TechArchive

Original article date: September 2001

Why is industrial hardware so damned big?I keep getting suppliers walking in saying: “these are our new fieldbus valves” and in at least 50% of cases they have this monstrous great box on them that makes them almost impossible to fit in, or else there is some base station that talks ‘real’ network protocol followed by a proprietary sub network to lead to the valves themselves.

So far I have seen only one supplier’s valves that are not actually taking the Michael. These are normal looking valves with a extra block (attached by a short ribbon) about the size of a fat box of matches.

Since we’re only about a couple of chips and a few transistors, if one manufacturer can do it then why can’t all the others?

What I am looking for (and I suspect every other network user is, too) is:

• a single network cable that can carry signals, networked safety circuit and the power to run my I/O, whatever it may be
• field nodes that are barely bigger than non-networked equivalents (because there’s simply no reason why they shouldn’t be)
• full support for that protocol for every device I may need on my machine (including Estops, safety switches and the like for the networked safety circuit)
• a network master for my chosen PLC (ie I don’t want to be forced up two sizes of product just to use a network)
• and documentation that would allow me to get up and running in an afternoon. And then I will spend the extra money because I know I will save it all in the long run. Can you hear me out there ??

Many thanks to all those who responded to my July piece regarding my attempts to source an unusual motor by contacting a bundle of suppliers and waiting for an answer. The majority of the calls I got were either from salespersons themselves, who agreed that a basic quick response is worth a hundred late flashy ones, or from customers like me who have similar stories to tell about the wide gap between the best and the average service.

But not everyone agreed with my stance. “A phone call to a couple of likely suppliers is worth a hundred faxes,” said one respondent, who went on to assert that a buyer who faxes lots of suppliers is probably looking for the lowest price and as such is only of interest to the cheaper suppliers. Personally I think that a mass faxing is just as likely to be (as in my case) a desperate search for anyone who can offer a solution.

The same reader also wrote that in general faxes are not the only, or best, way to track things down because you will find that people don’t respond well to them. Their sometimes precise nature can also prevent the possibility of alternative solutions being proffered.

This is of course a very valid point. If I say I want a motor less 100mm in diameter and you don’t reply because yours is 101mm, then I might never know you are there – and a 101mm motor might actually have fitted. But in such a case I would expect the supplier to say “I know this isn’t quite small enough, but maybe you’d consider it?” rather than simply giving up. In fact that was exactly what happened in my case – the winning supplier brought me something that didn’t quite fit my specified envelope, but made a case for me to considering it. And he was right.

Just the fax, ma’am

Whilst I’d certainly agree that people don’t respond well to faxes, my question is still: why? A missed lead is a missed lead. The winner in my case walked away with over (UK pounds)50K pa of business.

I also received feedback regarding my amazement that a well known directory expected buyers to pay to subscribe (as well as charging the suppliers who were in the directory). The following snippet sums up the response. “How can engineers be expected to log on or even pay, just to get past the first page on a website? Unless I’m desperate, I turn around and walk straight out the door when I am asked for something in order to proceed on an internet site.”

Talking of which, I have also received some website recommendations. For an example of how to make info available without pestering people to go through a lengthy registration, check out world.keyence.com. And then for an example of how good a motors website can be, have a look at www.slmti.com. Keep the feedback coming!

September 2001