Refreshing automation site upgrade.

The news publication for the global automation community, Automation.com, has been relaunched by ISA (International Society of Automation) with a refreshed design and improved site navigation experience based on ISA technical content topics. This upgrade offers a more modern look and feel with advanced search capabilities and more intuitive topic organisation.

“Industrial automation is evolving rapidly, and so are the needs of our readers,” said Rick Zabel, managing director of ISA Publications. “With the newly redesigned Automation.com, we’re making it simpler for automation professionals to access critical information, stay current with industry trends and connect with their global community.”

The updates to Automation.com reflect its continued commitment to delivering timely, relevant, authoritative content to ISA members and non-members alike. The redesigned website features:

• Advanced Search Functionality: Enhanced search tools make it easier and faster for automation professionals to find the news, features, products and guidance they need.
• Modern Look and Feel: The refreshed design offers a clean, modern user experience with improved readability for mobile devices.
• ISA-Related Updates: ISA members can turn to Automation.com for the latest Society news, with a special tag devoted to this purpose.
• Topic-Based Navigation: Site structure and navigation are now organised around ISA technical content topics. Users can browse and drill down by topics of interest — including factory and process control, safety, OT cybersecurity, enterprise architecture and both well-established and emerging technologies — helping them discover content tailored to their needs.

Automation.com’s relaunch aims to foster strong engagement with its readers and deepen the website’s integration with ISA. Together, ISA and the redesigned Automation.com offer invaluable resources for engineers, technicians, plant managers, system integrators and technology providers navigating the digital transformation of industry.

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@ISA_Automation @automation_com #PAuto #Automation #TandM #Standards

Automation as a strategic tool in the success manufacturing.

Bill Lydon has been active in manufacturing automation for more many years. He started his career as a designer of computer-based machine tool controls. He applied programmable logic controllers and process control technology later in his career. In addition to experience at various large companies, he cofounded and was president of a venture-capital-funded industrial automation software company. 

Bill Lydon

Bill served as Editor of the ISA flagship periodical, InTech, from the time this correspondent was acting as VP Publications with the International Society of Automation in 2010-2012. He stepped down from this position two or three years ago and is gradually withdrawing from the more responsible positions in publishing. Thankfully he will continue to male some contributions both to InTech in the Final Say articles and will still be writing for the ISA subsidiary Automation.com. 

He believes the success factors in manufacturing are changing, making it imperative to apply automation as a strategic tool to compete.

I know he has enjoyed interacting with everyone and hopes that many of his friends in automation and publishing will feel free to stay in touch.

He has recorded and tracked the changes in Automation down the years and we asked him to list a few of these. This is a list of some that he thought might be of interest mostly from the last two or three years. They are not listed in any particular order.

The Digital Twin – Enabling Real Time Closed Loop Manufacturing Optimization. (Sept 2019)

ISA95 In the IoT & Digitalization Era. (Jan 2020)

RAMI 4.0  Reference Architectural Model for Industrie 4.0. (Mar/Apl 2019)

Compliance of the Victim: ARC Industry Forum Highlights an Industry in Transition. (Mar 2017)

Moderna Builds Native Digital Process Automation on Amazon Web Services. (Feb 2021)

Amazon Industrial Digitalization Platform. (Jan 2021)

Industrial Cybersecurity: PAS Optics 2020 Event. (Nov 2020)

ExxonMobil collaboration helps create a converged IT/OT industrial control system based on open standards. (Nov/Dec2020)

Edge Computing: Chip Delivers High Performance Artificial Intelligence. (Oct 2020)

OPC Foundation Empowers Sensor-to-Cloud Digitalization. (Jul 2020)

Inside the Integration at Milwaukee’s New Fiserv Forum Sports & Entertainment Complex. (Nov 2019)

What is open source & why you should care? (Dec 2018)

Can Manufacturers Compete When Trapped in Existing Automation Architectures? (Apl 2019)

Tension in Industrial Automation: Open Systems and the User’s Dilemma. (May 2019)

We look forward to reading further articles from him tracking the progress of automation and wish him every success in the future.

@ISA_Interchange @automation_com #PAuto #Automation #Manufacturing #Publishing

Conveying knowledge and experience.

The OPC Foundation publishes a series of interviews with experts, market leaders and think tanks in communication, automation and industrial IT to highlight the benefits and the potential of the OPC UA technology for end users, system integrators, operators in the world of industrial IoT.

