Upgrading Educational Facility with Current PLC Technology
Community College is able to offer a broader base of classes to help prepare students for their future in engineering
COMPANY PROFILE
An accredited Community College that has provided continuing education for 50 years and spans six campuses. The college provides diplomas, certificates and associates degrees which includes Engineering.
BUSINESS SITUATION
The community college has a strong sense of pride when it comes to staying on top of current market trends and being able to offer the classes which meet those needed requirements in the workplace. Recently one of the campuses, realized that their PLC Lab offering was not as current as they needed it to be. Local businesses were asking them to train maintenance staff in the latest industry standards for automation that they were unable to provide. In response to these requests, the community college began researching Industry Standards as they pertained to automation to gain a firm understanding of what product platforms would best fit their customer’s needs.
Technical SITUATION
The community college had been offering automation courses based on a competitor’s platform with some usage of Rockwell Automations SLC Platform. Technically, it would have been easier for them to stay with our competitor’s platform. However, once they began to look at market demands and funding, it opened a window to look at other brands. During this time, McNaughton-McKay had helped upgrade a PLC Lab at one of their other campuses. During our visit to another campus, we learned they were looking to upgrade twelve workstations and wanted to make sure they were offering the latest and greatest in automation technology while staying within budget. We were able to discuss special pricing arrangements that Rockwell Automation has for educational facilities as well as explain to them about McNaughton-McKay’s automation experience and how we could help with the upgrade. Our automation specialist, sat down with them and outlined a detailed list of hardware and software that would fit their needs, always keeping in the mind of gaining them a competitive advantage over other local educational facilities.
SOLUTION
McNaughton-McKay was able to provide a complete automation package that included the latest in PLC’s, Drives and Motion Hardware. In addition, we offered our support as well as Rockwell Automation Classes to help train their Instructors. They were provided with a complete solution, that when fully operational would allow them to offer a viable solution for their students looking to stay on top of today’s latest automation trends. In addition, we were able to provide all of the upgraded technology while staying within budget.
BENEFITS
The community college is now able to offer new classes and a higher level of education to the surrounding community. They broadened their class offering and expertise in the world of automation in order to meet the demand of their community. With this lab upgrade, they have become a force when it comes to training students on today’s latest automation products.
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES USED
- PowerFlex 753 Drives.
- Compact Logix 5370 Controllers and associated I/O.
- Stratix Switches
- Training Classes
- CCA182-Powerflex 750 Series Configuration and Start-Up Course
- CCN130-Motion Control Fundamentals Course
- CCP178-Ethernet/IP Networks Design and Troubleshooting
- CCP298- RSLogix 5000 Level 1: CompactLogix™ Fundamentals and Troubleshooting Course