Automation Upgrade Gives New Life and Performance to an Aging Aeration Bridge
Application StoriesDiscrete SensingIndustryPLCProductProgrammable ControlWater/Wastewater

Automation Upgrade Gives New Life and Performance to an Aging Aeration Bridge

Mounting a Wi-Fi PLC directly atop a rotating aeration bridge keeps the equipment on track and adds real-time stall protection. One wastewater treatment plant’s aeration basins have run fairly well for 30 years using the same rotating bridge equipment, but there was no effective way to warn operators if anything went awry. In an August…
Secure by Design: What It Means When You Buy Industrial Components
CommunicationsIssue 60 - 2026Notebook IssueProduct

Secure by Design: What It Means When You Buy Industrial Components

By Tim Wheeler, Cybersecurity Manager, AutomationDirect When customers purchase industrial components, they’re looking for more than a part number. They want products they can rely on in real-world machines, panels, process lines, and production environments where uptime, maintainability, and predictable operation matter every day. Increasingly, they also want confidence that those products were designed with…
Unmanaged+ Industrial Ethernet Switches Simplify OT/IT Connectivity
+Tech TopicsCommunicationsIssue 60 - 2026Learning ResourcesNotebook IssueProductTechnology Brief

Unmanaged+ Industrial Ethernet Switches Simplify OT/IT Connectivity

A new class of edge-optimized Ethernet switches are purpose-built for industrial environments and protocols, providing a streamlined approach for connecting valuable OT data with enterprise IT resources for improved visibility, analytics, and proactive diagnostics. By Damon Purvis, AutomationDirect Throughout all aspects of industrial automation, the historical separation between operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT)…
Industrial Motion Control Powers Open-Source Metal 3D Printing
Application StoriesIssue 60 - 2026Motion ControlMotorsNotebook IssuePLCProductProgrammable Control

Industrial Motion Control Powers Open-Source Metal 3D Printing

Reliable off-the-shelf automation components can accelerate the development of prototype projects and ready them for scale-up. By: David Powell The shipbuilding industry—where lead times for new vessels often stretch into years and repairs are time and safety critical—often requires large, specialized parts, which are costly and time consuming to manufacture with conventional methods. For this…
Designing Secure and Effective Industrial Control Networks
CommunicationsIssue 60 - 2026Notebook IssueProductUncategorized

Designing Secure and Effective Industrial Control Networks

The IT/OT convergence is inescapable in the modern industrial market. Here’s how to optimize performance while maintaining a secure network. By: Damon Purvis, Alexander Maercz, and Winn Paulk; AutomationDirect For decades, the operational technology (OT) networks responsible for industrial controls were kept separate from IT networks. The approach protected critical industrial operations from vulnerabilities introduced…
Supporting Small and Specialized Automation Applications
Application StoriesDrivesHMIIssue 60 - 2026Notebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable ControlVariable Speed Drives

Supporting Small and Specialized Automation Applications

How a small system integrator relies on proven automation products to reliably and responsively serve clients. Byline: Mike Watkins, AutoWorks Like enterprises in almost any sector of the economy, industrial automation systems integrators (SIs) come in a wide range of sizes. Many designers and developers, myself included, have worked at a few operations both small…
A Hands-On Home for Automation Learning
Application StoriesHMIIssue 60 - 2026Notebook IssueOperator InterfacePLCProductProgrammable Control

A Hands-On Home for Automation Learning

How a main-street innovation center is helping small-town utilities, students, and researchers get comfortable with industrial controls. By: Greg Martz, CoStream Small municipal water and wastewater systems are among the quietest success stories in American infrastructure. Some estimates suggest that about 90% of the water systems in the United States fall into the “small” category,…
Z-Range Safety Switch System
ProductSafety

Z-Range Safety Switch System

Simple. Intelligent. Modular. Scalable Safety, Simplified WiringThe Z-Range Safety Switch System delivers a flexible approach to machine safety that’s designed for modular machinery. Up to 30 devices can be connected in series to a single safety relay while preserving PLe and SIL 3 ratings, making it ideal for scalable systems. With built-in diagnostics and easy…
Selecting Safety Components Properly | White Paper
ProductSafetyWhite Papers

Selecting Safety Components Properly | White Paper

Facility, system, and machinery safety are important factors to prevent injury and loss of productivity in the workplace. Safety component ratings ensure that the proper device is selected for your application. Understanding these ratings will make this decision much easier. Table of Contents
Painlessly Connect OT with IT Using Industrial Edge Switches
CommunicationsProduct

Painlessly Connect OT with IT Using Industrial Edge Switches

Unmanaged+ industrial Ethernet switches apply key IT technologies—including VLANs, QoS, IGMP snooping, and more—in easily deployed OT-friendly hardware, all without any required complex management. Today’s manufacturers are pursuing data analytics, AI-driven optimization, remote support, and enterprise-wide visibility, which means that their operational technology (OT) networks can no longer remain isolated from information technology (IT) systems….