTech, February 2012 By Michael A. Stout Every network connected device in a data or SCADA network is a potential backdoor—even a UPS connected to the company’s Ethernet network for remote monitoring and management could be compromised by a hacker.

		The Effective Use of High-Speed Isolated DA Systems for Rapid Transient Electrical Measurements - 01/22/12 Sensors, January 2012 By Mike Hoyer, HBM, and Molly Chamberlin, Embassy Global Lightning strikes, electrical arcs, and power-transmission switchgear testing involve fast, short-duration, high-voltage electrical transients that can wreak havoc on systems; acquiring data on these transients requires specialized hardware and know-how.

		A Proper Assessment - 01/22/12 Process Heating, January 2012 By Blair McGrath and Sudhir Thorat, Tyco Thermal Controls The plate test helps users accurately assess the maximum sheath temperature of mineral-insulated heat tracing cables.

		Keeping outdoor control cabinets locked up tight - 12/28/11 Machine Design, December 2011 By Gregory Breads, Dirak It’s critical to specify enclosure latches and hardware that will withstand the weather, without complicating the jobs of the technicians who do visit to fix problems or upgrade equipment.

		Possibilities Of Touch - 12/28/11 Industrial Automation Asia, December 2011 By Shahnawaz Abdul Hamid An investigation into the range of uses of capacitive touch sensors in the automation industry and how these intuitive gadgets work.

		Enclosing the answers - 12/27/11 Instrumentation, November 2011 When protecting components, small enclosures and those used for handheld devices need to offer a number of features, ranging from being lightweight to withstanding vibration or weather conditions.

		Benefits of entire drive train optimization - 12/18/11 Control Engineering Europe, December 2011 According to analysis conducted by the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association, ZVEI, the energy saving potential by using high-efficiency motors is 10%, by using frequency converters it is 30% and by optimising the drive system it is 60%.

		Remote location power surge protection - 12/07/11 InTech, December 2011 By David Torres When planning a remote installation, consider proper grounding and bonding, the correct surge protection device (SPD) for the job, and proper installation. When installed correctly, it is possible to protect a remote site from lightning or other surge events.

		Merging Thermal Storage with Load Shifting for Efficient Cooling - 11/16/11 Automated Buildings, November 2011 By Adam VanOort, DataNab Power costs are highest during peak times of the day — say 1-4pm — when energy usage is maxed out. The theory behind load shifting is to use more power when it’s cheap and less power when it’s expensive.

		What is the Value of Reliable Power? - 11/16/11 Building Operating Management, October 2011 By Loren Snyder In the case of power reliability, facility managers have to measure both the direct and indirect costs of outages. By assessing the effects of an outage, planning for additional reliability, and then making the case with an organization's executives, facility managers can minimize revenue loss.

		Intelligent Control Room Management For Oil And Gas Pipeline Safety - 11/14/11 Pipeline & Gas Journal, November 2011 By Paul Thoman, et al This article discusses how intelligent control room management, based on a foundation of electronic standard operating procedures (eSOPs), can address the regulations, document the necessary actions for compliance validation, and drive operational excellence.

		End to ad-hoc cabling: structure underwrites Industrial Ethernet - 11/05/11 Industrial Ethernet Book, October 2011 By Kevin Canham, Harting The introduction of Ethernet into industrial and automation applications has led to a critical review and reassessment of cabling strategies. The key issue is whether ad-hoc cabling, which has been the norm in the industry, is adequate to meet future needs.

		The stress of reliability around automation network cabling - 11/05/11 Industrial Ethernet Book, October 2011 By Giuseppe Di Lorenzo Communication and networking cables that attach machines to the plant are being developed to cope with increasing data rates and physical speeds - all with high reliability.

		Electrical Safety Offshore - 11/05/11 Process & Control Today, November 2011 Offshore safety is not simply about protecting the environment; effective protection of personnel and equipment is also crucial. In electrical installations specifically, one of the most serious hazards is arc flash.

		Energy-efficient enclosure climate control - 11/05/11 What’s New in Process Technology, October 2011 By Rittal Depending on the surrounding temperature and other ambient conditions, it is imperative that enclosures be cooled to ensure the proper performance of installed components and avoid heat-related downtime.

		How to achieve redundancy in power supply systems - 11/05/11 Process & Control Engineering, November 2011 By Weidmuller Redundancy is paramount when extreme reliability is required in power supply systems, as is the case in the DC supply to a DCS or PLC control system.

		Sensor and Actuator Circuits: Safety & Reliablility - 10/21/11 Industrial Automation Asia, September 2011 By Erich Fischer, E-T-A Modern power supplies require designs that can provide effective overload and short-circuit protection for field devices.

		Panel Meters Take Control - 10/18/11 Control Design, October 2011 By Jim Montague Panel meters now can do control in the process, and so many users don't need all the PLCs and SCADA software they had to use in the past.

		Controlling smart grids - 10/15/11 Power-Technology.com, October 2011 As utilities modernise their networks toward smart grids, they also need to modernise their control systems. Article covers the shift towards designing maintenance and operational centres that are fully automated, decentralised and capable of self-healing.

		A Simple Lesson in Arc Flash Avoidance - 09/20/11 IEN, September 2011 Few workplaces have taken the necessary steps to implement procedures that ensure arc flash safety. Instead, many have delayed the installation of equipment that can help them prevent arc flash accidents from occurring in their facility.

		Connectors in Unexpected Settings - 09/11/11 Industrial Networking, Fall 2011 By Jim Montague Connectors are showing up in so many applications outside of factory automation.

		Reduce energy consumption with plastic cable carriers - 08/17/11 Automation.com, August 2011 By Joe Ciringione Cable carrier systems not only transport energy, data and media to various types of machines, but also greatly influence energy costs. To keep energy costs low, one important consideration is the amount of pull-push, or driving force, that is required at a given speed to move the cable carrier.

		Harvest time - 08/13/11 What’s New in Process Technology, August 2011 By ABB Energy harvesting is the process by which energy (ambient, motion, wind, light), derived from external sources, is captured and stored to supply power for low-energy electronics. Ambient energy is available in abundance in the process industry and it is here that energy harvesting is beginning to make its mark.

		Smart Grid for industrial disciplines - 08/07/11 InTech, August 2011 By Barry Contrael Smart Grid is a new buzzword in industrial circles. As with every previous initiative, it requires a bit of education to get to the point where you understand how you can implement it in a way that does more than go through the motions.

		The Connection Is Purely Physical - 07/22/11 Control Design, July 2011 By Dan Hebert t's impossible to automate a machine without terminal blocks and connectors, so that makes them rather critical components. Although terminal blocks and connectors have been around for a long time, innovations continue.

		Electrical safety offshore - reducing risk without reducing outputs - 07/22/11 HazardEx, June 2011 By Kenny Mitchell, Dron & Dickson When it comes to the repair, inspection and maintenance of electrical equipment there are few environments where strict adherence to the correct processes and procedures is more crucial than on an offshore petrochemical asset.

		Getting The Best Smart Meter Value For Your Money - 07/06/11 Power Engineer, June 2011 By Mark Englund Getting the best for your money is an important focus for those tasked with selecting the best option for meter design. It's tempting, when planning your smart meter rollout to go for the simplest and seemingly safest design option. But does that get you the best bang for your buck?

		Advanced Lubrication Technology For High Voltage Electrical Equipment - 07/06/11 Energy-Tech, May 2011 Industry experts estimate that about half of all wear in industrial equipment is in some way related to lubrication. High voltage electrical equipment found in transmission and distribution substations faces different challenges than mechanical equipment located in food plants or manufacturing plants.

		Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting - 06/28/11 Sensors, June 2011 By Jim O'Callaghan, EnOcean Thermal energy harvesting can capture the power from the temperature differentials, enabling its use to power HVAC controls such as water valves, variable air volume vents (VAVs), and diffusers.

		Flexibility Pulls Cables to New Areas - 06/27/11 Control Design, June 2011 By Jim Montague Ethernet is proliferating everywhere... so they all need more high-flexibility, longer-life cables.

		Be In Control - 06/12/11 Process Heating, June 2011 By Monica Dickson, Watlow Understanding short-circuit current rating (SCCR) assignment options for industrial control panels is the first step in avoiding risk.

