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| Sponsor: Keyence |
Ultra-Compact 2D Reader Has the Highest Decoding Speed in Its Class
The new KEYENCE SR-500 Series Hi-Resolution 2D Barcode Reader, an “All-in-One” design, is equipped with built-in illumination, camera and decoder. It provides quick, pushbutton calibration without a PC along with the ability to register up to 8 Reading Parameters, reducing the chance that codes will be mis-read due to contrast changes. A Long Distance Model SR-510 is also available. Both the SR-500 and SR-510 Models include easy-to-use laser pointers enabling users to check the focal distance and reading area at a glance.
More information on 2D Reader
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| Sponsor: Rockwell Automation |
Integrated Architecture
Rockwell Automation Process Solutions provide Process and Plantwide Control on a single platform: Integrated Architecture. Rockwell Automation: Process expertise to address your industry's challenges.
Click here for more information
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| From One Techie to Another |
OPC Local Road Shows have Legs
Last year, the OPC Foundation began a series of six free OPC training seminars, held in various cities across the U.S. Because of their great success, the OPC Foundation continues the series in 2008 in eight more U.S. cities. Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the Seattle training seminar and I was nothing less than impressed. Tailored for Users, Systems Integrators and OEMs, the 2008 seminars consist of a number of vendor-neutral technical presentations and demonstrations, presented by key industry suppliers. Session topics include the Basics of OPC, OPC Data Access Applications, Using OPC with Visual Studio, OPC Alarms & Events, OPC Historians, Best Practices/Certification and Overview of OPC Unified Architecture.
The format is ideal! The venue of the seminars consists of a large hotel conference room with tables and chairs in the center of the room for attendees to sit during the presentations. The conference room walls are lined with single table booths for the participating vendor sponsors to show their wares. All eight seminars are sponsored by the same 14 vendor companies, including Canary Labs, Cyberlogic, GE Fanuc, ICONICS, ILS Technology, Indusoft, Kepware, Matrikon, Open Automation Software, Rockwell Automation, Siemens, Softing, Software Toolbox and Wonderware.
The Seattle seminar, in particular, attracted about 75 users, systems integrators and OEMs from the surrounding area. I could tell that the OPC Foundation and sponsors had been through this drill a few times before because everything ran like clockwork. Many attendees commented on the A+ organization and content of the seminar. During the breaks, seminar attendees explored the surrounding exhibits for solutions to their unique manufacturing challenges. This OPC seminar format is definitely a win-win proposition for both attendees and sponsors.
OPC is the automation industry plug and play standard for connectivity and interoperability. At these seminars, you can learn how OPC provides efficient data exchange and moves information from the plant floor to the enterprise. Each seminar will provide a complete overview of OPC technology, market trends, application reviews and what’s ahead for OPC. If you haven’t attended one of these informative seminars, I highly recommend them. For your reference, here’s the schedule and more information on the upcoming OPC training seminars.
I remember the good ole days of the local ISA shows where local suppliers would gather at a local hotel to meet and greet users, systems integrators and OEMs. In my opinion, this small, focused venue works very well. It’s apparent that the large national shows just don’t carry the weight they used to. It’s just not practical for attendees to take 2-3 days out of their busy schedules to attend them. On the other hand, attendees can justify a short drive to a local hotel to meet their local suppliers for a day, or just a few hours.
In any business, relationships are an important element and local shows nurture those relationships. National shows and user conferences definitely have value to some, primarily with larger users, but many times they lack the personal touch. After all, wouldn’t you rather meet your local representative or distributor at the show, rather than a supplier representative that is going to just pass your information on to someone else? There’s a big disconnect.
Share your comments on this editorial at My.Automation.com
Enjoy the rest of this Automation Weekly!
Rick Zabel
Vice President, Publisher |
| Featured Article |
ABB is powered up and running at high efficiency!
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.
Read full article by Bill Lydon
Browse Portals for more articles, white papers and application stories by topic |
| Salary Survey |
2008 Automation.com Salary Survey
Automation.com is surveying automation professionals about current salaries. Find out how you stack up. Please take a minute to complete our survey and then pass it on to your automation friends and colleagues. Survey results will be published in early spring 2008.
