Written by Andy Maskell, Product Manager- Safety, I/O & Networks
Automation continues to develop at a very fast pace but the complexity can also increase and in turn the skills required to make it work. There is no sign this trend is slowing down but what we still see is the need for cost effective and easy to implement solutions that remove the need for software licences, complex programming and expensive hardware for smaller applications that still need to be automated.



Did you know how easy our electric outlets can make your engineering life?
Consider the possibilities of having all the functionality of a building controller but with up to 63 I/O terminals directly connected to the controller, an integrated 4 port Ethernet switch, M-Bus and DALI modules, again directly connected to the controller, multi-protocol support and all
running on the Niagara 4 framework and it’s available in an industrial platform…what more could you want?
Wireless technology has moved on in recent years to the point where there are few applications where it cannot be used. The obvious requirement for wireless technology is where it is too costly (cable and copper costs) or where it is impossible to run cables.