		Combining Power and Automation Products to Serve Customers - 05/27/11 Automation.com, May 2011 By Bill Lydon, Editor ABB creates new role, appoints Brice Koch, to oversee relations with ABB’s largest customers and the development of opportunities in strategic growth areas such as rail, wind, water, solar, energy efficiency and smart grids. Koch will also be responsible for developing ABB’s service business.

		Electrical And Enclosure Safety For Solar Energy Projects - 05/18/11 IMPO, May 2011 By Jeff Seagle, Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures Photovoltaics (PV) is a method of generating electrical power by converting solar radiation into direct current electricity using semiconductors. As more plants move towards alternative sources of energy, building maintenance personnel face new demands when it comes to safety and compliance.

		A World Without Wire? - 05/14/11 Assembly, April 2011 By Austin Weber The ultimate alternative to traditional wiring harnesses is wireless technology. In the near future, energy harvesting and inductive power transfer technology may replace electrical wires, power cords and batteries in a wide variety of applications.

		From the Field - ABB Automation and Power World 2011 - 05/11/11 Automation.com, May 2011 By Bill Lydon, Editor Here are a few highlights from ABB Automation & Power World 2011. The event attracted a record number of participants, totaling more than 4,200, and featured over 400 educational workshops and hands-on training sessions, over 45 customer-presented case studies, and an exhibition of ABB and partner products.

		Overview of the Americas Market for Hard Wired Surge Suppressors - 05/05/11 Automation.com, May 2011 By David A. B. Laing, VDC Research Group VDC Research Group teamed up with Automation.com to conduct a survey on the market for power protection products including the hard wired surge suppressors often used in industrial machines and facilities. This article provides a summary of those survey results.

		Multivendor Ethernet Safety Protocol - Noble Goal - 04/29/11 Automation.com, April 2011 By Bill Lydon, Editor The openSAFETY standard supporters are posing an interesting idea to the industry - use a single Ethernet-based safety protocol, openSAFETY, on all automation applications regardless of industrial Ethernet protocol used for controls.

		Actively improving quality - 04/24/11 What’s New in Process Technology, April 2011 The increasing use of nonlinear loads introduces potentially harmful current harmonics that can lead to overheating of cables, motors and transformers, damage to sensitive equipment, tripping of circuit breakers and blowing of fuses as well as premature aging of the installation. Active filters provide a reliable and cost-effective solution.

		Choosing The Right Power Supply For Portable Hydraulics - 04/18/11 IMPO, March 2011 by Jon Tan, Enerpac Because of the varying operating ranges and capabilities of these portable labour-savers, many factors have to be taken into consideration when deciding which type and style of hydraulic tool is most suitable for any particular application.

		Dynamic Energy Management - 04/18/11 Automated Buildings, April 2011 By Peter Kelly-Detwiler, Constellation Energy Using demand response as a foundation, dynamic energy management takes the load monitoring and curtailment strategy a step further to combine the power of spot market intelligence, real-time monitoring, and automation technology to provide a complete and instant picture of current power usage and cost.

		Back to Basics: Simplify device-level wiring - 04/17/11 Control Engineering, April 2011 By Richard Chung, Eaton Faster connectivity, data monitoring, and circuit protection are among advantages of device-level wiring solutions.

		Electrical Computer-Aided Engineering (E-CAE) software - 04/09/11 InTech, April 2011 By Özlem Falkiewicz Electrical Computer-Aided Engineering (E-CAE) software has been shown to enhance controls hardware engineering in many traditional and new industries.

		Get Out of Your Enclosures Box - 03/26/11 Control Design, March 2011 By Aaron Hand Custom enclosures can mean anything from getting a better fit for the desired space to filling the box with needed components.

		How to prevent power surges - 03/26/11 South Africa Instrumentation & Control, March 2011 By Jasmine Lin, Moxa Industrial automation operators generally understand that power surges pose a serious threat to their systems and take steps to reduce this threat. Not only do power surges damage and destroy equipment, they cause costly interruptions.

		Smart-Energy Consumption via an Open Ecosystem - 03/20/11 Automation.com, March 2011 By Tony Paine, Kepware Technologies Expect in 2011 to see smart grid solutions, smart meters, and a real-time, automated, metering infrastructure (AMI) to be rolled out across the country.

		Electrical-Safety Sense: Risk Control Hierarchy - 02/17/11 Maintenance Technology, February 2011 By Phil Allen, Grace Engineered Products The Risk Control Hierarchy (RCH) in the ANSI-Z10 standard provides electrical-safety professionals with an excellent roadmap for setting the right safety objectives that result in the reduction of electrical risks.

		When VFDs Can't Detect A Ground Fault - 02/17/11 Maintenance Technology, February 2011 You may be putting your personnel and motors at risk. Driven by concerns over arc-flash hazards, more plants are converting to high-resistance ground (HRG) electrical systems.

		The Industry Demands Better Demand Response - 02/14/11 Automated Buildings, February 2011 By Michael Zimmerman, BuildingIQ To provide a scalable, widely-adopted and valuable Smart Grid program for the commercial building sector, the industry needs a much more fundamental increase in the intelligence of their Inside the Meter DR systems.

		Totally Terminal, Man - 02/11/11 Industrial Networking, February 2011 By John Rezabek One of the reasons butt splices are taboo in plants is their tendency to become troubleshooting nightmares in the future.

		Cable Carrier Specification - 02/11/11 Design News, January 2011 By Joseph Ciringione, igus When designing machines, cable carriers are critical to protecting the cables and hoses used in the moving parts of the system. Here are the key specification points for making the right cable carrier decisions.

		Rockwell Automation's pursuit of process control - 01/31/11 Automation.com, February 2011 I recently interviewed the two key executives leading Rockwell Automation’s process industry initiative, Som Chakraborti and Steve Pulsifer. We discussed their focus on the process markets, PlantPAx, the sales channel, Ethernet/IP, wireless, and how they compare to traditional DCS systems.

		Bonding And Grounding Issues In Power Distribution Systems - 01/22/11 Maintenance Technology, January 2011 By Frank Waterer, Schneider Electric A stable power supply is the backbone of any building, plant or facility. Failures or instability resulting from a poorly designed power distribution system can negatively impact safety, production and the bottom line of a company's operations.

		Automation Standards Are More Like Guidelines - 01/16/11 Control, January 2011 By Jim Montague The IEC 61131-3 standard for programming PLCs is a non-standard because many of its rules are so generally stated, and because it allows so many exceptions and proprietary software extensions that its initial definitions and original promise of portability of software between devices is unfulfilled.

		Muxes and Field-Sourced Power - 01/16/11 Control, January 2011 By John Rezabek Unlike traditional remote I/O solutions, Electronic Marshalling collapses knife edge disconnects and I/O conditioning to a small module that publishes the signal to an "I/O cloud" accessible by controllers.

		All That Noise - 01/16/11 Mechanical Engineering, January 2011 By Jack Thornton Noise is the unwanted data that accompanies all but the simplest measurements. And according to experts in the field of digital simulation, noise in data can be costly, in terms of time, money, and error, when it gets into computer analysis of engineering designs.

		Sensor and Actuator Circuits: Safety & Reliablility - 01/09/11 Industrial Automation Asia, January 2011 By Erich Fischer, E-T-A Germany The failure of the I/O field voltage not only has a devastating impact on process value acquisition, process visualisation and mandatory plant reporting, but may even bring entire field sections to a standstill.

		Will Panel Builders Soon Rule The World? - 01/09/11 Process & Control Today, January 2011 By Stuart Harvey, SoftStart UK Previously, the battle cry was always “cut costs.” But now the drive is to improve value, add functionality, integrate operations, improve performance, increase system working life, design out operating costs, cut energy use, and reduce downtime. And the humble control panel is at the heart of all the above.

		Molded-On Cordsets: A Cost-Effective, Convenient Solution for Power Distribution - 12/23/10 By Jay Bartsias, TURCK NFPA 79 code permits the use of molded-on cordsets—including quick-disconnect connectors and rugged cable for exposed-run installations—for powering motors, pumps and other machinery. Here’s how to apply them instead of using hard wiring.

		Significant Financial Gains Come with Upgrading an Aging Control System to More Modern Technology - 12/21/10 Automation.com, December 2010 By upgrading aging control systems, manufacturers and processing companies are optimizing production flow and enjoying significant gains in productivity and ROI on their control system investments.

