Mid life career change

[AndrewM]

Hello everyone, this is my first posting.

Iam looking for a bit of inspiration, I was just wondering if any members have moved into the automation industry later in life and without a degree, what sort of backgrounds you have come from and at what age.

Thanks Andrew

 

[James Mcquade]

AndrewM,

What is your background in? that's a start.

regards,
james

 

[AndrewM]

Hi James

Thanks for the reply, back in the
80's started out as an Electrical Technician for a machine tool manufacturer,
90's Field Service Eng on Epos Equipment plus some Electronic Repairs,
00's General IT and some Database Developing(Access/SQL)
10's Part Time IT Maintenance and a year doing Online courses in PLC/SCADA

I am interested if anyone else has made the jump and if they had any advice.

Thanks Andrew

 

[KNeland]

Sounds like a good background to me.

I went to 2yr trade school in my late 30's for a career change....Studied Instrumentation/process control with a trimester of PLC/Controls included in the curriculum. I managed to get into the controls field right out of school and am very happy with my decision to pursue the career change.

With your background....it sounds like a good fit....maybe with some more training/experience....(hard job market right now to get into any field without experience)

just my .02

 

[Narlin]

An old Newbie

HI,
Despite being called a newbie - (i take it as a complement), i started do automation (PLCs) 5 1/2 yrs ago at age 56 for customers. Prior to that, i operated a pharmaceutical company and have a PhD in biological chemistry. I don't practice automation controls as a primary, but rather as a part of pharmaceutical equipment process engineering. When the jobs get larger than i am comfortable with, i contract out the control manufacturing and/or coding. When they are fairly easy i make the control boxes and code the PLCs and OITs in house.

narlin

 

[AndrewM]

Sounds like a good background to me.

I went to 2yr trade school in my late 30's for a career change....Studied Instrumentation/process control with a trimester of PLC/Controls included in the curriculum. I managed to get into the controls field right out of school and am very happy with my decision to pursue the career change.

With your background....it sounds like a good fit....maybe with some more training/experience....(hard job market right now to get into any field without experience)

just my .02

Thanks for the reply, just out of interest what was your previous career if you don't mind me asking, and when you started looking for jobs in the controls field, did you look for junior roles or jobs that matched your skills.

Thanks Andrew

 

[KNeland]

Thanks for the reply, just out of interest what was your previous career if you don't mind me asking, and when you started looking for jobs in the controls field, did you look for junior roles or jobs that matched your skills.

Thanks Andrew

Previous to the change I owned/operated a small retail business. No previous related experience actually, but I had friends in the instrumentation field and gained their insight as to the possibilities. To be honest.....I was ready to take any kind of industrial process control job, based on my education, that I could get. I was extremely lucky to get hired immediately out of school for a manufacturing controls job. They knew I had a steep learning curve and gave me time to work up to speed. I am working for a different company now that is expanding and building new systems that I am fortunate to get to program. Without the break right out of school I don't know how long it would have taken me to get into controls, though I knew from my exposure in school to PLC programming, this is the kind of work I wanted to eventually be doing.

Regards,

Kyle

 

[AndrewM]

HI,
Despite being called a newbie - (i take it as a complement), i started do automation (PLCs) 5 1/2 yrs ago at age 56 for customers. Prior to that, i operated a pharmaceutical company and have a PhD in biological chemistry. I don't practice automation controls as a primary, but rather as a part of pharmaceutical equipment process engineering. When the jobs get larger than i am comfortable with, i contract out the control manufacturing and/or coding. When they are fairly easy i make the control boxes and code the PLCs and OITs in house.

narlin

Thanks, very useful, if I can't persuade an employer to trust in my abilities then it maybe an option to have a look at starting my own business.