With their eBook editions, the OPC Foundation highlights interviews on the benefits and potential of OPC UA technology for end users, system integrators and operators in the world of Industrial IoT.

In the second edition - learn more about Companion Specifications, the importance of OPC UA for business software, protection against hacker/malware attacks, how to get started with OPC UA, and more. 

First and second editions may be downloaded here. 

@OPCFoundation #PAuto 

Pure platinum: Seventy five years of automation.

The current (Sept/Oct 2020) issue of InTech*, the official periodical of the International Society of Automation is not only a veritable storehouse of nostalgia for automation professionals but also focusses on the next chapter in the discipline.

Brian Curtis, (Ireland Section) ISA President 2018

There should have been a big party but circumstances and responsible planning militated against any major gatherings for public health reasons. Hopefully we will be able to celebrate soon when conditions allow.

I first came across the ISA in the mid seventies when the late Fred Gilroy of Gilroy Automation and some other instrument professionals mostly based in the south of Ireland posited the idea of forming a section in Ireland. It eventually was formed in 1977 achieving its charter at the end of that year. As a founding member of that Section this writer has perhaps unique memories of the early days in Ireland. 

ISA has always led in formulating Worldwide Standards in Automation. ISA volunteers share their stories of the history and evolution of some of ISA’s most important standards, including ISA-99, ISA-95, ISA-88, ISA-84.1, ISA-101.01, ISA-106, ISA-108, ISA-112, ISA-76 ISA-18.2, and ISA-5.1.

One of the "problems" was that it was called the "Instrument Society of America" at that time and that presented a obstacle to some. But one of the great advantages was that it lacked the fussiness and formality of other automation organisations. (The Society eventually sorted the perceived narrowness of its title eventually by becoming the "International Society of Automation.") All those who were involved in instrumentation regardless of academic qualification were welcome. Automation qualifications were not really available at that time although the influence of the Ireland can be cited as an influence in the setting up of courses up to degree standard in the years that followed.

This writer can recall his attendance at an ISA function in the United States in the eighties when he was a delegate to a governance meeting. It was held in conjunction with an exhibition and the sense of relief of being among people to whom he did not have to explain what Instrumentation was! 

The Ireland section has been very active in the governance of this international society. Even in the early days of the society officerships were filled by members of the society. It was very active too in the organisation of what is now District 12 - Europe. Middle East & Africa - in the late eighties and nineties. It provided an International President for the organisation in Brian Curtis a few years ago.

This issue - sorry we got lost in reminicences - covers so many "milestones" in automation over the seventy five years from the invention of the transistor (Brattain & Shokley), Glen Harvey, Executive Director for 31 years up to the 90s, the late Dick Morley father of the PLC, Emerson's John Berra in the development of communication protocols and so many others. Society milestones since 1945 including its first woman President and the first non-North American president. The current President-elect is a Brazilian based in Ireland which again emphasises the international nature of the society. He assumes office in 2021.

Another important milestone is the successful European Training centre based in the Netherlands. They organise training courses through the region both within and outside the European Union. This centre compliments the Training Centre in North Carolina. This training tradition is an important part of the ISA psyche and international co-operation has been a feature of this with teachers in the US assisting other parts of the world including Russia.

It reflects continuing development from the descrete instrumentation pneumatic and electrical through to the universal controller to batch control to digitisation, cybersecurity, smart manufacturing and the Industrial Internet of Things. Things were simpler when ISA started out, you opened the door of your instrument and could see how it worked now it is so much more complex. Associations and fellowship like ISA help advance automation and through automation are possibilities to advance the human condition. 

In short this issue is full of interesting recollections and looking forward to continuing setting the standard of Automation throughout the world. 

*The ISA 75th Anniversary Issue of InTech on line (Sept/Oct2020)

More news on the ISA Ireland Section in the Read-out Archive through the years. 

@ISA_Interchange @ISA_EU #PAuto 

"Data is power" examined.

Manufacturing companies are working on a European data infrastructure in which they shall have full control over their data and in which real-time processing and artificial intelligence (AI) for the digital transformation and networking of industry are possible. Gaia-X is the name of the project, and it calls for new solutions.