		Wire and Cable: A No-Brainer? - 12/18/10 Industrial Networking, December 2010 By John Rezabek Wire and cable once was pretty simple. For point-to-point analog and discretes, we just bought the same thing all the time, without many concerns beyond price and availability. High-speed digital networks changed all that, so here’s a brief look at cable from the inside out.

		Trees and Rings - 12/18/10 Industrial Networking, December 2010 By Ian Verhappen The lower you go in the OSI model, the more failures there are, and 72% of failures occur in the first three layers. These faults include hardware failures, cabling failures, power losses, programming misconfigurations, etc.

		Rockwell Automation Fair 2010 - Smart, Safe & Sustainable Manufacturing Automation.com, December 2010 Highlights from Automation Fair 2010 include an overview of Rockwell Automation's process control initiatives, their vision of a standard, unmodified Ethernet infrastructure, and the release of the Micro800 PLC product line, designed specifically for machine builders.

		Choosing Between Soft Starters and Drives - 12/07/10 Automation.com, December 2010 Regardless of their application, motors that are started across the line require large amounts of energy when accelerating quickly to full speed. Both RVSSs and VFDs reduce AC RMS voltage and reduce inrush currents, and consequently starting torque, by as much as 30% to 70% compared to across-the-line starting.

		Are Your Transformers Ready for the Smart Grid? - 11/24/10 Utility Products, October 2010 By Mike Dickinson Most of today's transformers are not ready for the smart grid because they were placed into service years before the age of interactive information transfer. Building the next generation of transformers will require incorporating remote monitoring of a wide range of transformer and system parameters.

		Updating Your Electrical Safety Knowledge - 11/21/10 Maintenance Technology, November 2010 By Joseph Weigel, Square D Services Avoid devastating accidents by following the safety steps and standards listed here.

		Wireless Meters--The Real Hotspot - 11/21/10 Automated Buildings, November 2010 By Jim Sinopoli, Smart Buildings Wireless communication can be built into the meter or a wireless transceiver can be added as an adjunct to an existing meter. Here’s a roundup of what’s available.

		Workplace Safety: Understand the Shocking Truth - 11/21/10 Chemical Processing, November 2010 By Graham Tyers, Newson Gale Dissipating static electricity is crucial for avoiding ignition risks in hazardous areas. Static electricity is the prime culprit for at least two serious fires or explosions in industry worldwide every day of the year.

		Electric Components Open New Doors for Suppliers - 11/07/10 Assembly, October 2010 By Austin Weber To meet growing demand for electric vehicles, engineers are developing a new generation of products. There’s a big need for smaller, lighter, more robust and less expensive components that can meet the demanding high-temperature requirement of in-vehicle applications.

		Panel Meters Simplify Design - 10/20/10 Control Design, October 2010 By Dan Hebert A panel meter will beat any LCD-Based HMI in terms of cost and simplicity.

		Enclosure purging and pressurization - 10/13/10 InTech, October 2010 By Chris Romano, Pepperl+Fuchs Purging and pressurizing systems is one of the most versatile explosion protection methods. These systems are based on the principle that a gas mixture in the atmosphere, which may ignite under certain circumstances, is removed from the housing by a purge process.

		Energy Harvesting and Wireless Sensors Ready for Prime Time - 09/30/10 By Dr Peter Harrop, IDTechEx Energy harvesting is the conversion of ambient energy into electricity to drive small or mobile electronic and electrical devices.

		Rugged Enclosures Protect Electronics in Increasingly Automated Utilities - 09/25/10 Utility Products, September 2010 By Erik Felt As smart grid components are deployed, more electronics are added to the mix. These critical components are sensitive to climate change, moisture, dust, dirt and other elements and must be housed in enclosures designed for their specific environments.

		Ensuring industrial electrical safety - 09/24/10 Plant Services, September 2010 By Michael Sa, OSHA Training Center Raise the level of electrical hazard awareness: Every employee should know these elements of electrical safety.

		The Counterfeit Conundrum: Protecting Company And Customer - 09/24/10 Manufacturing.net, September 2010 By Duane Sword, vice president, Thermo Scientific Manufacturers need to be prepared to protect their brand, product and customers. Technology is needed to differentiate between legitimate products and counterfeits so that fakes can be kept out of the supply chain and out of customers’ hands.

		Natural gas quality monitoring over the Internet - No programmers required - 09/21/10 Automation.com, September 2010 By Bill Lydon The PlantGard natural gas remote monitoring device allows easy access to real-time 24/7 gas quality updates remotely through a mobile device. The unit consists of a laser device and a NI CompactRIO controller that monitors particle distribution, flow rate, and process conditions in the pipeline.

		Your Next Network Connection Could Be a Powerline - 09/12/10 Machine Design, August 2010 By Leland E. Teschler Goodbye to fieldbus? Maybe so, if a new generation of powerline-communication gear lives up to expectations. Smart-grid applications for power-line communications could pave the way for using the technology as a less-expensive fieldbus networking scheme.

		Find the Bottlenecks - 09/12/10 Control Design, September 2010 By Jeremy Pollard If you're going to be creating a server-based system with some clients on the floor and using any connection method, then you'll need to find the bottlenecks. So, where are the bottlenecks and the big issues?

		Soapbox: Fight against counterfeit electrical products - 09/10/10 Control Engineering, August 2010 By Tom Grace, Eaton The counterfeiting of electrical products, which have the potential to affect our health and safety, should be of concern to everyone. Do you know the 6 tips to avoid counterfeit electrical products?

		Electrical design software gaining more acceptance Automation.com, September 2010 By Bill Lydon As U.S. companies gain a better understanding of their costs and risks on projects, more are beginning to use electrical design software. This shift has led to a greater focus on efficiency and systemizing knowledge – ideal for what these software systems accomplish.

		Copper Theft: Out of Control - 08/30/10 Utility Products, August 2010 By David Lambert The 2008 Copper Theft Report showed that U.S. utilities spent more than $60 million and experienced over 456,000 outage minutes. It also showed that 52 injuries and 35 deaths occurred because of copper theft. With 95% of U.S. utilities experiencing some degree of copper theft, it is a big problem.

		Time for Innovation declared at NIWeek 2010 Automation.com, August 2010 By Bill Lydon NIWeek 2010 attracted a record 3000 engineers, scientists and researchers from all over the world. Dr. James Truchard highlighted how NI's products help users become more like Edison by enabling them to innovate more quickly. Jeff Kodosky elaborated on their innovative research on distributed real-time systems and the tight integration of hardware configuration along with timing.

		Smart Grid tour educates industry and consumers - 07/27/10 Automation.com, July 2010 By Bill Lydon While the Smart Grid is going to take some time to develop, investing in energy conservation and efficiency has always made sense. Siemens Smart Grid Tour educates industry and consumers using thought-leadership panels, videos, interactive demos, and educational sessions on topics including automation, power distribution, generation, and transmission.

		Surge protector: Superconductor cable prevents grid blackouts - 07/24/10 Reliable Plant, July 2010 A surge-suppressing superconductor cable under development could be used to link substations, providing backup sources of electricity in the event part of the grid experiences an outage. The Resilient Electric Grid project will help ensure the nation’s utilities can withstand power surges that cause blackouts.

		Industry Perspectives from Honeywell User Group 2010 - 07/20/10 Automation.com, July 2010 By Bill Lydon Review the industry perspectives, technology and solutions from HUG Americas 2010. Highlights include an overview of five megatrends identified by Norm Gilsdorf, Honeywell's commitment to legacy products, training and service, and introduction of a new RTU, safety remote IO, in-controller batch manager, and turbo machine controller. Plus, see an example of control system virtualization.

		The elephant in the room: corrosion and its cost to industry - 07/18/10 Manufacturers’ Monthly, June 2010 By Steve Drury The high cost of corrosion continues to be a major challenge for mining, defence, manufacturing and general industry. An extremely difficult issue to manage, corrosion continues to present a highly intrusive and disruptive cost impost to business & supply chain operations.

		Four Ways to Enhance ESD Protection After Your Design Flunks Its ESD Test - 07/18/10 Machine Design, July 2010 By Chad Marak and Jim Colby, Silicon Protection Arrays You thought your electrostatic-discharge protection was bulletproof, yet the IC still fried in test. Now what?

		Environment Could Affect Choice of Terminal Blocks or Their Enclosures - 07/18/10 Control Design, July 2010 By Mike Bacidore Protect your terminal blocks: potential corrosion and vibration impact which choice is best.

