Denim Manufacturer Upgrades Controls to Add Flexibility to Process Lines
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookIndustryIssue 15 – 2009Learning ResourcesMachine ControlManufacturingMaterial HandlingNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable ControlUser SolutionsVariable Speed Drives

Denim Manufacturer Upgrades Controls to Add Flexibility to Process Lines

Nestled along the Chatooga River, in Trion, Georgia, Mount Vernon Mills is one of the largest and oldest textile mills in the United States. Its long history dates back to 1845. The initial 5,000 square foot two-story mill had 40 employees and produced 5-lb. bunches of yarn to sell to local merchants from wagons. Over…
Industry Slims Down, Peps Up
ApplicationAutomation NotebookCover StoriesEnergy/UtilitiesIndustryIssue 15 – 2009Learning ResourcesManufacturingNotebook IssueOnline Blog

Industry Slims Down, Peps Up

Manufacturers Are Discovering That Producing Smarter Means Cutting Energy It now seems like a thousand years ago, but before the wave of economic bad news, many managers and executives had been weighed down by out of control energy prices, and with a fear that the world was reaching peak oil production and things would get…
The Future Of Technology
ApplicationAutomation NotebookIssue 14 – 2009Learning ResourcesNotebook IssueOperator InterfaceProcess ControlProductProgrammable ControlStudent Spotlight

The Future Of Technology

Who: Diyan Zagarov From: Bulgaria Attending College: Lanier Technical College, North Georgia Childhood Dreams Diyan Zagarov grew up in Bulgaria. Growing up, Diyan thought of himself as the adventurous type and often felt the desire to travel and see the world. However, he grew up under the shadow of the Soviet Union, so for a long time traveling…
Automating the Bottom Line
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookData CollectionHMIIndustryIssue 14 – 2009Learning ResourcesManufacturingManufacturingNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable ControlUser Solutions

Automating the Bottom Line

Metcam is a manufacturing company located in Alpharetta, Georgia, just north of Atlanta. Founded in 1989, the company specializes in custom sheet metal fabrication serving a diverse industry base including commercial HVAC, healthcare, electronics, automotive, food service and air filtration. Metcam provides many value-added services such as metal finishing, custom coatings, electronic assembly, packaging and…
Urban Challenge 2007
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookEducation/DIYIndustryIssue 10 – 2008Learning ResourcesMachine ControlNotebook IssuePLCProductProgrammable ControlTechnical Review

Urban Challenge 2007

AutomationDirect was pleased to help support two vehicles hoping to compete in the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge. Team Mojavaton, with their “White Knight” (a modified Nissan Xterra), and Insight Racing (fielding a Lotus Elise dubbed the “Lone Wolf”) were both invited to the National Qualification Event held in Victorville, CA, at the end of October…
AutomationDirect Products Help The Environment
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookDrivesHMIIndustryIssue 12 – 2008Learning ResourcesMachine ControlNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProcess ControlProductProgrammable ControlUser SolutionsVariable Speed DrivesWater/Wastewater

AutomationDirect Products Help The Environment

Treating waste water generated in industrial plants requires an efficient, easy-to-use process which yields minimal by-product; it must be reliable and durable too. Environmental Compliance Equipment, in Palm City, Florida, designs systems to meet these requirements. One such system is marketed as ClearFlow. The ClearFlow System Explained ClearFlow systems can be integrated in almost any…
Teaching an Old Dog Some New Tricks
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookDrivesEducation/DIYIndustryIssue 11 – 2008Learning ResourcesMachine ToolNotebook IssueProductTech ThreadVariable Speed Drives

Teaching an Old Dog Some New Tricks

Modernizing The Speed Controls Of Hardinge Turret Lathes Using AutomationDirect GS2 Variable Frequency Drives Just about every machinist in the U.S. has encountered a Hardinge turret lathe during the course of their career. These little machines, commonly referred to as “second operation lathes”, are astoundingly productive pieces of equipment which still have great value in…
Sustainable Automation, Inc. Improves Efficiency of Lock Pin Laminating Machine
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookAutomationDirect SpotlightHMIIndustryIssue 11 – 2008Learning ResourcesMachine ToolNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable ControlSecuritySystem IntegratorsUser Solutions

Sustainable Automation, Inc. Improves Efficiency of Lock Pin Laminating Machine

InstaKey Security System, a lock management company in Denver, Colorado, supplies lock cylinders that can be re-keyed up to twelve times using only a step-change key. The step-change key is a specially designed device which removes a single metal wafer from a glued stack inside the chamber of a lock cylinder. Because of the growing…
Sunlight Efficiency Detector (SLED) Chosen as Finalist in Freescale Semiconductor Contest
ApplicationData CollectionEnergy/UtilitiesIndustryIssue 11 – 2008Notebook IssueOperator InterfaceProductProgrammable ControlTechnology Brief

Sunlight Efficiency Detector (SLED) Chosen as Finalist in Freescale Semiconductor Contest

Announced in October 2007, Freescale’s first FTF Design Challenge encouraged embedded systems designers worldwide to “go green”. A team of engineers from FACTS Engineering, including Tom Moulton and Eric Wilhelmson, took up the challenge with their design for a SunLight Efficiency Detector or SLED. FACTS is a federation partner of AutomationDirect, and the supplier of…
Process Analyzer Uses WinPLC To Monitor Cyanide Destruction
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookFeature StoryIndustryIssue 8 – 2007Learning ResourcesMachine ControlNotebook IssuePLCProcess ControlProductProgrammable ControlWater/Wastewater

Process Analyzer Uses WinPLC To Monitor Cyanide Destruction

NEXTChem Process Analyzers, LLC produces chemical process analyzers for industries such as metal treatment, metal finishing, chemical, wastewater, and pulp and paper. The analyzers automate laboratory measurements used for process control. Some of NEXTChem’s customers include a large aerospace company who uses the analyzer for measuring caustic cleaner for jet engine parts, and a major…