The September virtual technology evening was hosted by Turck Banner, and presented by newly appointed sales director, Kenneth McPherson.
Kenneth McPherson.
Kenneth is enthusiastic about industrial automation technologies and you could pick this up with his presentation. He covered IO-Link, and how that can be used as an I/O point-to-point connection between field devices and control systems, on any of the industry-accepted fieldbuses. While not a fieldbus itself, IO-Link provides a convenient way of connecting both digital and analogue I/O to the bus being used. Using popular M12 connectors, this technology allows I/O to be positioned closest to where it is needed and opens up many benefits to the end user over traditional wired sensors. These include standardised and reduced wiring, increased data availability, remote configuration and monitoring, simple device replacement, and advanced diagnostics. Together these capabilities result in overall reduced costs and increased process efficiency.
Also discussed were the main advantages of IO-Link and how it is an enabler for Industry 4.0. A lively debate was held between attending members and the team from Turck Banner. A very informative event as I am sure all fifty attendees would agree. The branch thanks Turck Banner and Kenneth for the presentation.
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