Precise Motion Control Gives Famous Vessel New Life
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookHMIIssue 30 - 2014Learning ResourcesMachine ControlMaterial HandlingMotion ControlNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable ControlUser Solutions

Precise Motion Control Gives Famous Vessel New Life

A piece of Cold War history uses automation for precise control of its floating dry dock. Less expensive components and in-house engineering allowed for a more advanced system. A covered dry dock, with a history worthy of spy novels and action movies, recently received a sophisticated automation motion control upgrade from its previous all-manual controls….
People's Choice for a Cost-Effective and Energy-Efficient Solar-Powered Home
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookAutomationDirect SpotlightDrivesEducation/DIYEnergy/UtilitiesHMIIndustryIssue 29 - 2014Learning ResourcesNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProcess ControlProductProgrammable ControlStudent SpotlightStudent SpotlightVariable Speed Drives

People's Choice for a Cost-Effective and Energy-Efficient Solar-Powered Home

UrbanEden, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte’s entry to the Solar Decathlon 2013, is a concept home consisting of four connected indoor and outdoor spaces that create a unique
Automation System Retrofit Transforms 175-ton Hydraulic Forming Press
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookIndustryIssue 29 - 2014Learning ResourcesManufacturingNotebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProcess ControlProductProgrammable ControlUser Solutions

Automation System Retrofit Transforms 175-ton Hydraulic Forming Press

In less than one month, a rebuild automated press operations to increase production rates and improve quality. Southern Manufacturing Group (SMG) located in Morrison, Tennessee, was founded in 1993. The company makes automotive components and industrial valves. In the fall of 2012, the automation system for its 175-ton hydraulic forming press received electrical damage resulting from a lightning strike…
Systems & Controls Takes Time for Tea
ApplicationApplication StoriesDrivesFood and BeverageFood Beverage AutomationHMIIndustryMachine ControlOperator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable ControlVariable Speed Drives

Systems & Controls Takes Time for Tea

Systems & Controls in Lenoir City, Tennessee, was contacted by a scale manufacturing company to develop a brewed tea and coffee container filling machine using four weight transmitters, a DirectLOGIC DL-205 PLC, a RHINO power supply,  a C-more touch panel and a GS2 variable frequency drive.
An Affordable Retrofit Prevents Expensive Replacements
ApplicationApplication StoriesAutomation NotebookAutomationDirect SpotlightData CollectionIndustryIssue 28 - 2014Learning ResourcesNotebook IssuePLCProcess ControlProductProgrammable ControlSystem IntegratorsUser SolutionsWater/Wastewater

An Affordable Retrofit Prevents Expensive Replacements

The Harvest-Monrovia Water & Sewer Authority (HMWSA) was established in August 1965 to operate and maintain a water system to provide domestic water in the Harvest-Monrovia area of Madison County, located near Huntsville, Alabama. In the early years, the utility serviced only 700 customers. As a result of growth in the area, the HMWSA now…
What a Drag!
ApplicationAutomationDirect SpotlightDiscrete SensingEducation/DIYIndustryIssue 28 - 2014Machine ControlNotebook IssueProductRelays & TimersStudent SpotlightStudent Spotlight

What a Drag!

CO2 powered drag strip teaches students the science of speed. John Harpell’s 9th grade class at Moira Secondary School in Belleville, Ontario, Canada has built and automated a model racecar track for CO2 powered “dragsters” using various components from AutomationDirect. A CO2 powered dragster is a small lightweight vehicle fitted with a CO2 cartridge; think “pine-wood-derby on…
DataWorx with Do-more PLC support
+Tech TopicsApplicationAutomation NotebookData CollectionIssue 28 - 2014Learning ResourcesNotebook IssueProductProgrammable ControlTechnology Brief

DataWorx with Do-more PLC support

AutomationDirect has partnered with BizWareDirect for several years, supplying DataWorx data collection and monitoring software for compatible DirectLOGIC programmable logic controllers (PLCs), Productivity3000 and WinPLC controllers. Previously, it had been necessary to purchase an OPC/DDE server and write code, or buy an HMI package, to collect data from AutomationDirect controllers. BizWareDirect’s data collection software makes…