“Thank you TechElectric, your ability to help us expand and maximize our production facility resulted in a highly successful year. Your expertise allows us to focus on what we do best, make great wine.”
-- Paul Pender, Tawse Winery
The PLC is a very simple computer usually attached to a machine that has been programmed by an industrial electrician. It allows details to be inputted and when the right combination is entered an action is executed.
The data entering a PLC can take on many different forms. You may have something as simple as a push button or as sophisticated as a string of information coming over the internet.
The P in PLC is the heart of the controller. Programming is the defining aspect of what is going to happen when and how. When programming an application there are many things to consider. There is a planned defined end result. There can be situations outside the core of the project that are sometimes hidden until you start using the PLC on the machine. These unforeseen situations can become a nuisance or a full-blown failure. We always recommend to have a qualified electrician working on any programming issues.
Example of the use of a PLC?
In a food processing plant, a PLC is controlling a mixer application. The PLC measures and doses the ingredients, programs the mixing time and integrates with the next processes.