The Friedhelm Loh Group is playing a leading role in it and showcased a turnkey application for Gaia-X at the start of October. Learn more about the Gaia-X digital large-scale project and other solutions for the challenges of digital transformation in the new issue of “be top” – in the printed magazine or online.

“Knowledge is power and if you have power over data, you have power over processes, economic and political developments, and even people. If you have data, you have the best chance of gaining an edge on your competitors and being successful in business, ” states Prof. Friedhelm Loh, Owner and CEO of the Friedhelm Loh Group in the editorial of the new “be top” customer magazine.

How can companies safeguard this data and, by extension, their technological know-how at the same time? The cover story of the new “be top” magazine investigates this question and shows how the Friedhelm Loh Group, together with partners, is already supporting customers today with concrete solutions to overcome these and other challenges of the digital transformation.

Further topics of issue 02/2019 are:

• Influencers: Influential experts for purchasing decisions
• Electromobility: An ultra-strong future
• Science: Brain research at the speed of light
• Switchgear engineering: A far-sighted trio

#Pauto @Rittal @Rittal_Ltd @PresseBox

Evaluating process control systems.

Download here!

Modern control systems are the heart of every industrial operation and it's nothing short of miraculous how they can be built to last "forever" and yet continue to adapt to user needs. With Industry 4.0 and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) pushing changes to everything from data inputs to performance measurement, it's harder than ever to choose, implement and optimize control systems — and keep them operating well.

Learn the latest from industry leaders on everything from open automation systems for packaging machines to specifying process control systems using IEC 62603 in this Control Systems edition of Advancing Automation from Automation.com.

#PAuto @automation_com

Heat Transfer Technique.

The German standard reference "Heat Transfer Technique with Organic Fluids" is now published as an international edition. The new, third edition - a project of the media brand PROCESS of Vogel Communications Group - is now available in English as Vogel-Reference-Book.

Heat transfer systems with organic fluids are widely used in the industry. The responsible engineers and planners must be up to date with the latest technology. In addition, they must know and observe the legal framework as well as the conditions and standards in detail.

The established standard book 'Heat Transfer Technique with Organic Fluids' by author Walter Wagner comprises the continuous technological development of this special field of process engineering. It provides detailed and well-founded information on the basics of heat transfer technology and presents current technologies and processes.

It also contained explanations of the latest regulations and standards, which are essential for the design, construction and operation of heat transfer installations. Thematically, the book is rounded off with an overview of property data of organic heat transfer fluids as well as many use cases from practical experience.

 #PAuto @vogelcomgroup @ProcessWW

Editor of automation publication announced.

Renee Bassett has been named Chief Editor of the ISA's InTech magazine and Automation.com their digital content-delivery site for automation professionals.

Renee Bassett

Bassett is replacing Bill Lydon, who will however continue with the publications as Contributing Editor. Bill, who became editor at InTech almost ten years ago will remain a very important member of the editorial team. Read-out has had many contacts with him and Read-out's Eoin Ó Riain, as a former Vice President ISA Publications Dept (2011-2012), values his expertese and friendship.

Bassett joins ISA’s highly experienced team of publishing professionals that include Lydon, ISA’s Group Publisher Rick Zabel, and Content Editor Cory Fogg. In her role, Bassett will work with Zabel to determine publication and content strategy, develop content and manage the publications’ contributors, staff and production processes.

Bassett is an expert content creator, media manager, and marketing communications specialist in the areas of industrial manufacturing, technology and automation. She possesses more than 20 years of experience in content generation for technical and non-technical audiences. Over the course of her career, Bassett has provided her services to leading automation publications—including Automation World and Control Engineering—and developed and implemented media and communications programs for companies such as Rockwell Automation, Siemens, Moxa, Mitsubishi Electric, and Wonderware/AVEVA. She previously served as: Content Creator and Vice President at Trade Press Media Group in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Deputy Editor at PMMI Media Group in Chicago, Illinois.

@ISA_Interchange  #PAuto

Cybersecurity strategies & tips.

Since 2017, Automation.com has published a series of Advancing Automation eBooks, several of which have focused on Cybersecurity. Each year, we see cyber threats continue to evolve, with more and more businesses finding themselves falling victim to attacks.

The have now compiled the 3rd Cybersecurity edition of this series. After working with prominent industry experts and leaders, the latest preparation strategies and technology tips have been compiled in order to help ward off cyber threats. This eBook includes security roadmaps and resources in order to ensure an active and successful cyber defense strategy for any organization.

