The war between plant operations and IT is over. Here’s a look at the major trends in information technology that are having a direct and growing impact on plant operations.

  Rich Widdowson, vice president of Safety, Real Estate & Environment for the Schneider Electric North American Operating division, shares six tips for elevating safety to the highest visibility in an organization, based upon his experience driving safety for the manufacturing arm of this electrical components and automation supplier.

  Safety is a topic that is on everyone's mind. No one wants to be interviewed on television after an explosion at their plant or after a severe injury occurs.

  At automaker Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., Alan Baumgartner discusses digital manufacturing in the context of two bridges.

  Robot simulation and offline programming software is producing savings for North American Bus Industries.

  Scott Fraser is the Electrical Technology Department Chair at Long Beach City College in California. Besides providing electrical training, the Department offers specialty areas in robotics and industrial automation.

  “What do we mean by automation software?” asks Nathan Massey, sales engineer for B&R Industrial Automation Corp., Roswell, Ga. A trick question? More of a thought starter.

  Last year, the Colombia-based engineering firm, Omnicon Ltd. wanted to help a dairy customer integrate its automation production system with its enterprise business system.

  By developing closer links between 3D simulation tools and factory floor automation, major PLM and controls vendors are aiming to move digital manufacturing technology one step closer to the mainstream.

  The tenets of ISA88 are now being applied to packaging, as well as to continuous and discrete manufacturing.

  While not everyone likes the name, a new generation of programmable automation controllers that feature multi-domain control functionality are helping to reduce costs for a growing number of manufacturers.

  While the fogginess around mechatronics may not have dissipated entirely, one thing is increasingly clear: as a conceptual schema for design, mechatronics continues to become more visible—and its importance can only grow over the next few years.

 Wireless is not a new world. But that doesn’t mean it is simple. Fortunately, radio has developed in the context of standards almost since the beginning. Here, we look at some of the nomenclature and high-level thinking required for wireless automation.

  (Sidebar to "Minimum Inventory Maximum Productivity" from the January 2008 issue of Automation World)

  Automation World recently invited five major vendors of distributed control systems (DCS) to comment on the competitive impact of programmable automation controllers on their businesses.

  In October of 2005, U.S. Gypsum Corp. began a plant optimization rollout across 50 manufacturing sites that produce gypsum wall board.

 The Kendall-Jackson winery packages more than 3 million cases of wine each year, so it’s a big challenge to position labels on bottles that race through its production lines. 

  In hopes of driving better bottom-line results, manufacturing companies are turning to business simulations to boost the financial savvy of employees.

  A newsprint producer is saving $150,000 annually, thanks to wireless links from its remote scale house to its mill.

 (Sidebar to "Technology-based Maintenance Gains Traction" from the November issue of Automation World)