Take Salary Survey
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| Product Announcements |
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Moore Industries announces SNAP custom signal interfaces
SNAP provides customers with customized solutions to meet unusual signal interface needs in industrial process control, systems integration and factory automation applications. |
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Siemens enhances FireFinder XLS interface
FireFinder XLS users can set the panel to display one of four new languages besides English: French, Spanish, Hebrew and Portuguese. |
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WAGO releases Power Cage Clamp terminal
Power Cage Clamp provides spring-type terminal connections for 2 AWG and 4/0 AWG conductors. |
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Kepware’s KEPServerEX passes OPC Certification
KEPServerEX communications solution has passed the latest OPC certifications tests administered by the OPC Foundation independent test laboratory. |
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TURCK releases JRBS vertical mount junction bricks
JRBS bricks are available with 4, 6, 8, 10 or 12 ports and have removable terminals for simple, efficient installation and wiring modification in tight spaces. |
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ASI announces Monoblock LED pilot lights
LED pilot lights have a single unit monoblock design in a plastic housing. The unit comes complete with easy to wire terminals in the rear of the housing. |
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iKey introduces rugged membrane keyboards
Keyboards are built to withstand harsh environments with a hardcoated, textured, polyester film that is more rugged than industrial silicone rubber keypads. |
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InduSoft announces Web Studio driver for Cylon Building EMS
Driver eliminates the need for an OPC Server, making installation and system engineering of a Cylon building energy management solution less costly and easier to configure. |
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Panduit releases Panduct wiring duct
Panduct routes and protects electrical wire or data communications cabling in high-density control panel environments. |
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Kalki enhances SCL Manager for IEC 61850
Enhanced logical node template allows user to create complete functionalities of IEC 61850-based IEDs with a minimal knowledge of IEC 61850 standard. |
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Dynapar introduces HC20 encoder for brushless motors
HC20 is capable of up to 2500PPR (pulses per revolution) and is available with commutation tracks for 4, 6, or 8 pole variants of brushless motors. |
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Datastick releases mobile version of VSA-1225 Vibration Analyzer
VSA-1225 Vibration Spectrum Analyzer works on the Windows Mobile / Pocket PC platform. |
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Sealevel announces Relio R4000 rackmount computer
Relio R4000 rackmount computer for space-critical environments is available with up to 1.4GHz Intel Pentium M processor. Price: From $999. |
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Saelig introduces KLARI-CORD2 power consumption tester
KLARI-CORD2 tests and records power consumption and battery charge data for automotive applications at ambient temperatures ranging from -40 to +85°C. |
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McCrometer releases V2 System flow meter for pumps
V2 System Flow Meter can be installed in close proximity to pumps in crowded plant retrofit projects. |
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PCB releases 410B01 force sensor signal conditioner
Model 410B01 helps older PLC systems by capturing and holding the peak force reading until the PLC is able to scan for the value. |
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For MORE of the latest product announcements, go to our Daily News Headlines page.
Product & Supplier Search
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| Resources & Literature |
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Go to our Daily News Headlines page for the latest automation news.
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| Events, Seminars & Training |
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Upcoming Events & Training
- Cognex Machine Vision Seminars: Through June, 2008
- FDT Technical Seminars: Through October 28, 2008
- Safety Control Systems Conference: May 28-29, 2008
- Passion for Manufacturing Show: May 31-June 3, 2008
- BlueCielo ECM Frontiers 2008 Americas: June 1-3, 2008
- End-to-End Reliability: The Green Outlook: June 1-4, 2008
- Rockwell Automation RSTechED User Conference: June 1-6, 2008
- KUKA Robotics Open House: June 5, 2008
- Online Automated Test Summit 2008: June 5, 2008
- ISA POWID Symposium: June 8-13, 2008
- Sensors Expo: June 9-11, 2008
- Honeywell 2008 Americas Users Group Symposium: June 15-19, 2008
- Automation Studio Training Session: June 16-18, 2008
- Hazardous Areas: Manufacturing, Mining, Processing & Utilities Conference: June 18-19, 2008
- 11th International Symposium on Advances in Robot Kinematics: June 22-26, 2008
- 17th CISM-IFToMM Symposium on Robot Design, Dynamics, and Control: July 5-9, 2008
- Understanding and Applying Instrumentation in Hazardous Locations: July 9-10, 2008
- Emergency Power Supplies Conference: July 23-24, 2008
Go to our Calendar of Events to see other upcoming events. Add an event to our calendar. |
| Company & Organizational News |
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Other Company & Organization News:
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| Go to our Daily News Headlines page for the latest automation news.
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| Application News |
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Other Application News:
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Go to our Daily News Headlines page for the latest automation news.
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| New Jobs |
Here's a list of new jobs posted on Automation.com:
- Account Manager: NovaTech - Portland, OR
- Controls/Automation Engineer: Birket Engineering, Inc. - Ocoee, FL
- Systems Integration Engineer: Innovative Controls, Inc. - Birmingham, AL
- Programmer Analyst: Aseco Integrated Systems - York, PA
- Senior Engineer: PREMIER System Integrators, Inc. - Decatur, AL
- Proposal Specialist: Yokogawa Corporation of America - Newnan, GA
- Motion Controls Sales Engineer: Womack Machine Supply - Los Angeles, CA
- Industrial Outside Sales: automationtechies - ND, SD, MN, USA
- Automation Specialist: automationtechies - Omaha, NE
- Professional Engineer: automationtechies - Charleston, SC
- Entry Level Controls Engineer: automationtechies - Northeast, KS
To view other recent job postings, please use our Job Search Function. For recruiting and contract staffing services, please visit www.automationtechies.com. |
| Humor of the Week |
Dilbert
Now there’s a boost of confidence for you. (Strip)
I’m hoping more people use their brains rather than feelings when they vote. (Animated)
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I hope you enjoyed this Automation Weekly update. If you have any comments or suggestions regarding the content in this e-newsletter or on Automation.com, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Rick Zabel
Vice President, Publisher
Automation.com
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