Quick and Clean Automation Implementation
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Quick and Clean Automation Implementation

To help meet COVID-19 needs for sanitizing wipes, an HVAC contractor used their multiple-discipline experience and AutomationDirect products to quickly create automated filling machines. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic during the summer of 2020, a St. Louis manufacturer wanted to utilize available factory space to produce pails filled with sanitizing wipes. They engaged…
ProductivityOpen Speeds OEM Feature Development
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ProductivityOpen Speeds OEM Feature Development

AutomationDirect industrialized open-source hardware and software provides flexibility and options for OEMs looking to deliver tough, IT-capable systems. Güntner is a worldwide original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of evaporative condensers, serving a wide range of industries and users with their reliable large-scale heat exchangers. The company has developed in-house embedded microcontrollers specifically optimized for their equipment….
Integrated or Separate Safety Systems
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Integrated or Separate Safety Systems

Machine designers must consider many factors when deciding on safety system architectures for factory automation. Larry Reynolds, product engineer for safety components at AutomationDirect, wrote an article for the September-October 2019 issue of ISA’s InTech titled Integrated or Separate Safety Systems. Here’s a summary, click on the link above for the full text. Factory equipment…
Modern Controls Automate Rock Crushing
ApplicationApplication StoriesHMIMachine ControlMaterial HandlingPLCProgrammable Control

Modern Controls Automate Rock Crushing

InterConnecting Automation, an AutomationDirect system integrator, helps in-house staff to upgrade an aging and highly manual control system into a modern and easy-to-configure design. Todd Timpa, assistant general manager at CTC Crushing, wrote an article for the October 2019 issue of Control titled Modern Controls, System Integrator Automate Rock Crushing. Here’s a summary, click on…
Cable-Pull Safety Switches
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Cable-Pull Safety Switches

Full coverage E-Stop protection around your machinery We all know the importance of having emergency stop devices near and around machinery. There are numerous regulations (ANIS, ISO, IEC) that define emergency stop device requirements. In short they all state that they are actuated by a “single human action”, should be used to de-energize equipment to…
Mobile Industrial is the New Normal
Automation NotebookData System MonitoringIssue 42 - 2019Learning ResourcesMachine ControlNotebook IssueOperator InterfaceProduct

Mobile Industrial is the New Normal

Most plant floor workers already carry mobile devices, so using them to access, control and monitor equipment is a natural next step. The September 2018 issue of Control Design magazine featured a cover story spotlighting new and better ways for delivering a mobile industrial operator interface experience. Titled A Better Interface, the article presented input…
Crushing the Control System
ApplicationApplication StoriesDrivesHMIIndustryIssue 42 - 2019Machine ControlManufacturingMotorsNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProcess ControlProductProgrammable ControlVariable Speed Drives

Crushing the Control System

Upgrading to a modern control system platform with the help of a local system integrator transforms a rock crushing plant from manual to fully automatic operation. By Todd Timpa, Assistant General Manager at CTC Crushing Impact Sand and Gravel is the leading supplier of aggregate and sand in the Las Vegas area, producing and distributing…
Eastern Washington University Students Look for a Smooth Ride
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomationDirect SpotlightEducation/DIYIndustryIssue 42 - 2019Machine ControlNotebook IssuePneumaticsPneumaticsProductStudent Spotlight

Eastern Washington University Students Look for a Smooth Ride

Everyone likes a smooth ride in their vehicle — unless you are off road in a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Most of us will avoid the bumps and potholes to drive on the smoothest pavement possible. Car manufacturers recognize this too. They spend lots of money on TV, print and digital advertising to promote that their…
Programming and Setup Considerations for VFDs with Integrated PLCs
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Programming and Setup Considerations for VFDs with Integrated PLCs

Control capability built-in to VFDs are moving machine intelligence to the edge. Jeff Payne, Product Manager for AutomationDirect, wrote an article for the March 2019 issue of Design World, titled VFDs with integrated PLCs for motion and machine controls: Programming and setup considerations. Payne explains how AC drives can be controlled by either an external…
Honing in on Machine Automation
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Honing in on Machine Automation

The automation and electrical system on a large, 82-year-old cylinder honing machine was replaced with a variety of AutomationDirect hardware to improve cycle time, safety and quality. Andrew Marks, Maintenance Foreman and Master Electrician at Exline Leasing Inc., wrote an article for the January 2019 issue of Control Design magazine, titled Honing in on Machine…