Ok so the Click isnt Div2 Rated but the DirectLogix units are.
They require you buy the software where as the click has free software.
Thanks for looking at that. I will hit the site and compare the PLCs.
If the primary concern on using a standard or basic rated PLC is keeping it 10 Ft. away from the tank/unit, that should be no problem. Obviously I will have them inside a nema rated enclosure but I can keep them at that distance no problem. I assume the same thing with instrumentation like transmitters, level sensors, switches?
H2S gas monitoring is not an issue. Meaning there is no need to monitor the actual gas. Out here we get H2S (rotten egg smell gas) with some oil production, I believe due to the depth. It can kill you if levels are high enough and it can be pretty hard on equipment if directly exposed. I've seen it eat up stainless.
I notice that some PLCs have Ethernet ports. I imagine this is for placing it on the network and configuring. Now is Modbus TCP the protocol/language that I need to make sure all my PLCs use so that they may all communicate on the IP network?
I plan on doing a flow meter on the inlet of the gun barrel to get an account for barrels per day/production.Radio. Under $500 with enclosure and the hardware.
you may want to look at the area classifications. alot of the equipment you mention is not class 1 div 2 rated. if something happens I would hate for them to come back on you.
also, if you need remote monitoring for this site for trending, alerting, remote monitoring, shoot me a pm. I do a month to month.
also, look into idec. they are only a little more expensive than automation direct but are rated class 1 div 2.
I'm thinking IP Radios ($100 a piece)
turning off the production units, mostly just as a kill tied to a high tank alarm.
Up front, I dislike 2.4GHz WiFi band radios. Too unreliable, no punch through like 900MHz. 2.4Ghz is inherently faster, but for industrial formatted data (relatively small), 900MHz is truly a more robust and reliable carrier.
You need to find out what the consequences are if your wireless network goes down. What happens if your shut down alarm doesn't get through? What are the consequences?
The consequences could be far more costly than if .jpg's, .docs and .xls get delayed. If the lack of a shutdown signal getting through creates an overflow incident, with clean-up costs and potential regulatory fines, and with someone at the top looking to point a finger to assign liability, fault and blame then what you've 'saved' the company in cheap radio system will, shall we say, lack appreciation.
There's a reason people pay more for more robust wireless than WiFi.