@automation_com  #PAuto #Cybersecurity

Automation authors recognised.

The International Society of Automation (ISA) has published the names of the recipients of its 2018 author awards presented annually by ISA’s Publications Department.

“Each year, ISA is proud to recognize and thank all of the talented authors and contributors who help develop, review and deliver outstanding ISA publications and technical resources to automation and control professionals throughout the world,” says Rick Zabel, who as ISA Group Publisher manages all of ISA's publishing resources.

Winners are recognized for their editorial contributions to a wide range of ISA publications, including ISA books; InTech, ISA’s bi-monthly magazine for automation and control professionals; and ISA Transactions, ISA’s monthly professional journal dedicated to the science and engineering of measurement and automation.

Winners will be honored at a 14 October 2018 awards ceremony held during ISA’s 2018 Annual Leadership Conference in Montreal, Canada.

THE AWARDEES

The Raymond D. Molloy Award The Raymond D. Molloy Award is presented annually in honor of Raymond D. Molloy’s contributions to the automation profession. Molloy was dedicated to the ISA publications program for more than 20 years, maintaining a keen interest in developing high-quality publications that met the needs of measurement and control professionals. This year’s award recipient is William (Bill) L. Mostia, Jr., for his book, Troubleshooting: A Technician's Guide, Second Edition, which outsold all other ISA books published in 2017. Mostia possesses more than 45 years of experience in the process industries, primarily at petrochemical companies. Selected an ISA Fellow in 2013, he has published more than 100 articles and papers on instrumentation subjects. The Keith Otto Award This award is presented by the ISA Publications Department in honor of Keith Otto, a member who served the Society for many years, particularly as the chair of the InTech Editorial Advisory Board. The Keith Otto Award recognizes the author(s) of the best article in InTech. This year’s winners are Peter Fuhr, Ph.D., and Sterling Rooke, Ph.D., for their article titled, “Is it time for a change in cybersecurity?,” which was published in the November/December 2017 issue. Dr. Fuhr has been involved in industrial wireless, sensors, and secure systems as a NASA space optical physicist, university professor, serial entrepreneur, and a US National Laboratory researcher. Dr. Sterling serves as a Cyber Operations Officer within the US Air Force Reserve, supporting USCYBERCOM and Defense Innovation Unit Experimental (DIUx). He is also Director of ISA’s Communications Division. The Nels Tyring Award The Nels Tyring Award recognizes the author or authors of the best published article in one of the Society’s journals. The award category was established in honor of Nels Tyring, an ISA member who served the Society for many years, particularly as the Chair of the Journals Editorial Advisory and Oversight Committee. The recipient of this year’s Nels Tyring Award is Dean Ford, CAP®, for his Special Section article, “We have a demand problem with the automation profession,” published in the September/October 2017 issue of InTech. Ford, an active senior member of ISA, participates in many ISA standards committees and serves on the Automation Federation’s Government Relations and Workforce Development committees. ISA Transactions Best Paper Award ISA Transactions Best Paper Award recognizes the best technical paper published in ISA Transactions, the ISA professional journal dedicated to the science and engineering of measurement and automation, during the previous year. By showcasing advances that bridge the theory and practice gap, ISA Transactions plays an important role in enhancing the visibility and reputation of automation and control professionals. The recipients of the ISA Transactions Best Paper Award are Julian Barreiro-Gomez, Ph.D.; Carlos Ocampo-Martinez, Ph.D.; and Nicanor Quijano, Ph.D.; for their paper titled, “Dynamical tuning for MPC using population games: A water supply network application,” published in ISA Transactions, Vol. 69, pages 175-186, July 2017 • Dr. Barreiro-Gomez is a Post-Doctoral Associate in the Learning & Game Theory Laboratory at the New York University in Abu Dhabi (NYUAD), United Arab Emirates. His primary research interests are evolutionary game dynamics, mean-field-type games, and distributed control and optimization. • Dr. Ocampo-Martinez is Associate Professor of Automatic Control and Model Predictive Control within the Automatic Control Department of the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC). His primary research interests include constrained model predictive control, large-scale systems management, and industrial applications. •Dr. Quijano is a Full Professor at the Universidad de los Andes in Colombia. His primary research interest focuses on hierarchical and distributed optimization methods using bio-inspired and game-theoretical techniques for dynamic resource allocation problems, especially those in energy, water, agriculture, and transportation.