		Driving Technology and Innovation Together Automation.com, July 2010 By Bill Lydon Review the technology and innovations presented by Siemens at their recent 2010 Automation Summit, held in Charlotte, NC. Highlights include Siemens’ focus on energy, advancements in their process control offering, their industrial communications strategy and new distributed panel devices.

		Power conditioning - 07/13/10 InTech, June 2010 By Michael A. Stout This article keeps the scope limited to power conditioning products under 10kVA, however much of the discussion is applicable to larger capacity products as well.

		Cabling A Reliable VFD System - 07/11/10 Industrial Automation Asia, July 2010 By Brian Shuman, Belden Selecting an appropriate VFD cable can improve overall drive system longevity and reliability by mitigating the impact of reflected waves.

		Integrating distributed energy resources into the smart grid - Part 1 - 07/10/10 What’s New in Process Technology, July 2010 By Gary Frederich and Patric Dove, Advantech The electrical power generation, transmission and distribution system thrived for decades with limited intelligence. But present and future demands are necessitating a transition to a smart grid, particularly the need to incorporate distributed energy resources (DERs) into the generation mix.

		IP ratings- Don’t be misled by the numbers - 07/10/10 HazardEX, July 2010 The system of IP ratings is misleading many specifiers and resulting in higher costs than are strictly necessary. The common mistake is to assume that the higher the IP rating, the better the equipment inside the enclosure will be protected against weather conditions.

		Composite Utility Poles Emerge as Winner in Many Regions and Climates - 06/25/10 Utility Products, June 2010 Composite utility poles offer a high-strength, durable, lightweight and maintenance-free solution that makes installation and line design easy. These benefits can help offset higher upfront costs of composite poles; longer lifespan, decreased freight and quicker installation contribute to an overall total lower pole ownership cost.

		The big switch-around - 06/25/10 Nuclear Engineering International, June 2010 By Will Dalrymple An increasing number of nuclear power plant unit outages are due to failing switchyard transformers and problems with breakers, disconnect switches, and junction boxes. What's causing it?

		Standards, Manufacturing Upgrades Affect Wire and Cable Performance - 06/23/10 Control Design, June 2010 By Mike Bacidore The electrical characteristics for cable must meet or exceed performance standards set by a variety of organization, including TIA/EIA and ISO/IEC, and Ethernet applications defined by IEEE, as well as safety codes by NEC and NFPA.

		The power of integration exemplified at ABB A&PW 2010 By Bill Lydon, Automation.com The "Connect, Learn, Succeed" theme of this event was about users forming stronger working relationships with ABB. The event brought the opportunity to connect across disciplines and apply products and knowledge - focusing on the power of integration, particularly between automation and power systems. The event attracted more than 4,000 people and offered more than 400 educational and hands-on sessions and a 100,000 sf. exhibit area.

		Understanding Power Factor - 05/25/10 Maintenance Technology, April 2010 By William C. Livoti, Baldor Electric If your organization is focusing to any extent on cutting energy consumption, driving sustainable growth and reducing operating costs, it's a good idea to review power factor.

		Meet The Flywheel: Green, Clean Energy-Storage Technology - 05/25/10 Maintenance Technology, April 2010 By Frank DeLattre, VYCON Since batteries are the weakest link in the power continuity scheme, flywheels with batteries reassure facility managers that their batteries are safeguarded against premature aging and unexpected failures.

		Eigenstructures: The Keys to Preventing Voltage Collapse - 05/19/10 PowerGrid International, May 2010 By Professor Robert Castro, University of Southern California The current addition of renewable generation has increased the burden on already stressed transmission systems. This stress is increasingly manifesting itself as voltage collapse. This article overviews eigenvalues and eigenvectors— and how they can be used to avoid VC.

		Clearing the Air on A/C for Industrial Enclosures - 05/19/10 Machine Design, May 2010 By Leland E. Teschler Air conditioning added to an industrial enclosure can significantly prolong equipment life, save energy, and reduce downtime. But this is only the case when the cooling capacity matches the conditions at hand.

		Improvements in Fiberoptic Terminations Eliminate Obstacles to Installation - 05/12/10 Industrial Networking, May 2010 By John Rezabek In recent years, developments made by fiberoptic suppliers have reduced the barriers to a trouble-free installation significantly. The most useful development is the introduction of easier termination tools, hardware and procedures.

		Employing an Adjustable Frequency Drive with a Soft Starter Bypass Improves System Reliability Today's comprehensive drive packages typically combine several solutions to provide a reliable and robust system. Using a drive with a soft starter built into the bypass offers a spectrum of advantages. In general, soft starters are designed for customers requiring reliable and efficient soft-starting of three-phase motors.

		Impact Of New PHMSA Control Room Management Rules - 04/23/10 Pipeline & Gas Journal, April 2010 By Douglas H. Rothenberg, et al The Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement and Safety Act of 2006 (PIPES) mandates that the Secretary of Transportation issue regulations on control room management (CRM). The regulation require operators to design and operate their enterprise-wide SCADA to take specific account of what is needed by the controller to properly do the job.

		New standard in competency for Ex protection - 04/23/10 Oil&Gas Engineer, April 2010 The development of the IECEx Scheme for Certification of Personnel Competency has created a new standard by which all plant owners can judge if they have competent staff looking after Ex equipment.

		Substation Security - 04/23/10 Utility Products, April 2010 By Paul Hull The security of your substations may depend on where they are. In big cities, the dangers may be from human vandals with equipment (and even training) that can break into a facility in minutes. In rural communities threats from wildlife can be more real than those from people. But there are products to help every utility.

		Exploding the misconceptions and myths about arc flash issues - 04/16/10 Plant Engineering, April 2010 By Jim White, Shermco Industries There seems to be some common misconceptions among people that are like urban legends; they just don’t go away. Take the initiative to learn how to protect yourself – for you and your family. And don’t believe everything you hear on the grapevine.

		Eliminating Moisture In Electrical Cabinets - 04/16/10 IMPO, April 2010 By David J.Connaughton, Parker Hannifin Moisture in electrical cabinets, control panels and motor compartments can affect plant efficiency and product quality, leading to significant downtime and expensive repairs. Purging the compartment with air dried by a system using a filter and membrane provides a reliable solution with considerably lower initial and operating costs.

		Cooling equipment for hazardous areas - 04/08/10 HazardEx, March 2010 By Philip Harris, Bartec This article looks at the importance of selecting the right type of closed loop chillers, compact air conditioning units and large HVAC systems when considering installing high precision equipment in harsh climates.

		Flywheels: A Power Protection Alternative - 04/08/10 Control Engineering, April 2010 By Frank DeLattre, Vycon Increasingly viewed as a dependable industrial power back up system, flywheels offer predictability, require less maintenance, have less potential environmental impact than UPS batteries, and a lower total cost of ownership

		Understanding panel temperature increases - 03/26/10 Plant Services, March 2010 By Doug Wilson If the heat load within a control enclosure is beyond the cabinet’s capacity for natural convection cooling, heat buildup will cause problems or even complete failure. This chart shows temperature differential over ambient conditions as a function of waste heat generation for different cooling capacities.

		Choices in panel cooling - 03/26/10 Plant Services, March 2010 By Doug Wilson Choosing the appropriate and most cost-effective and energy-efficient cooling solution from the many types available requires knowledge of the individual strengths and weaknesses of the most commonly used designs.

		Determining the panel heat load - 03/26/10 Plant Services, March 2010 By Doug Wilson Whatever control panel cooling solution you choose, the critical factor for a successful installation is assessing the panel’s waste heat load correctly.

		Appropriate Network Connectors Bring Best Service - 03/19/10 Automation World, March 2010 By C. Kenna Amos Not having the right connection devices or technologies can cripple the potential of an automation network.

		The Path to Protection - 03/19/10 Control Engineering Asia, March 2010 By Paul Haake, Chloride North America Engineers are employing more electronic equipment, much of it adopted from non-industrial applications, and almost all of it more sensitive to electrical disturbances than the equipment being replaced. These are then mixed with the inherently poor power environment of an industrial facility and aging power generation and distribution facilities.

		Puls issues weather caution - 03/13/10 Control Engineering Europe, March 2010 Puls UK has cautioned electrical equipment manufacturers, asking them to consider the effects cold weather has on the operation of products. The company claims power supplies used to run equipment outdoors are particularly vulnerable to freezing temperatures.

