• Oct 23, 2020, 13:03 PM

    Manage Downtime...Before its Too Late

    If there is one word that fills the owner or manager of a manufacturing plant with fear it’s probably “downtime.” Downtime throws the entire schedule out of whack. It disrupts workflow, throws schedules into chaos and, worst of all, costs money. What are the causes of downtime in manufacturing, and what are some effective downtime reduction strategies to employ? Full story
    • Sep 18, 2020, 10:16 AM

    Not All LEDs are Created Equal

    All LED luminaires are not created equal. If you’re not careful, you could fall victim to the potential downfalls that come with luminaires produced by second-rate manufacturers. And the results could be disastrous. Poor lighting can lead to a whole host of issues: decreased productivity, safety concerns, wasted energy, and occupant discomfort. A cheap invoice price can really be quite costly in the long run. Full story
    • Sep 17, 2020, 14:22 PM

    Safety Should be Part of Cybersecurity

    The dangers that cyber threats pose to intellectual property, customer records and productivity are well known, but safety implications of these threats are discussed less often. A cyberattack on your industrial control system (ICS) can damage physical assets, alter recipes, injure workers or cause severe environmental damage. Full story
    • Aug 20, 2020, 09:35 AM

    Connecting Safety to the Bottom Line

    When it comes to safety in the modern automation environment, there are two big reasons that leaders should strive to be the best they can be: your staff and your bottom line. Reduce the risks to your bottom line, by striving to have the best safety plans in place. Full story
    • Aug 19, 2020, 10:39 AM

    Understanding Arc Flash

    Understanding Arc Flash can be overwhelming at times, but developing a plan is the first step. Full story
    • Jul 23, 2020, 11:12 AM

    The safest pin and sleeve device you can deploy

    Traditional IEC 60309 pin and sleeve devices are safe and proven devices. In fact, Hubbell’s traditional pin and sleeve devices are among the safest out there. These devices are constantly being tested in our labs—performance tested and even torture tested. But there is always room for better. Full story
    • Jul 23, 2020, 09:29 AM

    The Value of Cybersecurity: Before, During and After an Event

    Cybersecurity events, or attempts to gain unauthorized access to or disrupt electronic systems and the information they store, are a growing threat. And no company is immune. That’s why having the right systems in place to help prevent and mitigate cybersecurity events is so important. Full story
    • Jun 17, 2020, 10:54 AM

    Avoid Costly, Last-Minute Surprises With Virtual Commissioning

    Some machine designers are adopting virtual commissioning, a process that uses a digital model and simulation of your machine to perform controls testing before you even build a machine. This can help you identify design issues earlier in the build cycle and ultimately help you better meet customer deadlines. Full story
    • Jun 11, 2020, 13:51 PM

    Protect Machines from Premature Wear with Soft-Start Valves

    A machine is subject to additional stress and risks to premature wear when it is powered up and pressurized with compressed air after a scheduled shut-down or a safety event because the surge in air pressure will create rapid movements in the actuators and that can cause premature wear or may even escalate into a hazardous situation. Full story
    • May 20, 2020, 10:08 AM

    Top 5 Business Benefits of Server Virtualization

    Struggling with ways to extend the life of your mission critical control system applications? Worried about parts availability for that server you have running? Trying to get more utilization out of your investment in future server hardware purchases? Virtualization technology can provide a platform that allows you to meet these challenges and assist in reducing time to value for installing server OS based applications. Virtualization can also help reduce CapEx and OpEx costs through Information Infrastructure & Security. Review the top 5 business benefits of server virtualization and contact SMC Professional Services to talk with one of our engineers about how this technology might help your team. Full story
    • May 20, 2020, 09:54 AM

    Protect Your Operations with Proactive Threat Hunting

    You have a strong industrial security program in place. You’ve cleaned up with good cyber hygiene and have implemented intrusion detection systems to avoid future incidents. But in the complex world of cybersecurity, you can’t stop there. Despite all your efforts, latent advanced persistent threats are still a concern. They are slowly at work trying to find chinks in your armor and exfiltrate data, bogging down your operations. And intrusion detection isn’t going to catch this activity. Threat hunting is one of the next logical steps in your cybersecurity program. In its simplest form, you are searching the network for external threats or intrusions that went undetected by automated security systems. Full story
    • Apr 23, 2020, 15:17 PM

    Save Money and Maximize Productivity with Training

    While the world is rapidly changing every day to mitigate risk associated with the COVID-19 virus, we know many of your operations need to continue, and we are committed to being with you every step of the way. During this time, it is critical you have the support you need, in a way that maximizes productivity and saves you money. Full story
    • Apr 22, 2020, 12:34 PM

    5 Reasons to Monitor Power Consumption

    The ability to quantify energy use is critical for your facility and your team. Monitoring power consumption of your plant provides you with the data needed to make important energy management decisions. Full story
    • Mar 19, 2020, 11:56 AM

    Fall Protection: What's Your Plan?

    OSHA requires the employer to give fall protection awareness training, to anyone that works at elevated heights above 4’ every year. New employees, before they work at elevated heights, are required to have fall protection awareness training. Full story
    • Mar 17, 2020, 10:24 AM

    Lockout/Tagout OSHA Compliance: What You Need To Know

    If your company has a lockout/tagout program, it’s a safe bet you understand that there are federal and local regulations that you need to comply with. But compliance is a lot more complex than it may seem – in fact, there are five components of a compliant LOTO program, including corporate policy, machine-specific LOTO procedures, training, locks and devices, and annual audits. How can you be sure your LOTO program is compliant with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations? Full story
    • Feb 17, 2020, 14:50 PM

    Stopping a Linear Pneumatic Actuator

    A machine operator defeats a guard and reaches his hand into a machine to reset a part in a nest, but misjudges the speed of the press. Does the pneumatic actuator driving the tooling cause a serious injury or were other steps taken to stop the actuator in time? As you can imagine, stopping and holding a pneumatic actuator in mid-stroke can be an important design feature. If you are unfamiliar with the methods, functional considerations, performance, or safety aspects of stopping and holding a linear pneumatic actuator in mid-stroke, this article can serve as a starting point for making the right decisions based upon realistic performance expectations. Full story
    • Feb 5, 2020, 14:44 PM

    Proper LOTO Procedures can Increase Productivity

    Employee safety is a term widely used across many companies, especially manufacturing facilities. When we take a deeper dive into what safety means to each employer, do they have appropriate policies, procedures, and most importantly a safety culture? The answer is more than likely "maybe"! Every employer strives to keep their employees safe, but the best policies and procedures can easily be forgotten or overlooked to get a job or project done to keep production running and material out the door. See how SMC can help increase your productivity by streamlining your LOTO procedure. Full story
    • Jan 16, 2020, 13:40 PM

    Bottling Plant Boosts Productivity with LED Lighting

    Read how one bottling plant is projecting to save $65,000 a year in energy costs from upgrading to Keystone LED lights. Full story
    • Jan 15, 2020, 13:28 PM

    Reduce Lead Time with Smarter Machine Engineering

    How fast can we get it? It’s the number one question that comes after presenting a new packaging solution you’ve developed for a customer. And it’s one of the top challenges facing machine builders today. So, how do you get from concept to machine faster in an environment that demands customization, flexibility and speed? That’s what packaging machine builders face every day. And one answer is to simplify. Full story
    • Dec 16, 2019, 14:30 PM

    Winter Weather Prep from OSHA

    In addition to cold stress, there are other winter weather related hazards that workers may be exposed to when performing tasks such as driving in the snow, removing snow from rooftops, and working near downed or damaged power lines. Full story