#PAuto #ISAuto

Comprehensive & practical automation.

There are a few publications which can be relied upon as "Bibles" of the automation sector and this is one of them. It is always important that the knowledge contained in them reflects the current state of industry and technology. As one of the editors said, "the book is particularly valuable to automation professionals early in their careers "

The third edition of A Guide to the Automation Body of Knowledge, a comprehensive, yet practical overview of the essential concepts and processes in industrial automation and the skills required to master them, has been issued by the International Society of Automation (ISA).

Editors Nicholas P. Sands (Left) and Ian Verhappen

This new release has been updated to reflect the continuing evolution of digital technologies and their impact on automation processes as well as new automation standards in such areas as alarm management, HMI design and operational technology cybersecurity.

The book’s co-editors Nicholas P. Sands, PE, CAP^®, Senior Manufacturing Technology Fellow at DuPont and Ian Verhappen, P.Eng., CAP^®, Senior Project Manager at CIMA+ - are ISA Fellows who bring decades of collective expertise and experience in automation standards development, automation competency, safety instrumented systems, alarm management, process safety and industrial communications networks. The ISA has been indeed fortunate to find such competant sucessors to the late great Vernon L. Trevathan whose precise work in the field was reflected in his editorship of previous editions. 

“Though much of the content of this guide covers the fundamentals of the automation profession, automation is a dynamic field of practice that continues to change through new technologies and practices. That’s why it was important to introduce this new edition,” says Verhappen. “The value of the book remains the same, however, as it serves as a highly applicable, condensed reference guide to established automation principles and practices.”

Given its easy-to-follow, plainly written format and approach, Sands says the book is particularly valuable to automation professionals early in their careers as well as to other practitioners in the field needing a “refresher” on certain topics.

• The guide is also consistent with the Automation Competency Model - which defines the core skills and knowledge needed to succeed as an automation professional - and relied upon as a study guide for those seeking to gain ISA Certified Automation Professional ^® (CAP^®) certification.

#PAuto #ISAuto

Looking ahead to top developments of 2018.

Mouser Electronics has published the first issue in volume two of its popular Methods e-zine. This latest issue, titled "2018 Look Ahead: Design & Technology," explores key developments to come this year as well as their social ramifications.

"The industry expects to see many exciting developments in 2018, and this new issue of Methods will be an essential tool for anyone interested in learning what may lie ahead," said Kevin Hess, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Mouser Electronics. "We hope our designer and developer audience will use Methods as a reference guide throughout the year."

In volume two of Methods, Mouser's industry experts explore the latest development boards, rise and role of artificial intelligence (AI), biggest gaps to fill in data security, most important advancements in 5G and wireless technology, and more. Readers can also learn more about the coming year in open source hardware and the latest in high-performance development kits.

"At Mouser we provide more than the latest and widest selection of semiconductors and electronic components," Hess added. "We provide the tools, the insight, and the know-how to succeed."

In 2017, Mouser released volume 1 of Methods, offering three issues devoted to subjects important to engineers, including Bluetooth® 5 technology and data security, plus Mouser's best technical content from 2017.

With its broad product line and unsurpassed customer service, Mouser strives to empower innovation among design engineers and buyers by delivering advanced technologies. Mouser stocks the world’s widest selection of the latest semiconductors and electronic components for the newest design projects. Mouser Electronics’ website is continually updated and offers advanced search methods to help customers quickly locate inventory. Mouser.com also houses data sheets, supplier-specific reference designs, application notes, technical design information, and engineering tools.

@MouserElecEU  #PAuto

Catastrophic computer failure at automation publication.

As a result of a normal upgrade of Windows 10, the computer on which Spitzer & Boyes makes the Industrial Automation & Process Control INSIDER (IAI) has suffered a catastrophic failure. We usually highlight each issue on our home page.

Walt Boyes, the editor advises, "According to the repair shop, it isn’t worth repairing, so they are taking the data off for us. It will take about a week to get the data back, and so we have decided to produce an October/November issue at the end of November."

In the meantime they are going to try something different.

Over the next week or so, they intend to post some of the articles that would be in the October issue on the IAI blog, on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, for everyone to read, whether a subscriber or not.

