Welcome back 'buzz'

For the first time, there was a section on Industrial Networking within MTEC at February's exhibitions organised by Trident Exhibitions at the Birmingham, UK, NEC. If you came along, we hope you enjoyed your visit. Supported throughout by this magazine, there was something indefinable in the air which we can only describe as 'buzz,' and it went through all the shows. And when there's 'buzz,' both exhibitors and visitors have a worthwhile time. Visitor figures were ahead on last year, and in next year's show (February 12 & 13, 2003) Industrial Networking and MTEC will be well placed to complement other co-located events such as Machine Building, Electronic Information Displays and Machine Vision.

Industrial Networking has rapidly become the backbone for all manner of automation, from simple two- or three-device systems to large international networks. Today's it's more a case of establishing what's not going to be networked, as there is such an abundance of connectivity readily available. In many cases this is Ethernet, but by no means always. Different industries have their own preferred standards, and quite often these are adhered to in spite of current fashion, as there is a body of knowledge readily available for their installation. The old maxim "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" is as appropriate here as anywhere else.

In the print and paper industries, which we are looking at with a supplement in this issue, a selection of different networks can be found going right across the industrial spectrum. When it comes to automation, printing might not be people's first thought in terms of finding a technology leader. But printers have been using the latest network technology to reduce their costs for many years, and are in fact well ahead of most industries. If there's a way to save money and increase margins in a highly competitive industry, printers are likely to have found and exploited it. Some of the networking has been incorporated into the machinery, just as modern automobiles have sophisticated networking. Out in the print shop data collection monitors production lines and integrates with the rest of the plant, while larger enterprises look to larger scale industrial integration like any other manufacturer.

As far as paper-making is concerned, this is a world-wide industry which actually has very few large companies and a manageable number of plants, but all of them are engaged in massive manufacturing on an international scale. Production lines can be vast and some of the processes unsophisticated (making paper involves huge volumes and relatively low technology), yet some intelligently used contemporary networking can turn plants located across continents into a single production facility. With the latest open systems factory automation in plants you get a highly efficient industry driven by wafer-thin margins, always trying to do better.

In our next issue we revisit the world of building automation, a growth area for industrial networking as both building owners and users start to see the benefits. The problem with much building automation is not the technology, but gaining acceptance from the right people at the right time in the buying cycle. Getting the automation into the building can be an uphill task since buying decisions are in the hands of neither owners nor users. The question is, how can we make it easier for the industry to deliver the automation that owners and users would like?

Use feedback to let us know your views: It couldn't be easier.

Geoff Lock
Editor