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.

• Provide functionality not delivered by Rockwell Automation products.
• Enhance and Extend the Rockwell Automation Solution through built-in connectivity to a Rockwell Automation architecture or as a critical component to the solution.
• Support industries or applications associated with Rockwell Automation product solutions.
• Be provided by reputable, sound companies committed to product and service quality committed to partnering with Rockwell Automation with complementary marketing strategies.
• Be committed to the mutual success of Rockwell customers.

Encompass Partners by Technology

• Software - 14%
• High Tech Control - 16%
• Communications  - 19%
• Wire & Cabinets - 10%
• Power - 15%
• Test & Measurement - 15%
• Other Low Tech - 13%

“even as the financial news dominates the headlines it is easy for manufacturers to become preoccupied with things beyond their control, to feel like victims of the economy, and to take their eyes off of things they can control. We strongly advise against that. Productivity is the foundation of every good manufacturing strategy as it has been since the dawn of the industrial revolution.”

 

"...innovation has gone from a luxury to a necessity.”

Independant Software Opportunity

One analyst asked Nosbusch, “You talk about the information domain being a lot like Logix…are we being led to believe the information opportunity is going to be as important as Logix to Rockwell Automation?”   Nosbusch answered that Rockwell Automation, “...wants to integrate the production disciplines with the FactoryTalk framework.”   Nosbusch went on to describe how FactoryTalk allows multiple applications to play together and provide actionable information for real-time decision making creating greater productivity on the plant floor. “That is the goal we believe we can accomplish with open standards, with a transparent ability to collect information even in a heterogeneous plant environment - where it sits over the top of any automation system but still creates the performance reports.” The analyst followed up by asking, “...are you saying that in fact FactoryTalk could be sold in a competitive environment where it could be sitting on top of an Emerson or Honeywell system?”  Nosbusch replied, “That is exactly what we are saying, our control information technology is control agnostic. Our information strategy is completely independent of what is on the plant floor.”

 

CISCO Joint Venture

When asked how the CISCO joint venture launch was doing, Nosbusch commented, “We started shipping this last summer; the ramp has exceeded our expectations. The real key with what we are doing with CISCO today is the reference architecture which gives the roadmap and the guideline to people about how they should be thinking about architecting their plant information infrastructure for the future.”

 

Note: Reader may want to download the CISCO/Rockwell, Ethernet-to-the-Factory 1.2 Design and Implementation Guide

 

Process Control

Nosbusch noted that process control is long term the single largest growth market for Rockwell Automation.

 

Endress+Hauser Relationship

One analyst questioned, “Can you define your relationship with E&H and what that means as expansion into process industries and establishing your reputation there."  Nosbusch answered that E&H is one of the top two suppliers of end devices in the process industry. “In the process space companies are looking for a complete solution, we work with E&H to give customers interoperable, integrated solutions. Together we can give customers what they are looking for - tighter integration. We appear as one company…” 

 

How are process DCS engineers adapting to the new architecture coming from the DCS world?

"They love it; they hate it!”

 "So there are pro’s and con’s on both sides and for us the pro’s definitely outweighed the con’s.”

 Jim Wetzel, Technical Director, Control and Information Systems General Mills

 

Expand ControlLogix® and CompactLogix® Systems with Opto 22 SNAP I/O™   Opto 22 is promoting the use of their SNAP I/O as a way to add field I/O points and functions to ControlLogix® and CompactLogix® systems over EtherNet/IP™. This is accomplished with a free firmware upgrade to SNAP-PAC-EB1 and -EB2 Ethernet I/O that adds support for the EtherNet/IP™.  SNAP I/O integrates into these Logix platforms natively with no additional programming.   The company promotes the idea that SNAP I/O can perform a variety of advanced control functions independent of the programmable controller. Functions include PID loop control, high-speed counting,  thermocouple linearization, analog ramping, scaling, engineering unit conversion, temperature conversion, and time-proportional output.   SNAP I/O has been conformance-tested by ODVA’s Test Service Providers®, to be compatible with EtherNet/IP.   For more information, contact Opto 22 at +1-951-695-3000 or visit www.opto22.com or www.io4ab.com.

• CompactLogix System
• ControlLogix System
• FlexLogix System
• SoftLogix5800
• DriveLogix System

• Pico Controllers
• MicroLogix 1000
• MicroLogix 1100
• MicroLogix 1200
• MicroLogix 1400
• MicroLogix 1500
• SLC 500 System

Dear Customer,

Rockwell Automation appreciates your investment in the Allen-Bradley SLC 500, and we will continue to protect that investment. We offer a complete range of SLC 500 products for sale to service a wide variety of applications. And we continue to invest in the SLC 500 architecture. Our most recent additions include an Enhanced 5/05 CPU with 10/100 Mbps, increase connections, and embedded web server capability. Other additions include DF1 Radio Modem Compatibility for SLC 5/03, 5/04 and 5/05, the 1747-DPS1 Port Splitter, and the 1747-UIC Universal Serial Port (USB) to DH-485 Interface Converter.

We plan to actively market and manufacture the SLC 500 product line well into the next decade. This line will continue to service those small to mid-range PLC applications where high performance and a wide variety of communication networks and I/O structures are important.

Allen-Bradley plans to continue to offer hardware/firmware upgrades and repair of SLC 500 Family products. Protecting our customers’ investment is a significant reason we have an installed base over 1.6 million CPU and over 12 million 1746 I/O installations world-wide. Furthermore, it is our practice to support products for seven years from the date they are removed from general sale, pending availability of components.

To give you some idea of our commitment to our customers, the 1772 Series PLC-2 family, which was introduced in 1979, was removed from sale in 2002. That is a product life in excess of twenty years. While we cannot predict component availability and market forces for the SLC 500 that would allow us to do the same, we are committed to the sale and support of the SLC 500 family for the foreseeable future.

I hope that this brief correspondence will give you some idea of Allen-Bradley’s commitment to providing a quality automation product and commitment to the SLC 500 product line.

Paul Kohntopp
Control Platforms (SLC/PLC) Business Manager
Automation Control and Information Group
Rockwell Automation / Allen-Bradley

• Product trade-ins (both hardware and software) must be same product type as new product replacement (i.e., Controller for a Controller).
• Product trade-ins must be in working condition.
• StepForward credits cannot be combined with any other promotion, credit or special discount.
• Local distributor participation is optional.
• The StepForward program is available in the USA. If outside of the USA, please check with your local Rockwell Automation office for participation.
• Customers have 90 days from the shipment date of new product to request Return Authorization.
• New product received will have a full-factory warranty.
• The StepForward program will be reviewed quarterly and is subject to change without notice.