"If you find that you like what you’ll be seeing, you can become a subscriber by visiting the site. Individual subscriptions are quite reasonable, and large company subscriptions that allow circulation to all within the company are also available."

As a user of a different sort of computer we might, somewhat facetiously, have a word of advice for them. "Buy a MAC." In almost thirty years of publishing we have only had one catastrophic failure but that was an act of God aided by our carelessness - a lightning strike at 3.00 one morning. We quickly replaced it - amazingly it was covered by insurance - and were back on line. We now fully protected through two surge protecting devices - one for the computer and another for the modem.

#Pauto

Challenges during process analyzer engineering!

A new book, from the ISA (International Society of Automation) stable,  is designed to eliminate or minimize the difficulties, breakdowns and other obstacles that process analyzer system engineers often encounter during project development, engineering and design, procurement, construction, closeout, and sustain phases.

Process Analyzer Systems Project Engineering and Management by Gary Nichols, PE, CAP®, includes specific recommendations for defining hardware and documentation deliverables, adhering to procurement policy, working with team members in other disciplines and in the supply chain, and communicating among project teams.

“In my experience, process analyzers are the least understood of the petrochemical and refining disciplines and sub-disciplines,” states Nichols, who possesses more than 40 years of experience in process analyzer systems engineering. “This book presents an opportunity for analyzer engineers and engineers in other areas of project engineering to understand each other better and produce higher-quality new and revamped plants and operating units where process analyzers are needed.” More of his comments may be found on the ISA Q&A Section here.

#Pauto #ISAuto 

Shaping smarter cities.

Mouser Electronics has announced a series of compelling e-books that provide in-depth views of leading-edge technology featured in the Shaping Smarter Cities series, part of Mouser’s award-winning Empowering Innovation Together™ programme.

The Shaping Smarter Cities series features exclusive videos, articles, and blog posts about how engineers on three different continents created technology-based solutions to some of most pressing problems of crowded cities. The following e-books provide a deeper dive into the technologies shown in the series, looking at how the world’s best engineers and experts foresee innovations shaping humanity over the coming years.

The Internet of Moving Things Imagine being able to sleep or exercise in your car while it drives itself; the possibility may be closer than we think. The Internet of Moving Things e-book not only describes how revolutionary fully autonomous vehicles may be in the near future, but also explores the communications technologies that will allow these vehicles to interact with humans, other vehicles, and city infrastructure.

Vertical Farming  As shown in the Shaping Smarter Cities video, engineers in Tokyo have revolutionized vertical farming, devising a system that could feed millions of people while using 99 percent less water than traditional farming methods. The Vertical Farming e-book looks at different types of vertical farming as well as how robotics and other technologies can increase food production up to 100 times current levels.

Augmented Reality  Many people still think of augmented reality (AR) in terms of gaming, but the emerging technology is most promising in medical education, healthcare and even manufacturing and construction applications — all of which are covered with unique real-world examples in this e-book. With stories about AR as an alternative to invasive examinations and data visualization to increase workplace safety, the Augmented Reality e-book describes ways innovators are transforming the technology to improve conditions in our cities.

“The Shaping Smarter Cities series e-books enhance readers’ understanding of how these engineering feats are already changing the way we live,” said Glenn Smith, President and CEO of Mouser Electronics. “Along with the videos, technical articles, and blog posts in the series, these e-books offer readers a holistic view of important emerging technologies.”

@MouserElecEU #Pauto #IoT @grantimahara

Handbook for temperature.

ABB has released a new in-depth handbook explaining how to maximise temperature measurement accuracy in industrial applications. Titled ‘Industrial temperature measurement: Basics and practice’, the handbook provides a detailed explanation of the key areas that users need to consider when implementing and operating temperature measurement technology.

“As one of the most widely measured parameters in any industrial application, temperature provides an invaluable indication of what’s happening in a process,” says Steve Gorvett, ABB’s DP Flow and Temperature Product Manager for Britain. “Our new handbook is absolutely essential for any technician, experienced or not, who is looking to better understand the basic principles of temperature measurement and how to select the best solution that will deliver the highest levels of accuracy and reliability in their application.”

