Written by Tony Deane, Automation Manager
Customer: “So, you’re saying I can download apps onto a PLC rather than having to program it?”
Phoenix Contact: “That’s correct”
Customer: “Really? You mean like an app onto my Smart Phone?”
Phoenix Contact: “Yes, that is exactly what I mean!”
Does this seem farfetched? Read on.
Continue readingWritten by Fraser Cowie, Product Manager- Interface
Do we really need another range of Variable Speed Drives?
I had a look online the other day and I was astounded by the number of different Variable Speed Drives ( VSDs) manufacturers and the breadth of offer of that is available today!
There is a lot of product out there!
Today’s drive OEMs have a variety of different VSDs for each frame size they do, and then each of these may have options, depending upon the application.
Continue readingWritten by Duncan Nicol, Sales & Marketing Manager- Device Connections
Much has been written and discussed in the last year about the shift to a more sustainable energy future. Central to this topic is the ability to store energy for use when demand is high. Battery storage is part of the solution and has some key advantages over other forms of energy storage.
Back when coal was king, we would store energy in massive coal slag heaps and burn when needed. For fast power delivery when demand was high, one approach was pumped storage hydropower, but this needed a reservoir at the top of a mountain to pump and store the water.
Continue readingWritten by Mark Lloyd, Senior Product Manager- Power Supplies & Surge Protection
Some time ago I penned a blog introducing a special guarantee where we offer a 5 year warranty on our QUINT4 power supplies provided that they are protected by one of our Plugtrab type 3 surge arrestors.
This warranty is still live and I thought it would be worth mentioning again with some additional information just in case anyone thought this was a gimmick with no technical substance.
Continue readingWritten by Karl Fazakerley, Product Manager- Device Connections
I want to start this blog by jogging back to my memories of around April/ May time when, due to the Covid 19 virus spread, we were all in a national lockdown. I live in Blackpool and my region got hit hard with the virus. But I am not here writing this to talk about the virus, but more so about the by-product of the situation I found myself in- did anyone notice how clean the air became?
Continue readingWritten by Gareth Chamberlain, Product Manager- Cyber Security & Automation
Over the last year, other than staring at four walls of the home office, we have seen a lot of retrofit projects come to us to help to bring older technology up to date. Most common needs are to replace serial systems with an ethernet based topology. The most common product family that comes up in applications is the FL WLAN 2100 and the FL WLAN 5110 to create a wireless cable replacement of what was the serial communication.
The most common application is retrofitting communications to overhead cranes. These faithful work horses play such a crucial role in everyday production that there is no leeway for a critical piece of equipment to be down due to component failure. A lot of maintenance departments spend thousands on spares that are depleting at an alarming rate due to obsolescence or the OEM that commissioned the crane originally simply does not exist anymore.
Continue readingWritten by Scott Mulholland, Product Manager- Industrial Components
The Phoenix Contact Heavycon range of modules continues to increase in number and technical diversity.
Its another first for Phoenix Contact, offering a single module capable of accommodating 6mm conductors. As you can see in the images to the right, the new modules are available in 2, 3 and 4 way options.
Continue readingWritten by Andy Maskell, Product Manager- Safety & Networks
Light and sound has been used for centuries as a means of communication. In amongst all of the complex state of the art automation, we still use light and sound to communicate the status of machines and production lines.
Automation efficiencies mean there are less people on the shop floor to attend individual machines, so when there is need for intervention a simple LED indicator or sounder can help keep things moving and reduce expensive production downtime.
Continue readingWritten by Gary Nelson, Senior Product Manager- Device Connections.
When creating DIN rail assemblies how do you ensure your connectivity needs are met without compromising valuable space in the cabinet?
The scenario is nothing new as no matter how well planned the layout of your cabinet is, the interconnection needs always take valuable space between the DIN rails. The reason is mainly due to the location of the connectors and the cable bend radii needed to prevent damage to the connection points. In traditional electronics enclosures the number of connection points is also limited unless the physical width or height of the housing is increased which then takes up even more valuable space on the DIN rail.
Continue readingWritten by Andy Neat, Product Manager- Marking & Identification and Industrial Cabinet Solutions
Morning everyone, welcome to another one of my Monday morning blogs!
First of all, I hope you are all safe and well as we find ourselves in national lockdown again. If nothing else, I have here something to take your mind off the pandemic for a few minutes as I’m going to talk to you about a product which you can download and play with, right now!
Continue reading