Any PLC Guru's about .....

paulyoung666

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..... the job i have is all about PLC , except i am a mechanical person , long story !! , just wondering if anyone can give me some self help pointers or books i could stick my nose into to help me along :smashin:
 
what brand of PLC's will you be using?
Will you be dealing with just the hardware or will it be software based?
if it software do they want you to be able to set out a project from scratch, commission someone else's project or just a maintenance roll?

I would never call myself a guru but i am a software commissioning engineer dealing mostly with Allen Bradley PLCs, as for advice on books to be honest i wouldn't have a clue, as i would say i learnt most of it from playing with the software asking advice from others and learning hands on with the customer breathing down my neck.
 
I just happen to know a couple of Automation Engineers....

What platform are you using? I.e. Siemens PCS7, Emerson DeltaV. There are usually good help documentation included in the installation.
 
a mix of hard and software , mostly Omron but some Mitsubishi to confuse the issue !! , to be honest you are probably right about learning by playing , its just that it is all so alien to me , i used to fix things with hammers and spanners lol , thanks for replying by the way :thumbsup:

I just happen to know a couple of Automation Engineers....

What platform are you using? I.e. Siemens PCS7, Emerson DeltaV. There are usually good help documentation included in the installation.

Siemens is in the mix without a doubt ...
 
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I have quite a lot of experience with Mitsubishi, Siemens S5/S7, Omron are very similar to Mitsubishi also have been working with Beckhoff stuff more recently.

If you google MELSEC MEDOC you should be able to find the Mitsubishi programming software and some beginner guides, if you are in a maintenance role you will need to learn how to adjust timers and apply and remove forces as well as check for correct I/O.

I probably have a couple of programs somewhere that I wrote a couple of years ago for a Mitsubishi FX20 which you are welcome to have a copy of once you have the MEDOC program software.

Although I dont know what your role involves so you may not need to know anything too in depth, there are a couple of good specialist forums floating about but I havent used them for a couple of years.
 
If you google MELSEC MEDOC you should be able to find the Mitsubishi programming software and some beginner guides, if you are in a maintenance role you will need to learn how to adjust timers and apply and remove forces as well as check for correct I/O.

that pretty much covers the role i am in , trying to decipher japanese hiroglyphics ( sp) is a big part of it as well :laugh:
 
when do you start this new role?

The company should supply you with all the software you need for the role anyway so don't get to worried about finding a copy on line, but if you do go looking for it the newer Mitsubshi's now use a software called GX IEC Developer, don't know about Omron and Siemens as the clients of the company i work for don't use them.
 
PLC programming :D? Gis a job mister :smashin:.
 
I deliberately didnt mention the Mitsubishi GX software as the MEDOC is a lot simpler to get started with and much more widespread for the type of environment the OP is likely to encounter, obviously there are specific training courses available which the OP's employer may wish to send him on and whilst this may get him started, in my opinion you will learn much more in the field with an experienced engineer.
 
PLC programming :D? Gis a job mister :smashin:.

Know anything about Beckhoff's TwinCat II and technical german - no ladders in this system.
 
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its_all_Greek said:
when do you start this new role?

The company should supply you with all the software you need for the role anyway so don't get to worried about finding a copy on line, but if you do go looking for it the newer Mitsubshi's now use a software called GX IEC Developer, don't know about Omron and Siemens as the clients of the company i work for don't use them.

Been working at the place for 9 months now , was expecting it to be mainly mechanical work with a bit of basic electrical as well , now it looks as though we are going to be doing loads of PLC fault finding as well , not complaining , far from it , just finding it hard because people who know PLC are fixing stuff before I can get the cabs open lol ...
 
Know anything about Beckhoff's TwinCat II and technical german - no ladders in this system.

Never heard of it. I've worked on Bradleys in the past and Mitsubishi. Also on an Alstom DCS (the P320) and a SCADA system whose name I cannot remember, must be my mind blocking it out, as it was a complete nightmare. I'm working on safety cases etc now, which is really boring.
 
Unless you’re actually going to get involved with the programming side of life, just treat a plc as an input device that will give a set output when certain conditions are true.

Thanks to our Spanish Bosses, we don’t get anywhere near programming. I’d say we rarely see plc problems, but do see input device failure (micro switch, inductive sensors, etc), contactor failure and cabling faults.

:)
 
I believe lockwells do a city and guilds certified plc course (which apparently covers the basics through to constructing programs) there are specific courses for different manufacturers and i know palmer graham are offering free training at the moment (ask your boss to speak to them)

Other than that your only other option is to do a mechatronics HNC/HND with the right college that offer the PLC unit (bridgwater do PLC and robotics) i went that route as well as specific manufacturer training etc and unless you keep your hand in it is hard to keep up (management now) hardest program to read had to be a German phoenix contact control system in FB, ST and ladder all mixed up with no comments, even with the specific training i couldn't make head nor tail of it.

If you want my advice don't worry so much, most people employing maintenance roles (specifically multi skilled) will not expect a mechanically biased engineer to be a programmer just be confident to have a look and learn.
 
montybaber said:
If you want my advice don't worry so much, most people employing maintenance roles (specifically multi skilled) will not expect a mechanically biased engineer to be a programmer just be confident to have a look and learn.

Sounds like a plan to me , quite happy to stick my nose in lol ..
 
If you worked for me id be more than happy with that
 

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