		Situation Critical - 03/13/10 Control, March 2010 By Ian Nimmo, User Centered Design Services A control room environment is needed that proactively supports operator alertness, does not contribute to fatigue or distractions and supports the operators in all the tasks they have to perform. This includes non-DCS tasks such as report writing, MOC, performance improvement, training, etc.

		Human Centered Design Supports Improved Job Performance - 03/10/10 Maintenance Technology, February 2010 By Adam Lund, Emerson Process Management The human centered design concept is aimed at identifying the information most needed by plant personnel and getting it to them in an easy-to-use format. This requires understanding the tasks frequently performed by end-users and presenting helpful information in a consistent fashion.

		New Control Room Management Regulations Require Structured Management Approach - 03/10/10 Pipeline & Gas Journal, February 2010 By W. R. Byrd, RCP On Dec. 3, 2009, PHMSA published its final regulations for control room management (CRM). This article describes the applicability of the regulation to various types of facilities and notes key differences in the rules for gas pipelines versus liquid pipelines.

		3D digital versatility enhances design of subsea control systems - 03/10/10 Oil & Gas Engineer, February 2010 3D digital prototyping cuts time-to-market for subsea control systems. You can first draw all the equipment that has to go inside - whether it's a PC, wiring, terminals, VDUs and so on - and then assemble them in 3D so you know they will fit.

		Network Connectors Need to Be Tested for Harsh Environments - 02/22/10 Industrial Networking, March 2010 By Mike Bacidore Select and test connectors wisely: environment is a key consideration when choosing connectors, but how and when do you validate your system once it’s installed?

		Prevent 24 VDC overloads from stopping production - 02/19/10 What’s New in Process Technology, February 2010 By Siemens Along with the laws of physics, engineers have to be aware of the law of unintended consequences. Take, for example, something as simple as the 24 VDC power supplies that feed the control circuits in automation systems as a case in point.

		Reduce the risk of system migrations - 02/16/10 Control Engineering Europe, February 2010 By Frank Prendergast, Schneider Electric Continually updating programmable logic control (PLC) systems can help facilities be more efficient, accommodate evolving needs, and better meet customer requests and deadlines. But an upgrade project is also one fraught with risk when it gets underway, and even after it is complete.

		Choosing a Submetering Solution - 01/27/10 Automated Buildings, January 2010 By Daryl Cowie, Wescon Technologies Part 3: While there is no question that submetering projects are one of the most effective ways to drive down facility operational costs, there are plenty of questions surrounding the best way to move forward with a solution that will provide a good return on your investment.

		Shaft grounding - 01/09/10 Plant Services, December 2009 By Adam Willwerth VFDs can induce electric currents on motor shafts that ruin bearings, shorten motor life and diminish system reliability. One way to mitigate the effects of these currents is to ground the motor shaft to protect bearings and eliminate expensive repairs.

		Growing Problem with Counterfeit Electrical Products By Bill Lydon, Automation.com Manufacturers and trade associations are devoting much attention to the effects of counterfeit electrical products. People who work in manufacturing facilities should be mindful of the consequences of using inferior goods marketed deceptively under brand names of reputable companies.

		Look Deeper at Shielding - 12/15/09 Design News, December 2009 By Jon Titus The Audio Engineering Society AES48-2005 standard covers grounding and electromagnetic compatibility (EMC). The standard stresses the need to properly shield cables to reduce coupling with noise sources.

		Listen to the Cable Guy - 12/15/09 Industrial Networking, December 2009 By Joe Feeley The signal-to-noise ratio of a cabling system drops as soon as you install it.

		Rockwell Automation Fair 2009 - Smart, Safe & Sustainable Manufacturing By Bill Lydon As usual, Rockwell Automation Fair was an impressive event with over 8,000 attendees. Rockwell's continued focus on process control punctuates their very direct message that the Logix architecture can meet all control and automation requirements from discrete to process control.

		Of Costs & Cable Cutting - 11/17/09 Industrial Automation Asia, November 2009 By Peter Zornio, Emerson Process Management Combining wireless with wired automation systems can save you money without sacrificing control capability or reliability.

		Building a reliable VFD system - 11/11/09 What’s New in Process Technology, October 2009 Special consideration must be given to the proper installation and operation of the overall system that comprises the VFD, the motor it controls and the cable that connects them.

		Electronic Marshalling Concept Attacks Installed Costs Emerson Process Management introduced their new Electronic Marshalling concept as part of the new DeltaV release. This is the result of Emersons new process to design products based on Human Centered Design (HCD). The design looks beyond pure technology to really understand the entire process to achieve the end goal most economically. In this case, the entire project cycle was considered using HCD concepts to think about how to streamline the process.

		The Smart Grid: Getting smart about possibilities, challenges - 10/22/09 Plant Engineering, October 2009 By Mark Feasel, Schneider Electric One of the more important reasons for building a Smart Grid would be the proliferation of automated electrical solutions that allow integration of renewable energy resources and energy storages devices such as electric car batteries. Such a grid would have the ability to distribute electricity to wherever it’s needed, and even have the ability to store it for later use.

		Preventing UPS and Generator Compatibilty Problems - 10/22/09 Building Operating Management, October 2009 By Paul Schlattman and Robert W. Weber As the demand for power reliability continues to spread from industry to industry, creating a reliable, efficient, scalable and compatible infrastructure of UPS, generator and switchgear systems will be crucial. Avoiding the many pitfalls that can accompany these designs will be even more so.

		Reliable Backup Power Requires Careful Design Attention - 10/22/09 Building Operating Management, October 2009 By Paul Schlattman and Robert W. Weber Organizations are requesting designers to reconfigure the electrical distribution system so every desk or portion of the office can be supported by UPS power. While redundant components are not the critical issue in these applications, they do present great opportunities for using higher efficiency UPS systems that can cut energy costs.

		Harmonic distortion - how to combat an increasing problem - 10/22/09 Design Engineering News, October 2009 By Gregers Geilager, Danaher Irregular power supplies influence the performance and operation of electrical equipment, so motors, frequency converters and transformers must be more highly rated to maintain proper operation.

		Panel Meters Show Off - 10/19/09 Control Design, October 2009 By Jim Montague Besides adding higher-resolution LCDs and touchscreens, some panel meter developers are making the interface easier to read and adding other helpful hardware and software-based features.

		Protection increases system availability - 10/10/09 South Africa Instrumentation & Control, October 2009 Regular maintenance and repair work to increase system availability is a top priority in the field of lightning and surge protection. Nevertheless, maintenance and repair expenses should also be kept to a minimum through the implementation of an appropriate strategy.

		Is the need for local plant indication a thing of the past? - 10/10/09 Control Engineering Europe, September 2009 By Alec Robshaw, Beka Associates It would be logical to assume that the use of large local control panels full of controllers and gauges is becoming truly extinct. Good engineering practice suggests the old-school practice of ‘walking the plant’ lends a pair of eyes and ears to the process that no end of sensors and transmitters can replace.

		Organization Prevents Panel Missteps - 09/20/09 Control Design, September 2009 By Calvin Comstock Our panel building process begins with some basic but vital research. The goal is to give our customers a component panel that meets their needs, keeping the cost to a minimum and allowing for future changes.

		Clean Connections - 09/16/09 Vision System Design, September 2009 By Andrew Wilson While the types of cameras and frame grabbers or host interfaces used in machine-vision systems are important, so is the choice of cabling. In robotics-based applications in particular, where cables may be flexed a number of different ways during the life of the system, system developers must strive to obtain the highest-performance cable possible to ensure no loss or corruption of image data.

		The Long & Short of Cabling - 09/16/09 Industrial Automation Asia, September 2009 By Paul Kish, Belden Increasing networking demands are met by providing 10GBASE-T switch ports and 10GBASE-T network interface cards on network servers and data storage equipment.

		Factors to Consider in Cabling a Reliable VFD System Automation.com, August 2009 By Brian Shuman, Belden The way in which VFD-based systems are constructed and operated will have an impact on both the longevity and reliability of all the components of the system. This article focuses on the motor-supply cable in the VFD/motor system. It looks at some fundamental cable design considerations, and presents suggestions for installation.

		How Does Your Control System Measure Up? - 08/24/09 Chemical Processing, August 2009 By George Buckbee, ExperTune Most sites have spent millions of dollars on control systems — an individual loop may cost upwards of $10,000 to implement when you consider expenses for engineering, sensor, wiring, controller, valve, configuration and programming. Yet, is this sizable investment paying off as well as it should?

