vague question (maybe not)

[taknevs]

hi
i am a graduate student in electrical engineering specializing in control systems. i am interested in working with PLCs, HMI and all that stuff. i am still a rookie in the PLC field and hope to have a career in industrial automation.
i have built a basic PLC trainer with toggle switches and LEDs with AB micrologix 1200 for the undergrad students. i am right now working on a project moving objects in the stage during a theatrical play using mitsubishi PLC (FX 1N series), also I am trying to develop a simple HMI with AB PLC 5/20 using VB.
(enough of me rambling on and on...)
what i am interested (you could also say desperate) to know is am i still far away from applying for controls jobs. do i have to develop myself more before applying for jobs?
i know this seems like a vague question but being a member of this forum for about a month now, i know i can expect some really honest opinions from the PLC gurus.
regards
taknevs

 

[rsdoran]

IT doesnt matter

When you graduate, depending on college, GPA, and personality you will find a position as an EE. In the beginning you may like the position or not BUT you will learn things...hopefully. The future depends on you and your desire, the first job just opens a path to development/experience based on your desires and the basics you gained from college. The EE degree states that you are capable of learning at an above average capability with a desire to learn...ie you understand the concept of THINKING.

Keep following your path, never stop trying, learning etc, you will get to where you want to be. Maybe further.

 

[Steve Bailey]

Don't overlook things like limit switches, hall-effect switches, prox switches, photocells, flow switches, pressure switches, temperature switches, motor starters (including overload protection), soft starters, VFDs, encoders (absolute and incremental), resolvers, pneumatic and hydraulic controls, pressure transmitters, flow transmitters, thermocouples, RTDs, thermistors, magneto-restrictive displacement transducers, LVDTs, industrial networking and fieldbusses, the new generation of smart sensors, programming languages, PID control with and without autotuning, vision systems, robots, servos, just to name a few.

In short, most of the topics that come up here are related to industrial control and automation. You may not run into all of them in any one plant, but you should at least be able to identify where you might expect them to be used.

As has been said many times here, it's very rare to find a job where all you do is program PLCs and/or HMIs. A PLC is just one of the tools of automation and control.

 

[taknevs]

thanks to rsdoran and steve bailey

Don't overlook things like limit switches, hall-effect switches, prox switches, photocells, flow switches, pressure switches, temperature switches, motor starters (including overload protection), soft starters, VFDs, encoders (absolute and incremental), resolvers, pneumatic and hydraulic controls, pressure transmitters, flow transmitters, thermocouples, RTDs, thermistors, magneto-restrictive displacement transducers, LVDTs, industrial networking and fieldbusses, the new generation of smart sensors, programming languages, PID control with and without autotuning, vision systems, robots, servos, just to name a few.

the problem is when we students are in college, we have access to only some of the above-mentioned stuff because we are supposed to use whatever the department buys us. so all i can do is to read about this stuff and see pictures in the internet of how they look like.
i have been requesting my department to replace RSLinxLite with RSLinx gateway for about an year, no response till now.

that's why i want to know whether realtime experience in using all these devices is reqd. for a control engineering job. sorry to keep pressing on this subject.
regards
taknevs

 

[rsdoran]

Here is the deal as I see it, the best thing you could do for yourself is obtain that EE degree. That means you can THINK and learn. The rest is up to you once obtaining a job. The first job you get you may or may not like but keep asking questions and learning and you may go far.

I didnt press the real world devices besides plc's that are used because all you can do is read about them if not involved in an industrial environment, read all you can to be prepared as much as possible. You will learn how they apply and are used in due time.

GET the EE degree, that will open the path to do the things you want.

 

[Steve Bailey]

When you graduate with an EE degree, you'll be looking for an entry-level engineering job. The employer won't expect you to have hands-on experience with every component. They will expect you to have a set of problem solving skills, an understanding of basic principles, a willingness to keep learning, and a willingness to get your hands dirty.

You'll also need to accept the fact that most of the people in the maintenance department know more about how the stuff really works than you do. Don't overlook them as a resource for your continuing education.

I once worked with an engineer whe earned his degree at the US Military Academy (West Point). He was an excellent engineer. Unfortunately, his attitude was that officers don't fraternize with enlisted men. He was unwilling to accept advice or criticism from the guys on the shop floor or from the field service technicians. As a result, he didn't last long in the position (design engineer for an OEM of textile machinery).

 

[Steve Etter]

Another excellent avenue (if it is available to you as a grad student) is a Co-Op program. As a Co-Op you get the opportunity to work with a real-world company on real-world stuff and, if you are fortunate enough to work with a good outfit, get some great experience.

Over the years I have worked with and trained several Co-Op students. Often I have been able to offer a full time position to those who fit well with the company and the other department personnel.

 

[hd_coop]

From personal experience coop is the best way to go. The school I attend is set up to be a coop school, 3 months of school, 3 months of coop for 5 years. Right now I am a Sophomore II, I will be starting my 4 semester in April and am on my 3rd work term right now. I am getting the real world experience, I finished adding a force monitoring unit to a bushing press just yesterday. I have another press in the toolroom being completely retrofitted from a GE-Fanuc 90-20 to a AB 5/03 with a Panelview 600. I've also got about 3 other machines I'm currently working on. Coop is definately the way to go if its available.

If anybody cares I attend school at Kettering University and am working at Harley-Davidson right now.


-Josh

 

[lcsjk]

Control Engineering Position

New engineers are green. When you start your job you will not be expected to know much, but you will be expected to learn in a reasonable time. Your school projects help but you still probably do not know how to use an op amp except for Rf/Ri. To be a hardware design engineer, you have to learn how things work and how to apply the electronics parts. Read the app notes and suggestions. Learn how everyone does it and try to envision an easier way. Learn to design with digital parts along with analog. Learn to program or at least know to use micro controllers.
Then hope you can find jobs during your career that are interesting and will let you practice what you like to do.
LCM

 

[poiuy]

I'm a co-op student as well, and although I didn't have any real world experience, the company that hired me accepted that and knew that I would be willing and able to learn. I had never seen a PLC until about 3 months ago but I'm already fairly competant in ladder logic programming and various sensor/driver controls, at least with Allen Bradley equipment. I get the feeling from when I was interviewing that any company that is hiring recent college graduates knows what they're getting in to, and will accept someone with little to no hard experience.

 

[Rick Densing]

It sounds like you already do it, but whenever you get a new component to work with, read the manual cover to cover. You'd be suprised how much you can learn by just reading the instructions. That seems to be a lost art nowadays.

 

[jurban]

I graduated from college with a Chemical Engineering degree. I soon found that the traditional process engineering roles weren't really my cup of tea. However I was exposed to industrial automation and knew that that was what I wanted to do. So I slowly started to turn my career that way and sold my company on myself rather than skills that I didn't have. Steve brought up a good point in that personality goes a long way. If you can relay to a potential employer that you're eager to work and learn, they will often over look your lack of experience.

Good luck!

Jim