The handbook is suitable for both novices and those with more experience in temperature measurement. Written by ABB's temperature experts, the 320-page book is divided into nine main chapters, covering a variety of topics including the principles of temperature measurement; sensor and transmitter options and how to select them; ensuring accuracy through calibration and verification; and the options available for explosive and SIL applications.

@ABBUKInst  #PAuto @ABBgroupnews

Automation authors recognised!

The recipients of the 2017 author awards presented annually by ISA’s Publications Department have been announced..

“Each year, ISA is proud to recognize and thank all of the talented authors and contributors who help develop, review and deliver outstanding ISA publications and technical resources to automation and control professionals throughout the world,” says Rick Zabel, who as ISA Group Publisher manages all of ISA's publishing resources.

Winners are recognized for their editorial contributions to a wide range of ISA publications, including ISA books; InTech, ISA’s bi-monthly magazine for automation and control professionals; and ISA Transactions, ISA’s bi-monthly professional journaldedicated to the science and engineering of measurement and automation.

Winners will be honored at an awards ceremony held on 30th October during the ISA’s 2017 Fall Leaders Meeting in Tampa (FL USA).

AWARD RECIPIENTS

The Keith Otto Award

Martin Berutti, Mynah

The Keith Otto Awardrecognizes the author or authors of the best article in InTech magazine. The award category was established in honor of Keith Otto, an ISA member who served the Society for many years, particularly as the Chair of the InTech Editorial Advisory Board.
The recipient of this year’s Keith Otto Award is Martin Berutti, for his article, “Process Automation: Improving plant operations with life-cycle dynamic simulation,” which was published in the January/February 2016 issue. Berutti is the president and COO of MYNAH Technologies LLC, (recently acquired by Emerson).

The Nels Tyring Award
The Nels Tyring Award recognizes the author or authors of the best published article in one of the Society’s journals. The award category was established in honor of Nels Tyring, an ISA member who served the Society for many years, particularly as the Chair of the Journals Editorial Advisory and Oversight Committee.
The recipient of this year’s Nels Tyring Award is Mark Coughran for his Special Section article, “Know when to look outside the PID tuning,” published in the July/August 2016 issue of InTech. Coughran is a Senior Process Control Consultant at Emerson Process Management.

InTech is the ISA magazine (distributed free to members), which provides thought-provoking and authoritative coverage of automation technologies, applications, and strategies to enhance automation professionals' on-the-job success.

The Raymond D. Molloy Award

Best seller!

The Raymond D. Molloy Award is presented annually in honor of Raymond D. Molloy’s contributions to the automation profession. Molloy was dedicated to the ISA publications program for more than 20 years, maintaining a keen interest in developing high-quality publications that met the needs of measurement and control professionals.
This year’s award recipient is Bill Battikha for his book, The Condensed Handbook of Measurement and Control, Third Edition (Fourth edition now on sale.), which outsold all other ISA books published in 2016. Battikha is a registered professional engineer with more than 30 years of experience in the field of process instrumentation and control.

ISA Transactions Best Paper Award
ISA Transactions Best Paper Award recognizes the best technical paper published in ISA Transactions, the ISA professional journal dedicated to the science and engineering of measurement and automation, during the previous year.
The recipients of the ISA Transactions Best Paper Award are Marcin Mrugalski, Marcel Luzar, Marcin Pazera, Marcin Witczak and Christophe Aubrun. The review committee recognized their paper, “Neural network-based robust actuator fault diagnosis for a non-linear multi-tank system,” published in ISA Transactions, Vol. 61, Issue 1, pages 318-328, March 2016.

ISA Transactions

Mrugalski has served as an assistant professor of automatic control and robotics at the Institute of Control and Computation Engineering, University of Zielona Góra in Poland, since 2004.
Luzar serves as a University Assistant at the Institute of Control and Computational Engineering, University of University of Zielona Góra.
Pazera is a doctoral student at the Institute of Control and Computational Engineering, University of University of Zielona Góra.
Witczak has served as an associate professor of automatic control and robotics at the Institute of Control and Computation Engineering, University of Zielona Góra, since 2008.
Aubrun has served as a full professor at the University Henri Poincaré (Nancy1) in Nancy, France, since 2003. He teaches automatic control.

By showcasing advances that bridge the theory and practice gap, ISA Transactions plays an important role in enhancing the visibility and reputation of automation and control professionals. ISA members have free online access to ISA Transactions. Non-ISA members can learn more about the journal by clicking here.