		Understanding Solid-state relays Automation.com, August 2009 By TJ Landrum, Product Manager, Eaton Solid-state relays (SSR) are able to perform many of the same tasks as electromechanical relays. Essentially, an SSR is an electronic device that relies on the electrical, magnetic, and optical properties of semiconductors and electrical components to achieve its isolation and relay switching function.

		Using USB for test and measurement: benefits and potential dangers - 08/16/09 What’s New in Process Technology, July 2009 All new PCs have a number of USB ports, some with as many as six, for connecting external devices. For test and measurement applications, USB data acquisition modules offer a number of significant advantages. But beware — they also contain some potential dangers that can cause catastrophic results depending on your application.

		It's in the pipes - 08/16/09 InTech, August 2009 By Kelly Doran In pipeline control centers around the world, it is not uncommon to see alarm summary screens completely filled with multiple pages of acknowledged and unacknowledged alarms. Improved alarm management will deliver quieter control rooms and better alarm flood control/avoidance.

		Technology & Engineers Celebrated at NIWeek 2009 Dr. James Truchard opened the conference by describing National Instruments' technical directions and thanking attendees for taking on new challenges by innovating and solving problems. NIWeek 2009 attendance was up over last year and that alone is a significant statement compared with other conferences this year. It was billed as the Worldwide Graphical System Design conference providing three days of over 200 interactive technical sessions, exhibitions, and hands-on workshops on the technologies for control, design, measurement, automation, manufacturing, and test.

		Return on Imagination - Honeywell User Group (HUG) 2009 Honeywell Process Solutions continues to grow in a number of dimensions including: additional products, wireless, energy, PLCs, independent system integrator initiatives, and Integrated Master Automation Contractor (IMAC) focus. This year’s attendance was lower than previous years, but David Wade, Honeywell Users Group Americas Chairman, officially opened the HUG 2009 conference commenting that there were more than 50% new attendees.

		Optimizing industrial Ethernet system performance - 07/19/09 Plant Engineering, July 2009 By Brian Shuman, Belden Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) Ethernet systems are just not up to handling industrial conditions. Rugged conditions call for ruggedized cables. Only industrial-grade Ethernet system components are built tough enough to withstand the hazards and risks they are exposed to day after day.

		Nothing Like Good Connections - 07/15/09 Control Design, July 2009 By Philip Burgert A variety of factors come into play when choosing between different types of terminal-block connectors such as standard screw clamps, spring clamps and euro connectors that are used for wire and cable connections in machine control systems.

		Who Keeps RS-485 and RJ45 Apart? - 07/14/09 Industrial Networking, July 2009 By Jim Montague Why can’t you find RS-485 cable that terminates in RJ45 connectors for industrial control and automation? There are clickable connectors for Ethernet wire, but no one seems to offer this for RS-485.

		Product Briefs from Hannover Messe By Bill Lydon Over 6,000 companies showed products at Hannover Messe and there are important trends that are worth noting. Here are highlights of some products that caught my interest - some due to functional sophistication and others because of their elegant simplicity.

		Power conditioning - some common pitfalls Design Product Applications, May 2009 Sensitive electronic equipment frequently suffers as a result of power quality problems. Facilities with numerous traditional power loads often generate power disturbances that result in a ‘low technology’ environment supporting ‘high technology’ systems. Power conditioning is the answer.

		Octopus’s garden: laying cables beneath the ocean waves Power Engineering International, May 2009 By Tim Probert The UK’s Global Marine Systems owns and operates a fleet of state-of-the-art vessels and subsea vehicles, such as Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV), used to lay sub-sea cables connecting offshore wind farms.

		Hazardous Area Systems Control Engineering Asia, April 2009 By Jeanine Katzel The dangers involved in production and processing in explosive atmospheres may require the use of intrinsically safe (IS) devices under some circumstances, or explosion-proof enclosures in others. Which option is best for your application? When should it be wireless? What benefits does one technology hold over the other? The decision is not always simple or easy.

		Creative Control Rooms Control Engineering Asia, April 2009 By Renee Robbins Human factor engineering applied to plant control room design can help reduce errors and enable users to operate at peak efficiency.

		Motor Management In Control Panels Drives Energy Savings By Fabrice Meunier, Schneider Electric How to save energy by using low power dissipation motor starters, how smart motor control systems can be used to optimize energy use, how power monitoring systems can help better manage energy consumption of electrical motors, and how variable speed drives can be used for energy savings.

		Energy Harvesters Come of Age Control, April 2009 By Dan Hebert Wireless sensors are much more practical when energy harvesters are used to eliminate the need for power wiring. Energy harvesters convert vibration, heat or light into electrical energy, which is used to power a rechargeable battery or a capacitor.

		Tomorrow has not been canceled! Report from ABB Automation & Power World 2009 Mark Taft, Group Vice President, Process Automation, Global control System Business opened with, "...it is important for us to remember that tomorrow has not been canceled." Mark's point was the conference was designed to provide a great deal of useful and actionable information that will help attendees survive and thrive in the current economy, and be prepared to take advantage of the future. Mark further noted that having a combined event encompassing automation and power is timely.

		Improving protection, reducing costs Plant Services, March 2009 By Mike Lang Every maintenance professional should know how to select the proper fuse for the application. Properly selected fuses reduce the magnitude of potential arc-flash energies; improperly replaced fuses increase risks to electrical workers and your bottom line.

		Beware the bite Plant Services, March 2009 By Paul Studebaker Sags and harmonics contribute to downtime, off-spec production and shortened equipment life. Like so many potential projects that improve uptime, product quality and life cycle cost, it’s hard to make a financial case for spending on power conditioning. But paying attention to power quality in the form of power factor and peak demand can reduce some industrial power bills as much as 30%.

		Winning Strategies and Best Practices for Sustainable Manufacturing By Bill Lydon, Contributing Editor The initial focus of the ARC Forum in Orlando was sustainable manufacturing strategies as they relate to environmental performance and resource management. Based on the recent economic downturn, the conference was expanded to address strategies for bottom line business sustainability of process and discrete manufacturing companies.

		Applying The Heat - An Overview Of Industrial Heat Tracing Process Industry Informer, February 2009 By Neil Malone, Heat Trace Winter is almost over, so save this for next year: An introduction to heat tracing, including the various systems available and an overview of the use of heat tracing across all process industries.

		Calculating Arc Flash Hazard Levels Pure Power, Winter 2008 By Peter R. Walsh, Ferraz Shawmut Relying on the IEEE equations to compensate for an inaccurate available fault current can yield unacceptable results. IEEE 1584 wasn’t designed with safety factors to accommodate all bolted fault current inaccuracies. This article focuses on some specific pitfalls in calculating the arc fault current for up to 1 kV.

		Solving Electrical Problems with Thermal Imaging Maintenance World, January 2009 By Mike Shekhtman, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Today's thermal imagers, which produce live images of the heat emitted from equipment, are rugged, easy to use and much more affordable than just a few years ago. This makes them highly practical and cost-effective solutions for everyday electrical maintenance.

		Co-ordinate control of multiple offshore platforms Oil & Gas Engineer, January 2009 As part of an innovative technology project and with Honeywell’s Experion Process Knowledge System, Wintershall built a central control room (CCR) to help co-ordinate control of multiple offshore platforms in the North Sea, and improve operations and efficiency.

		Fieldbus on a Shoestring Control, January 2009 By John Rezabek Use the wire you have. Unless you’re really challenging the limits of the physical layer, ordinary twisted/shielded pair will work reliably.

		Shed Some Fiberoptic Light Control Design, December 2008 By Loren Shaum Fiberoptic Cable has copper wire beat for speed and immunity. Just know which type your application needs.

		Getting Selective about Reliability and Safety IEN, December 2008 By Kenneth Cybart, Littelfuse Selective coordination is the selection of fuses and circuit breakers in such a way that an overload or short circuit on one branch circuit will cause only the fuse or circuit breaker feeding that circuit to open. This also helps in arc-flash hazards and short circuit current ratings.

		Flexible Robotic Cabling Supports Higher Performance Automation World, December 2008 By C. Kenna Amos Unless you’re an end-user of robots, cabling may mean nothing to you. If you are that end-user, though, and don’t manage those cables correctly, you tie up those mechanical workers and their arms, defeating their efforts.

