Suggestion on Plc career and possibly changing major.

[fredz0003]

Hi everyone I have read lots of post about career advice, although I'm on a different boat, I am a navy vet learned my trade in electrical/electronics in the navy. Now I am going to a community college for computer science in programming, but I would like to get into designing Plc systems in the future I am wondering if I should change my major to electrical engineering or keep my programming degree and learn Plc on the side. Here at work we really dont troubleshoot plcs because the designers connect online from another state. We have a compactlogix training station, and all the Rockwell software rslogix5000, factoryview talk etc but I don't really know how to start or better yet what are some real scenario exercises that I could do on our training Plc, I believe we have hmis on inventory too. I have logixpro but I think is missing a lot of the real stuff. I thought about buying a micrologix and a cheap washer machine and writing the ladder.

Thanks for your advise.

 

[Lancie1]

I would like to get into designing Plc systems in the future I am wondering if I should change my major to electrical engineering or keep my programming degree and learn Plc on the side.

You would potentially do more PLC programming with an electrical engineering degree than with a computer programming degree. The college I went to had an EE degree with senior-year options of Power, Electronics, Fields, and Computer Design (which included a lot of programming classes).

However, I think now in many cases, the majority of PLC programmers are more likely to have a 2-year Engineering Technician degree or something like that, working under a Electrical Design Engineer.

 

[fredz0003]

Thanks Lancie1 for your response.

 

[Peter Nachtwey]

Designing PLC systems isn't that hard

The PLC companies make it easy to design PLC systems.
A bigger challenge would be designing the PLC itself.

 

[ndzied1]

Give this site a once over:
http://www.ronbeaufort.com/home_page.htm

Sounds like you are employed but they are very good to Vets:
http://www.ronbeaufort.com/offers_for_veterans.htm

 

[Mark Snodgrass]

I second ndzied1. I took his class in October, and even though I have been working on PLCs for over 15 years I learned alot, and just on the first day. I had in my class two guys who were construction workers and had never seen a PLC in their life, but after the week was over knew more than many maintenance guys I know with years of experience.

Fredz0003, What is your Navy experience? Years, rating/rank, nuke/nonnuke,...etc.

I was a Nuke electrician during the early nineties (EOS 12/94) and I learned PLCs the hard way, machine was down and I was by myself on third shift.

 

[Benton]

Also try interconnectingautomation.com there a videos on the site which are extremely helpful and if you decide to go to his classes in person they are awesome!

 

[fredz0003]

Fredz0003, What is your Navy experience? Years, rating/rank, nuke/nonnuke,...etc.

I was an IC Interior Communications Tech, onboard the mighty USS Donald Cook DDG-75 (Arleigh Burke Guided Missile Class Destroyer), went to boot camp in Great Lakes and A School in Great Lakes too. I served a four year contract, three deployments, two overseas, and one to GITMO. Our division was comprised of ET(Electronic Techs) and IC's, we worked on all alarm systems, phone systems, sound systems, CCTV, and so on. Good times, good times. I will definitely check out Ron's class and go from there. Thank you all for your responses.