Join us at Routeco LIVE!

Routeco LIVE will showcase the very latest in Industrial Control & Automation products and give you the opportunity to learn about the latest trends and hot topics within the industrial sector. Our events will comprise of both a show floor, where you will find exhibits from our manufacturing partners, and three break out rooms with presentations and discussions running throughout the day covering topics such as:

• Industry 4.0, SMART Manufacturing, Enabling a Connected Enterprise
• IT/OT Convergence, Network Infrastructure for the factories of the future
• Machinery Safety, Legislation/Standards and Compliance
• Accessing and expanding into global markets for UK Machine Builders
• Enabling IoT technologies in the industrial sector
• Cyber Security best practices and protection concepts and technologies
• Migration of legacy control systems and managing obsolescence
• Motion Control optimisation and introduction to new technologies

… and much, much more, including a prize draw on the day!
  

Event details:

AJ Bell Stadium, 1, Stadium Way, Eccles, Salford, M30 7EY

Tuesday 4th October 2016

MK Dons Stadium, Grafton Street, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, MK1 1ST

Thursday 6th October 2016

These events are free of charge however, all attendees must pre-register for admittance on the day.

Register now to avoid disappointment! Email RoutecoLIVE@routeco.com with your full name, contact details and company stating which event day you wish to attend.

The events will open at 8.30am with presentations running from 9.30am and closing at 4pm. Breakfast rolls, refreshments and a buffet lunch will be provided.

There will also be guest speakers on the day with key note addresses from:

Thomas Donato (EMEA President at Rockwell Automation) and Steven Brambley (Director of Public Relations at GAMBICA)

If you are business leader, engineer, technical manager or commercial manager for a machine  builder, system integrator, panel builder or manufacturing plant then this event is for you!

Don’t miss out – email RoutecoLIVE@routeco.com today to register. 

Migrations Mobile App from Rockwell Automation

Use the new Rockwell Automation Migrations Mobile App to quickly migrate an existing SLC™ configuration to a ControlLogix® or a CompactLogix™ controller-based configuration. Specify the SLC configuration graphically by placing SLC modules in a 1746 chassis. The Migrations App then selects an equivalent ControlLogix or CompactLogix controller and I/O modules. When finished, share your Bill of Materials, existing and migrated chassis via email.

For more information and to download the app please click here. 

Please email info@routeco.com for further information. 

Allen-Bradley 42JT sensor range now with IO Link

Rockwell Automation has embedded IO Link in its standard 42JT sensor range. They can be used as a standard sensor with auto detect PNP/NPN outputs or IO Link when it detects the IO master. This flexibility makes it suitable for all applications.

With a choice of visible red LED and Class 1 “eye safe” lasers you now have a full range of background suppression, through beam, polarised retro-reflective, diffuse and clear sensors available.

For more information about this product click here.

The benefits of IO-Link Technology include:

• Reduced inventory and operating costs
• Increased uptime/productivity
• Simplified design, installation, setup and maintenance
• Enhanced flexibility and scalability

Please email info@routeco.com for further information. 

Helping our customers to access the North American market through a series of seminars

At the end of June, Routeco and Rockwell Automation hosted a series of seminars across the country on ‘North American Standards’ and building panels and machines to meet UL508A certification.

The sessions, held in Glasgow, Sandbach and Milton Keynes, were designed to help attendees gain an insight into complying with these Standards which could help to widen customer reach and unlock the ability to export to the US market.

The sessions covered:

> Different terminology & definitions between European & North American approach

>  How do these standards compare?

>  Look at branch, feeder & control circuits and learn how to correctly size panels

>  Discuss examples of SCCR calculation & find out what tools are available to assist

>  Learn which products are acceptable and not acceptable to meet these standards

Many thanks to all attendees who helped make the sessions a great success.

If you want to make sure you hear about our future workshops and seminars follow us on twitter and LinkedIn  or email us to ensure you’re subscribed to receive our emails.

For more information on the Introduction to North American Standards  seminar please email info@routeco.com

Special Offer – Laptop Compatible with Rockwell Automation Software

Routeco have a fantastic laptop available at only £499.99 which includes two free Rockwell Software installs.

The spec of the laptop is:

• Lenovo B50-50 80S2000NUK 39.6 cm (15.6") Notebook
• Intel Core i5 (5th Gen) i5-5200U Dual-core (2 Core) 2.20 GHz – Grey
• 8GB RAM
• 500 GB HHD - DVD-Writer - Intel HD Graphics 5500
• Wireless LAN - Ethernet - Front Camera/Webcam - HDMI - 2 x Total USB Ports - 1 x USB 3.0 Ports
• Win 10 Pro 64-bit / Win 7 Pro 64-bit downgrade - pre-installed: Win 7 Pro 64-bit – English
• 1 year warranty

The spec of the laptop meets the requirement for the majority of Rockwell Automation software and is most commonly used with FactoryTalk View and Studio 5000 packages.

For more information on this special offer please email info@routeco.com

Please note that Rockwell Automation software is not included in this cost, only the installation of up to two software packages when purchased at the same time as the laptop. 

Support Arm configurator tool from Rittal

To accommodate different viewing angles of your machine the support arm systems from Rittal ensure optimum interaction between monitoring and operating. Various different systems are used depending on the system configuration, jib length and enclosure weight.

This configurator from Rittal determines the perfect support arm system for your application and is a helpful tool to use when designing your machine.

If you would like further information on Rittal support arms or wish to discuss your machine requirements with one of our specialists please contact us at info@routeco.com

Ladder logic still dominates PLC programming

According to latest research, Ladder logic continues to be the dominant language for programming PLCs, accounting for more than 81% of the global market, despite the availability of several other languages defined in the IEC 61131-3 standard. 

The research from Technavio suggests that Functional Block Diagram (FBD) programming represents just over 11% of the market, with other languages accounting for the remaining 7.24%.

The Global PLC Software Market 2016-2020 report predicts that PLC programming will merge with motion control and robotics programming, and forecasts that the global market for PLC software will be worth $684m by 2020 – representing a CAGR of more than 7% since 2015, when it was worth $485m.

“Traditionally, industrial robots, motion controllers, and PLCs were programmed separately,” explains Technavio automation research analyst, Bharath Kanniappan. “PLCs are programmed in ladder logic, motion controls with their wide range are programmed using a PC library or other proprietary language, and industrial robots are programmed in complex proprietary languages that are difficult for non-technical personnel to understand.

More information can be found in this article in Drives and Controls magazine here

If you would like to discuss this topic with one of our Automation Specialists please email info@routeco.com to book an appointment