		Copper Convert and Connect and Fiber Industrial Networking, Winter 2008 By Phil Burgert Switching from copper wire to fiber, or less often from fiber to copper, presents a number of practical choices.

		Rockwell Automation Fair 2008 Review By Bill Lydon, Contributing Editor As usual, the Rockwell Automation Fair was an impressive event with over 11,000 attendees and over 90 Encompass partners. This is a very successful show that creates enormous goodwill and is the most successful control show in North America. Training is becoming a big part of the event and allows users to justify the time and money to attend. Distributor travel packages also make it much easier for users to attend the event.

		Wireless & Networking Dominate ISA EXPO 2008, Product Highlights The emphasis on networked communications whether wired or wireless was visible at the event. We review the ISA Wireless Industrial Automation Standard (SP100) Committee meeting in Houston, which drew a standing-room-only crowd. Other product highlights include: PLC/Programming Learning Package, EtherNet/IP Controller, Single Board Industrial Controller, Remote Eyeballs for Wireless Reading Gauges, Quad Process Safety System, Universal Gas Transmitter and HMI Enhancements.

		Don’t Come Unhinged Over Enclosure Design Machine Design, October 2008 By Jim Ford, Southco When designing or specifying cabinets and enclosures, hinges play a key role in determining whether or not the product lives up to expectations.

		Using Structured Cable Solutions For BAS Automated Buildings, October 2008 By Jim Sinopoli Using structured cable in a BAS environment is different than its use in a typical data network. The cable topology and the location of the end devices are different. More consideration has to be given to signal loss budgets, devices placed on a link or bus, and the cabling distances supported.

		OH&S Due Diligence Standards (Part 1) Plant Engineering & Maintenance, November 2008 By Cheryl A. Edwards In Canada, if a worker suffers a serious injury, the employer, its engineers and supervisors are all charged under OH&S legislation. The corporation can receive a fine of more than $100,000 and the supervisor a fine of close to $10,000. Or more.

		Revised NFPA 70E clarifies electrical safety Plant Services, November 2008 By Jim White The new edition eliminates doubts about safe practices and personal protective equipment.

		Control system mounting options Control Engineering, November 2008 By Michael Thompson, Timken Mounting options can be broken down into several basic categories: wall-mount, rail-mount, panel-mount, rack-mount, or cage-mount. Each type of mounting has unique attributes that designers must consider.

		Economics of Fault-Tolerant Fieldbus Wiring Control Engineering, November 2008 By Mike O'Neill, MooreHawke Careful and clever analysis of fieldbus segments can yield fault tolerance where it's needed most without adding hardware costs over less effective strategies.

		Can Topology Reduce Costs? Industrial Networking, Winter 2008 By John Rezabek Process buses like FF and PA were designed to accommodate the existing networks and wires that one is likely to find in a legacy point-to-point 4-20 mA installation. But what if you have a new installation or you’re not aiming to reuse that old twisted-pair wire for the spurs?

		Copper and Fiber Convert and Connect Industrial Networking, Winter 2008 By Phil Burgert Switching from copper wire to fiber, or less often from fiber to copper, presents a number of practical choices.

		How Much Information Is Enough? Control Design, October 2008 Q: Our control panels include five panel meters. Our panel meter manufacturer is going out of business. Should we switch to another manufacturer or go to a solid-state graphics display? Answers from several industry experts.

		Solid-State Relays Enhance Reliability Control Design, October 2008 By Don Talend With the lines between solid-state relay (SSR) and programmable logic controller (PLC) capabilities blurring in recent years, SSR manufacturers see a major role for relays in maintaining equipment functions and reliability.

		Twisting and Bending: A User’s Guide to Robotic Cables Robotics On Line, October 2008 By Bennett Brumson, Robotic Industries Association Without proper planning, cable wear can be one of the first things to cause down time on a robot work cell. Top experts talk about some of the most important cabling considerations in this article.

		Automation Insights Network By Rick Zabel, Publisher Automation Insights Network is a select group of controls and automation professionals who agree to help us cover news, emerging trends and technologies on various automation topics. Every two months, we will ask people in the Network to share their observations, knowledge and expertise with us. We take that information, distill it, and pass it on to our reporters and editors for use in future stories.

		Industrial Ethernet Growth Slowed by FUD By Bill Lydon, Contributing Editor The promise of Industrial Ethernet is clear: it will revolutionize manufacturing by tightly integrating control and business systems, if users can overcome their fear, uncertainty and doubt(FUD). One failure can trigger a cascade of problems and result in a significant loss of time and money. There are many issues surrounding the use of Ethernet in industrial control applications that give control engineers reasons for concern.

		Maintenance Of Fuses & Circuit Breakers Maintenance Technology, September 2008 By Tim Crnko, Cooper Bussman Even if a system is designed and installed properly, a lack of proper maintenance can negate the selective coordination scheme that may be vital for life safety or critical business reasons. The same applies to electrical safety for workers.

		Caution: High voltage Plant Services, September 2008 By Gerald Woodson You might have heard a lot of buzz about last year’s revision to OSHA’s electrical standard and how it incorporated the National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 70E, Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace. That is not entirely the case.

		Redundant Serial-to-Ethernet Data Connections for Mission-critical Devices Control Engineering Europe, September 2008 By Moxa White paper deals with the questions of what type of Ethernet redundancy is suitable for different device networks, and how to implement them. Registration required to download paper.

		ISA - Change the name to represent the industry By Rick Zabel, Automation.com The proposed name change of ISA (to "International Society of Automation") is up for a vote again during ISA Expo in Houston, October 14-16, 2008. Last year, the change was voted down, but I have yet to hear a compelling argument against the change. And there are many reasons for the change. If ISA is truly the global society of automation professionals, then its name should reflect its cause. It's time for a change!

		Alarm annunciators in safety related applications South Africa Instrumentation & Control, September 2008 The role of alarm annunciators for dealing with critical alarms in modern plants is as important as ever. Their simple functionality allows manufacture of highly reliable instruments. Their failure modes and subsequently, device analysis and safety assessment, are far easier and more deterministic than that of software-based alarm systems.

		Signal, power wiring technologies drive changes in best practices Plant Engineering, August 2008 By Brad Woodman, Molex AEP A creative tension typically exists between accepted practices that have served an industry well and the need for new practices that take full benefit of innovative new technologies. The current state of signal and power wiring is a good example of this truism.

		Architectures for Economical Motion Machine Design, August 2008 By Chuck Lewin , Performance Motion Devices Motion-control costs have more to do with what’s needed to hook up components than with the motor and controller. Too many connectors or the wrong style connector means more failures, higher manufacturing costs, and potential servicing headaches.

		'Cool’ design for power supplies Control Engineering, August 2008 By Dr. Werner Woelfle, TracoPower Modern mains power supplies are extremely compact, but dissipate a substantial amount of power as heat while operating. This very often leads to overheating of internal components, which in turn has an adverse effect on reliability and the lifetime of the power supply.

		Controlling portable devices with FPGAs Industrial Embedded Systems, July 2008 By Gary Sugita, Actel Corporation As portable devices become increasingly feature rich, the task of managing and controlling various features within the device becomes more complex. Semiconductor vendors are giving designers a new breed of low-power FPGAs that can take on the complex task of interfacing and controlling a variety of HMI and miniature motor control functions.

		Fitting the Workplace to the Worker Control, August 2008 By Dave Harrold Companies are finding that carefully considering the human factor in operator interface and control room designs is contributing significantly to productivity and operational effectiveness. Control rooms are the operator’s equivalent of an air-traffic control center, and until you embrace that mindset, your plant will never achieve its full operational excellence potential.

		Panels Get Size and Heat Under Control Control Design, August 2008 By Phil Burgert Size and heat dissipation are continuing issues that panel builders confront every day. Controlling these factors is a continual focus of device vendors, and they have suggestions on how these goals can be achieved.

		State of Manufacturing & Automation in the U.S. Looks Good Could it be that high fuel prices, the weak dollar and crises in the U.S. manufacturing industry are creating opportunities? Andy Chatha of ARC Advisory Group thinks so. He says the U.S. industry has suddenly become competitive on the world market, and companies are no longer moving operations overseas. Instead, many are expanding their facilities, and he predicts a boom in automation right here in the U.S.

