Opto 22 talks connected manufacturing in the food industry.

Way back when face-to-face interviews were a thing, I had the opportunity to sit down with Pons Tugonon to talk about the development of connected food manufacturing. Pons leads OptoTech (now P&E Automation), a long-time international system integrator and distributor for Opto 22, and his work with the Mama Sita’s brand (Marigold Manufacturing Corporation) of authentic Filipino food products shows off the potential for industrial edge computing in manufacturing.

Topics: Case studies, Videos, Food & beverage, groov EPIC

When we announce a new product, we want you—our loyal customers and OptoBlog readers—to be the first to hear about it. 

And this isn't just one product. This is EPIC: the world's first Edge Programmable Industrial Control system—a brand-new I/O and control system built for the future of automation and designed for the way you work.

Topics: Energy management, Process control, Food & beverage, Discrete control, groov, Internet of Things, PLCs, Remote monitoring, Water & wastewater, IoT, Machine builder, PACs, OEM, New products, Integrators, I/O, PAC Project, Building management, Oil & gas, PAC Control, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things, Node-RED, Data acquisition, MQTT, Ignition Edge, EPIC

You've shown a lot of interest in our blog posts this last year—thank you. We hope they answer some of your questions and help make your automation projects easier.

So to round out the year, take a look and see if you missed any of these popular posts. 

Predictive maintenance on a compressor. We'd all like to get a better handle on equipment maintenance, to reduce unnecessary expense, maximize efficiency, and avoid outages.

See how a simple internet of things project could provide real value for your company.

Topics: Case studies, Food & beverage, groov, Internet of Things, IoT, Integrators, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things, Ignition Edge

Wine + IoT = yum + engineering fun

In my last post, I talked about beer and some hard deadlines at the end of a season. This time, let’s talk about wine and a different kind of season: harvest season!

During that Big Game, and since then, you might’ve seen some ads showing farmers in fields with iPads.

Well, I’ve met them.

Topics: Food & beverage, groov, Internet of Things, IoT, Integrators, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things, Node-RED, Data acquisition

Join us for a webinar on 27 April, and learn how you can improve overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) by bridging the gap between your existing industrial assets and the digital world. 

Topics: Webinars, Process control, Food & beverage, Internet of Things, IoT, IIoT, Industrial Internet of Things, Data acquisition

Process Control

Process control systems are used in everything from advanced manufacturing to run-of-the-mill activities at home, like heating your house and brewing your beer. (You do brew your own beer, don't you?)

A control system that manufactures a product requires monitoring and control of many different process variables, while some at home require little more than a timer. For example, in manufacturing we may use flow meters to make sure fluids flow through pipes at a certain rate, or float meters to ensure ingredients fill a vat to a specified level.

When I brew beer at home, I may use a temperature sensor in my mash tun, wired to a controller that’s controlling my heating element to keep the mash tun at just the right temperature for optimum starch-to-sugar conversion. This is an example of a closed-loop control system.

(To see how small closed-loop control principles are scaled up to build industrial process control applications, check out the New Belgium Brewery case study and see how they use Opto 22 gear to brew their world-famous Fat Tire and other beers.)

Topics: Food & beverage, PLCs, Tips, PACs, Oil & gas

Tasty and wholesome, the frozen fruit bars made by Natural Fruit Corporation must be stored at precise temperatures.

Although their cold storage rooms were automated, on weekends operators used to have to stop by the company's factory to verify that systems were running and temperatures were within range.

Topics: Energy management, Case studies, Food & beverage, groov, Internet of Things, Remote monitoring, IoT, optonews, Building management, OptoNews 2016-08-31

One of the world's largest automation events is headed to Chicago!

It's the international trade fair for industrial automation: Industrial Automation North America (IANA).

And here's an even bigger reason to attend: IANA is co-located with IMTS 2016, North America’s leading manufacturing technology trade show.

Topics: Energy management, Process control, Food & beverage, Discrete control, Internet of Things, IoT, optonews, PACs, Events & conferences, REST API, OptoNews 2016-08-17

How do you get fresh apples in March?

California Controlled Atmosphere (CalCA) knows the secret: strictly controlled storage.

CalCA builds produce storage systems for growers in California and all over the world. Each system must be flexible to accommodate fluctuating harvests and individual produce varieties.

Topics: Case studies, Videos, Food & beverage, optonews, PACs, OptoNews 2016-08-03

ATEX is the name commonly given to the two European Directives for controlling explosive atmospheres in workplaces.

Several Opto 22 products are now approved for both standards and offer you options for applications in potentially explosive areas.

Topics: Process control, Food & beverage, Discrete control, Machine builder, optonews, PACs, OEM, Integrators, I/O, Oil & gas, OptoNews 2016-06-08