Highlights
- From Analog Loops to IIoT-ready PLCs: What Today’s Engineers Need to Know
- Why a Single-Loop Process Controller Might Be Your Ideal Situation
- Dedicated Devices versus a PLC for PID Loop Control
- Customer App: Cooking up a Partnership
Since its humble beginnings in the 1960s as a replacement for relay logic systems on the automotive line, programmable logic controllers (PLCs) have evolved into multi-core processing units that run many critical functions in manufacturing plants. With more processing power and more memory, the PLC has also expanded
beyond discrete operations for basic sequencing into more complex process applications that control variables like flow, pressure, and temperature. Today, there’s basically a PLC for everything. And in this issue of NOTEBOOK we explore the many sides of this versatile industrial automation controller.
In this issue of the Automation Notebook…
In process industries like oil and gas, chemical, paper, and water treatment, precision is everything. That’s why PLCs—once simple relay replacers—have evolved into powerful, real-time control hubs capable of enabling intelligent operations across increasingly connected systems. To explore how PLC technology is transforming process control, we spoke with Jeff Payne, Director of Business Development at…
Application StoriesAutomation NotebookHMIIssue 56, 2025Operator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable Control
Automation of a Pilot-Scale Distillation Process
Applying large-scale automation concepts and technologies to a small-scale process operation. By Doug Reneker Small-scale distillation processes can take many forms because there are countless possible objectives, but the underlying principles reflect those used by large-scale companies to produce fuel, chemicals, and alcoholic beverages. Boutique and hobbyist practitioners creating products worthy of aging and imbibing…
Building and Growing Robotics Teams AutomationDirect started supporting student robotics efforts in 2005 by sponsoring a single high school robotics team, as part of the For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) organization. FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) Team 1746, also known as Team OTTO, which began as a community team of students from…
By: Rin Irvin and Josh Waters It’s an engineering truth that there’s no such thing as a perfect solution, just the best solution for the project at hand. This principle remains true for process control applications. PLCs are powerful and comprehensive control solutions, but not every industrial process needs that level of functionality. For every…
Application StoriesAutomation NotebookCommunicationsEnclosures & AccessoriesHMIIssue 56, 2025Operator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable Control
Cooking Up a Partnership
A system integrator supports their food processing client, implementing industrial automation technologies for a mix of OEM equipment and systems throughout the facility. By Jordan Hulsey, Caldwell Electrical Contractors, Inc. With busy lives and schedules often bursting at the seams, ready-to-eat (RTE) food has become a convenience that many indulge in—and some may even rely…
Closed-loop PID control is indispensable for a myriad of automation applications, and designers need to know the options for implementing PID using either dedicated devices or automation controllers. Automated regulatory control of characteristics like flow, level, pressure, temperature, and many other types of analog values is essential for countless types of machinery, processing equipment, and…
Square the Steps Can you cut the shape below into four identical shapes that will fit together to form a square? Cells within Cells Can you move exactly two of the load cells to new squares, so that all the rows and columns will have an even number of load cells? Word is: there are…
Automation NotebookCompany NewsCompany TopicsIssue 56, 2025Learning ResourcesNewsPress ReleasesPress Releases
The AutomationDirect C-more CM5 Headless HMI Wins Silver in Control Engineering 2025 Product of the Year Awards
Readers demonstrate enthusiasm for the CM5-RHMI, a cost-effective and flexible headless HMI with remote connectivity, advanced functionality, and a compact footprint. AutomationDirect’s C-more CM5-RHMI has been announced as the 2025 Silver winner of Control Engineering’s Product of the Year program in the human-machine interface (HMI) category. Check out the award announcement here! Control Engineering subscribers…
May 28, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added Laumas precision-engineered load cells, transmitters, and accessories that deliver reliable performance in industrial weighing and force measurement applications. The FCAL series high-precision bending beam load cells are ideal for low- to mid-capacity systems. CTL series load cells are designed for both tension and compression, with excellent linearity. The…
May 28, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added new Gates hydraulic hose assemblies from Royal Brass & Hose. These hose assemblies eliminate the need to cut and terminate hydraulic hoses on-site and are offered in the ProFlex or MXT series. The ProFlex series features a compact construction with a smaller outer diameter, allowing them to flex…
May 21, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added ifm fail-safe inductive sensors featuring (2) OSSD outputs that can be connected to a safety relay for safety applications requiring the detection of metal objects. These sensors are designed to trigger a safe state (like stopping a machine) if the sensor fails, reducing the risk of injury to…
May 21, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added additional drag chain options to route cables/hoses to moving components and help extend cable/hose life. The igus 2500 series cable/hose drag chains feature a snap-open mechanism along the chain’s outer radius to allow convenient access to the chain’s channel after installation. The hinged crossbar can be swiveled by more…
May 21, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added Patlite industrial signal beacons, which provide a clear and unambiguous visual indication, ensuring quick and easy detection by floor personnel. These beacons are available in three series with various monocolor options and a Fresnel lens that distributes ambient, uniform light from all globe surfaces, including the top. All…
May 21, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added IronHorse VP1 series DC gearmotors that are designed to power high-torque mechanical loads at lower speeds with a compact motor. They are powered by 90 VDC and are designed for use with unfiltered SCR or PWM waveforms generated by a DC drive. They can also be used in across-the-line applications….
WAGO Single-Channel Electronic Circuit Breakers and Eco2 Series Power Supplies from AutomationDirect
May 14, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added WAGO 787-3861 series single-channel electronic circuit breakers that offer a lower cost option and a compact 6mm form factor to provide safe and reliable supplementary protection for 24 VDC control circuits. These electronic circuit breakers offer remote monitoring and control, clear LED indicators, and fast response to overloads…
May 14, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added Pfannenberg DTT 6000 series top-mounted air conditioners which are 100% condensate safe, provide up to 14,000 BTU/H, and are ideal for space-saving installation on the top of a NEMA 12 control enclosure. Pfannenberg’s DTS series 3000 air conditioners are made in the USA, offer cooling capacities up to…
May 14, 2025 – AutomationDirect has added Balluff EtherNet/IP IO-Link master modules that provide EtherNet/IP communication for IO-Link systems, with a REST API and/or MQTT support depending on model. They are available in a rugged IP67 die-cast zinc nickel-plated housing for harsher environments or in a weld-proof potted plastic format. Select models include built-in screen…