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Process Logic Controller (PLC) Basics

Process Logic Controller (PLC) Basics

What readers will learn from this article.

  • Overview of how a programmable logic controller (PLC) operates.
  • Communication methods used to connect the PLC to equipment.
  • Dangerous practices that will lead to trouble if not corrected.

A process logic controller is a computer designed for monitoring and controlling equipment. The personal computer that many people have at home is designed to accept signals from the keyboard or mouse and use instructions (software) to display the resulting effects on a screen (monitor). A PLC accepts signals (inputs) from sensors located throughout a piece of equipment or process plant. It then follows the instructions (program) within its memory and sends out commands (output) to operate equipment. [Read more…]

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What is Collateral Risk? And Why Should We Be Worried About It?

What is Collateral Risk? And Why Should We Be Worried About It?

Guest Post by Geary Sikich (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

What is Collateral Risk? And Why Should We Be Worried About It?

Introduction

The Law Dictionary defines Collateral Risk as:

The RISK of loss arising from errors in the nature, quantity, pricing, or characteristics of COLLATERAL securing a transaction with CREDIT RISK.  Institutions that actively accept and deliver collateral and are unable to manage the process accurately are susceptible to loss.  A subcategory of PROCESS RISK. [Read more…]

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What is Lean Product Development? (Part II)

What is Lean Product Development? (Part II)

In my last article the high level goal of lean product development was established as follows:

Develop products that maximize customer value and minimize product cost,  in the least amount of time, and at the least amount of product development cost.

Let’s analyze this goal statement and establish some high-level objectives. [Read more…]

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The 2 Parameter Uniform Distribution 7 Formulas

The 2 Parameter Uniform Distribution 7 Formulas

This is part of a short series on the common distributions.

The Uniform distribution is a univariate continuous distribution. This short article focuses on 7 formulas of the Uniform Distribution. A common application is as a non-informative prior. Another application is to model a bounded parameter. The uniform distribution also finds application in random number generation. [Read more…]

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Product Derivatives for Market Domination

Product Derivatives for Market Domination

I recently came across this announcement that HP is going to develop computer systems and peripheral devices that are optimized for environments where they are cleaned frequently, often medical environments. In the medical and scientific fields cleaning solutions are a significant stress for plastics, inks and touch control surfaces. It’s a smart strategy to evaluate where your products are used and optimize your test use cases.  It most often will lead to more accurate test results and reliability projections.  It may, as well, lead to a market opportunity that was previously unknown, and if you are the first among your competitors to acknowledge this need and create a specialized or derivative product you now grabbed a portion of the market that you may have not previously held.

A few others

  • laptops that are impact and dirt resistant
  • Kids winter coats with glove attachments
  • Sport tuned models of economy cars
  • Stackable chairs
  • Folding bikes
  • Standing desks

 

-Adam

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The Elevator Pitch, and No it’s not a Major League thing….

The Elevator Pitch, and No it’s not a Major League thing….

I was taking questions from the audience following my presentation at a conference last spring when a young lady stood up and asked me if I could give my Elevator Pitch.

She must have noted the confused look on my face because she repeated herself this time adding further details.

“If you were riding an elevator with someone and you had a quick minute to sell your RCM services what would you say?” [Read more…]

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How a Cultural Audit Can Assist Risk Management

How a Cultural Audit Can Assist Risk Management

Guest Post by James Kline (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

How a Cultural Audit Can Assist Risk Management

Introduction

An organization’s culture is an important determinant of its success or failure. This is because an organization’s culture is the combined effect of the employees’ underlying assumptions, beliefs, attitudes and expectations. Each can affect performance and adaptability.  A cultural assessment can help determine areas that can inhibit mission accomplishment. This article lists the different techniques used in conducting a cultural audit and indicates how it can help guide corrective action. [Read more…]

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The 1 Parameter Poisson Distribution 4 Formulas

The 1 Parameter Poisson Distribution 4 Formulas

This is part of a short series on the common life data distributions.

The Poisson distribution is a discrete distribution. This short article focuses on 4 formulas of the Poisson Distribution. It is also known as the rare event distribution. It has application in a homogeneous Poisson princess and with renewal theory. [Read more…]

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Should I Stay or Should I go?

Should I Stay or Should I go?

#AskAsh – 001 – Should I stay in my engineering job or search for another?

Question:

Hey Ash,
I have a question about whether I should stay in my current engineering job or pursue other options.

I work for an engineering firm that does contract work for other companies. We have recently lost a big contract. With this lull, I have been told that much of my work over the next several months will basically be document control.

As a new engineer, I am concerned that I will be missing out on valuable experience if I am not working on strong engineering projects.

So my question is, should I stick it out or look for another job?

Thanks,
-Anonymous

[Read more…]

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Process Capability Analysis III – Cp vs Percent Defectives

Process Capability Analysis III – Cp vs Percent Defectives

Introduction

In the article Process Capability I – Overview and Indices, the main process performance indices were defined. In the article Process Capability Analysis II – Estimating Percent Defective, ways to calculate the percent defective were introduced.

In this article, the mathematical connection between the Cp index and percent defectives is made.

[Read more…]

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The Changing Support for a Reliability Engineer

The Changing Support for a Reliability Engineer

In most organizations being a reliability engineer is a lonely position. I like to think we’re so effective that one or just a small team is all any an organization needs.

As with any engineering position, we have specialized training and skills. We view the world and problems just a little differently than others. Then we use statistics, which tends to future isolate us from our peers.

For over 50 years there have been professional societies focused on supporting the professional education of reliability engineers. For nearly as long there have been trade journals and newsletters. Longer for technical journals and other scientific and engineering organizations and journals. [Read more…]