		In a state of flex: specifying the correct continuous flex cable types South Africa Instrumentation & Control, July 2008 Through the use of unique stranding and cabling techniques, and specially blended insulating and jacketing materials, continuous flex cables have reduced downtime on high-speed automated equipment.

		Know Your Cuts of Cable Control Design, June 2008 By Phil Burgert Ask wire and cable manufacturers about the wiring and cable that’s best for use on machines, as well as in plant networks, and you’ll hear multiple combinations of insulation and jacketing materials, foil and braided shielding and corrugated armor. Using the wrong wire or cable could cause machine or safety problems and potential interference

		Solid-State Relays Enhance Reliability Control Design, June 2008 By Don Talend With the lines between solid-state relay (SSR) and programmable logic controller (PLC) capabilities blurring in recent years, SSR manufacturers see a major role for relays in maintaining equipment functions and reliability.

		Electrical Design Software Control Engineering, June 2008 By Renee Robbins Use of electrical CAD software is driving productivity gains for panel builders, system integrators and end users by adding layers of intelligence to two-dimensional drawings.

		Don't judge a supplier by its name By Frank Hurtte, Contributing Author. For those of us who live and breathe the rarified vapors of technology based automation, it's pretty hard to fathom how life existed without electronic automation. Yet, it has been a short 30 years since the venerable PLC became anything more than a novelty outside of the Big 3 in Detroit. Sometime in the late 1970s, microprocessors changed our lives forever. Since those early days, the power of these tiny chips forever changed the way we think about manufacturing.

		Improve productivity with power quality - 06/04/08 Plant Engineering and Maintenance, May 2008 By Colin Plastow A power quality problem can easily cause equipment to malfunction, a process to slow down or lead to a breakdown. The consequences can take on many forms, from excessively high utility bills to production slowdowns to a complete work stoppage.

		Custom Controls Survey - Complimentary assessment, tips and tricks We are conducting a brief survey on custom controls — that is, board-level controllers used in place of standard PLCs or process controls. If you use custom controls in your automation applications, please take a minute to tell us why you use them and what challenges you face. You may be eligible to receive a complimentary controls assessment, plus tips and tricks on how to lower your control costs.

		Specifying the Correct Enclosure Material By Hoffman Selecting the correct enclosure material is a key element in ensuring long enclosure life. White paper has tips and a Project Assessment Tool to assist in determining the correct enclosure material for applications.

		Regional Manufacturing Expos Prove Most Valuable By Thomas R. Cutler Deciding which conferences, webinars, and expos are worthwhile for manufacturing engineers and buyers to attend often feels like a dangerous yellow brick road, never knowing quite what to expect.

		Avoiding Arc Flash Hazards Automation World, May 2008 Five to ten times per day in the United States, a worker is severely injured or killed in an electrical arc flash accident. NFPA 70E 2004, which is about to revised later this year or next, describes a detailed reference for facilities to meet the requirements of workplace electrical safety.

		The less-is-more approach to six-axis robot design Machine Design, May 2008 By Kenneth Korane The less-is-more approach centers on designing cable-management systems for six-axis robots — including cables, hose, tubing, carrier, and connectors — in three separate segments. This differs from the current industry practice of using long, single-piece cables and hoses rigidly attached to the end-of-arm tooling.

		ABB is powered up and running at high efficiency! By Bill Lydon The products and services shown at ABB Automation World in Houston, Texas along with the enthusiasm of the ABB employees and users would seem to explain why the company’s 1st quarter 2008 earnings beat investment analysts’ consensus by over 40%. The three-day trade show and conference ran from April 29 through May 1 in Houston, Texas. There was a great deal of energy and enthusiasm at the event which showcased ABB products, ABB services, partner products, and over 300 workshops/training sessions.

		Chasing Moore’s Law – The Truth Behind the OS and CPU Upgrades for Industrial PC Users By Alan Koch, Advantech COTS electronic hardware and software have caused real problems for the industrial PC users, who benefit less and less as each operating system and CPU revision cycle passes. There may be no reason to upgrade. Probably 50% of industrial control applications would run fine on a military-grade 80486-type device using the DOS operating system.

		The Advantages of Small Form Factor HMI By Hector Lin, Advantech A modern small form factor HMI can be purchased for about the same cost as a dozen push buttons and indicator lights, providing better control, easier operator interaction, easier maintenance and support, and much greater operational utility for the same cost.

		More Than a Backbone Industrial Networking, May 2008 By Paul Miller Engineers and technicians in industrial facilities and system integrators are becoming more familiar with fiberoptic networking media as a complement to or replacement for copper cabling and connectors, but a number of myths still surround the technology.

		Reliable distribution Plant Services, April 2008 By Michael Stuart When a problem occurs in an electrical distribution system, the first question usually is, “Where?” Which panel, what circuit, what component? A thermal imager probably can provide the fastest answer to this question.

		Time to check your glands? Control Engineering Europe, April 2008 There are now more variations of cable gland available than ever, and with more choice comes the requirement for more knowledge in order to make the right selection.

		Best practices for process instrumentation cabling Intech, March 2008 Proper electrical installation and connectivity of field instrumentation devices glues the entire PAS system together, involves cabling, grounding, cable routing, and mitigation of external influences such as noise and interference.

		What Are the Choices on Enclosures? Control Design, March 2008 Reader asks: Although the major enclosure manufacturers tout their ability to build custom panels, we haven’t been happy with their prices, delivery or service. Are there better alternatives? Three vendors answer.

		Absolute Noise Corrupts Absolutely Control Design, February 2008 By Mike Bacidore Since most wiring is fixed in place, varying currents are the usual cause of magnetic coupling. A good design rejects as much noise as possible.

		Suppress Those Surges Design News, February 2008 By Jon Titus In addition to protecting exterior sensor and communication lines from transient pulses caused by nearby lightning strikes, you should protect inside equipment from transients or surges that can travel through power lines.

		Voltage Indicators enhance safety - 02/10/08 By Grace Engineered Products Wiring a voltage indicator (VI) to the primary power source provides a permanently wired "voltmeter" that gives electricians a full-time, visual, independent, thru-door power indication.

		Potential Power Picks Control Engineering, February 2008 By C.G. Masi Power options for embedded systems are as varied as the applications they serve. Mixing and matching these available power sources for primary, recharge, and backup duty gives embedded system designers a wide range of options to power their creations. Here’s a tutorial on the choices.

		Relays: Far from Dead Control Engineering, February 2008 David C. Thomas, Tyco Electronics The traditional socket mounted, electromechanical relay, often based on designs that are several decades old, is still a highly effective solution to load-switching problems in industrial and commercial applications.

		Going Wireless is More Than Just Eliminating Cables American Machinist, January 2008 There are three significant problems with gathering shop floor data: First is that it can increase labor costs; second, implementing an automated data capture system is often difficult and expensive; third, a system you implement today may not meet tomorrow’s needs.

		International protection rating or ingress protection rating? What’s New in Process Technology, December 2007 What's in a name? For some, IP is intellectual property, but if you are rating your equipment or enclosures, IP gives a quantifiable measure of protection against intrusion by either solids or liquids.

		Remote monitoring closes the gap between meters and breakers Plant Engineering, January 2008 By Jack Smith Remote monitoring helps plant managers make informed decisions about operational efficiency, system reliability, employee safety and energy costs.

		Why Is Safety Information So Pricey? Control Design, January 2008 By Scott Gee Author says, “the least expensive price I was quoted for UL 508 and UL 508A was about $450 apiece, and other places wanted as much as $600 each. Why am I paying so much for these documents?”

		Put Lightning in the Ground Design News, January 2008 By Jon Titus, Contributing Editor Contrary to popular belief, you don't need a direct strike to turn expensive instruments or sensors into junk. Lightning within a few kilometers of equipment can induce destructive voltages and currents on conductors. You can do a quick cost-benefit analysis to determine what to protect and how to protect it.

		Concrete solution Intech, November 2007 By Richard Meyerhoefer and Ben Schmidgall Electromechanics vs. hydraulics vs. pneumatics: Choose the correct power source for your motion task.

		Panel Mount Annunciator Proves Crucial to Plant Safety & Productivity By Darren Barratt, Omniflex (UK) Limited The purpose of an annunciator is to provide the plant operator with early warning of a problem, which allows time to take action before a situation degrades to the point where the process can no longer be controlled.

Automation.com Real-time Information for the Automation Professional May. 25, 2012

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