Thanks Andrew

 

[AndrewM]

Previous to the change I owned/operated a small retail business. No previous related experience actually, but I had friends in the instrumentation field and gained their insight as to the possibilities. To be honest.....I was ready to take any kind of industrial process control job, based on my education, that I could get. I was extremely lucky to get hired immediately out of school for a manufacturing controls job. They knew I had a steep learning curve and gave me time to work up to speed. I am working for a different company now that is expanding and building new systems that I am fortunate to get to program. Without the break right out of school I don't know how long it would have taken me to get into controls, though I knew from my exposure in school to PLC programming, this is the kind of work I wanted to eventually be doing.

Regards,

Kyle

Hi Kyle

Thanks for the feedback, I guess I just need that lucky break, unfortunately over here at the moment employers seem to want 10yrs experience and a degree just to mop the floor, It's quite frustrating to see jobs come up on job sites week after week asking for the same high qualifications when I am sure some of these positions are asking for more than they really need and getting nobody.

Thanks Andrew

 

[harryting]

You seems to have a good background. I would look for a electrician job in places with a lot of PLCs then take on the role to work with them. Like it or not, it's a buyer's market in the employment arena right now.

Just wondering though, why would you leave the IT/database field?

 

[mrmss]

I would stick it with IT, especially in UK. To me, PLC means manufacture and process. Manufacturing is dead in the UK leaving really just the utilities for work (still a massive market place though). At 30 I desperately started to seek an opportunity to get INTO IT! My experience;

- '02 Completed Bachelor Degree in Electronics & Computing
- '02 Luckily straight into controls company as systems engineer, configuring SCADA systems and some RTU (not like PLC but some simalarities)
- '05 Luckily opportunity to work in Pharma industry, writing SCADA/PLC applications for machinery
- '10 After the Pharma co. got anhilated (150 staff down to 11) I made my break from the manuf. industry and back to the SCADA/RTU co. who have re-invented themselves as an IT solution provider to the process/control industry following IT industry practices.

 

[AndrewM]

I would stick it with IT, especially in UK. To me, PLC means manufacture and process. Manufacturing is dead in the UK leaving really just the utilities for work (still a massive market place though). At 30 I desperately started to seek an opportunity to get INTO IT! My experience;

- '02 Completed Bachelor Degree in Electronics & Computing
- '02 Luckily straight into controls company as systems engineer, configuring SCADA systems and some RTU (not like PLC but some simalarities)
- '05 Luckily opportunity to work in Pharma industry, writing SCADA/PLC applications for machinery
- '10 After the Pharma co. got anhilated (150 staff down to 11) I made my break from the manuf. industry and back to the SCADA/RTU co. who have re-invented themselves as an IT solution provider to the process/control industry following IT industry practices.

Thanks for the replies
C'mon chaps you're not giving me much inspiration are things really this bad in the automation industry?
Regards
Andrew

 

[STL???]

No jobs for life these days mate

 

[Liam Moran]

Generally, I reckon there is only 1 thing you need to be the best you can be in any field, and that is commitment. Many people excel in fields in which they have no formal qualification, but they have gotten there by sheer determination.
In my career I have employed many people in the field of automation, with various levels of qualifications. I had one guy with a masters degree, and after a while I found that the automation game was not for him, he just did not have the right stuff. Another, unqualified guy that I hired around that time to build control panels, but he turned out to be excellent.

I suppose to sum up, anybody can be anything they want to be, provided they have the ability. I personally would never hire anyone to make an Automation technician out of him or her, they would have to prove to me their commitment to succeed in the field, by they themselves making the effort to learn, and not being waiting to be taught.
After all, A rock group would never advertise for a lead guitarist stating 'no experience necessary'

Go for it, if you like it you won't regret it.

 

[surferb]

Your background sounds strong to me. What are you interested in doing? Go for it!

Hi James

Thanks for the reply, back in the
80's started out as an Electrical Technician for a machine tool manufacturer,
90's Field Service Eng on Epos Equipment plus some Electronic Repairs,
00's General IT and some Database Developing(Access/SQL)
10's Part Time IT Maintenance and a year doing Online courses in PLC/SCADA

I am interested if anyone else has made the jump and if they had any advice.

Thanks Andrew