#PAuto #ISAuto

Insights into cybersecurity!

It seems like every week we hear the name of a new, devastating cyber attack. Names like ‘Wannacry’, ‘Petya’ and ‘Stuxnet’ may not mean much at first, until it’s your plant that is affected by these increasingly frequent attacks. That’s why Automation.com,  an ISA publication, has compiled the extensive Cybersecurity eBook - Advancing Automation-Cybersecurity Insights.

They've been working with leaders from across the industry to deliver a detailed guide to help organizations secure industrial networks and control systems, as well as make forward-looking security decisions to protect the facility before the next attack happens.

This ebook includes:

• Owl Cyber Defense Solutions’ detailed guide on how to secure your organization when you can’t use patches
• Indegy’s article discussing the necessary practices to protect your industrial networks and IIoT technology
• Ultra Electronics 3eTI’s expansion of the US Department of Homeland Security’s 7 strategies for Industrial Control System (ICS) defense
• Belden’s big picture discussion on who truly owns organizational responsibility for cyber defense strategy

#PAuto @automation_com

Reorganisation in leading automation publisher.

Some changes have been made in the Publications arm of the International Society of Automation (ISA).

 Rick Zabel

Following the departure of the dedicated manager of the Department, the much respected Susan Colwel, the society has examined how to go forward withthis important department and member benefit.  It has therefore appointed Rick Zabel as Group Publisher with Leigh Elrod and Bill Joss as staff assisting him.

Rick Zabel is currently Publisher of Automation.com, the leading online resource site for automation and controls professionals purchased by ISA in 2014.  Rick has been with Automation.com since 2000 when they launched their initial web site www.automationtechies.com, the first job board for automation professionals. Since that initial launch, the site evolved into what Automation.com is today…an information-packed automation site publishing daily news, articles, application stories, products, supplier directories, jobs, events, training, and more.

He wrote his view on "The next generation of automation media!" in a piece in the December 2014 issue of the Society magazine InTech.

The position as Group Publisher is typically responsible for multiple publications (magazines, websites, brands) within organisations. Given his experience and recognition in the automation publishing marketplace he is is an ideal choice for this new position.

Rick has a diverse background with more than 17 years of experience in the automation industry. Previously, Rick held positions of Marketing Manager, Regional Sales Manager, Account Manager, Sales Engineer, and Application Engineer for an automation product manufacturer, distribution company and systems integrator. Rick is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin – Madison with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering.

All of ISA's extensive products may be seen and purchased at ISA's Online Store. Choose from hundreds of books, digital books, software, technical papers, proceedings, standards, recommended practices, technical reports, training courses, CD's, videotapes, and more.

#PAuto #ISA

A useful magazine!

As a one-time Vice President Publication Dept of the International Society of Automation (2011-12) I may be forgiven for relishing the comments in a letter which appears in the July August issue of their magazine InTech.

July/Aug 2017 Issue

The writer says, "I would like to compliment you on your work with InTech, which now seems a useful magazine again."

No better compliment may be made to a publication and I would like particularly pay tribute to those in the back ground who in no small measure contribute to this publication. While I don't agree that Intech has not been useful in the past I do think it has improved and kept up with technalogical changes in our discipline down through the years.

Ten years ago when the cataclysmic financial tsunmani hit, the ISA, like many international organisations and indeed countries, had to do a painful root and branch examination of everything it was doing and their relevance to the automation sector. Not least the Publications side of things faced many painful decisions but with the co-operation of the members volunteering time and expertese and the professionalism of the staff notably Susan Colwell, recently retired, and Editor, Bill Lydon. What emerged was a much strengthened resource for the members. The magazine slightly smaller but with a more practical focus can be said to regained its place among automation periodicals. The practical harnessing of an editorial advisory board of working professionals ensures the usefulness of its contents. It has also embraced the electronic and on-line platforms and thus has become much more easily available throughout the world.

The other Society periodical - ISA Transactions has grown from strength to strength, living up to its vocation as a journal of advances and state-of-the-art in the science and engineering of measurement and automation, of value to leading-edge industrial practitioners and applied researchers.

The Society is now slimmer and not only aware of changing requirements of automation professionals but also of the need to harness the ever-changing means of communication. Not least in this forward momentum is the work of publications. Take a look at what is available today!

 #PAuto #ISAuto