Started a new job, new to PLCs, not getting trained.

A career in PLC is something I have wanted for a long time now. Problem is I have zero experience in it. For a little over a year now I had been casually applying for jobs with hopes that my Arduino skills and associates in EET would be enough to get my foot in the door. I would be happy to take some college courses but my job at the time was in field service and being away from home for a few days to a week a few times a month made this impossible.

Well, as luck would have it about 3 months ago I was hired as an entry level controls engineer for a company that is only 15 minutes from my front door. It was to be on the job training from the other controls employee and everything looked great!

Well, here's where it all goes wrong. The other employee is a contract employee and (s)he sees me as a threat to their job. Understandably, I can see this from their point of view. As a result the training that I'm receiving is extremely limited and just enough to help alleviate the workload but never get me up to speed. If I ask for more or even just request to watch certain tasks being performed the answer is always either no, or "later on" which never happens. To complicate the issue further this person is someone who is hard to get along with, very condescending.

The pattern is consistent. There could be free time and still there's not enough time. I've spoken with management on this and have their support to get me some training, but with me being so green I don't know where to start or what specifically to ask. The goal is to get me up to speed ASAP.

One thing I want to point out is that I love this job. I enjoy the satisfaction I get from watching something I've created do it's intended job. Automation is a hobby of mine and it's becoming a career path for me. I wish to stay at this company for a long time. Most of the people are great, the location is prefect, and I can see myself staying here for a long long time.

We work with the following...
GE Proficy iFIX
Industrial Gateway Server
Allen Bradley Micrologix 1500
Allen Bradley CompactLogix
Allen Bradley SLC 500
XLReporter

Where can I begin? What are some good books for starting out? I live over in Orange/Ulster County, near the owner of this forum. Phil, we've never met but... nice car! Are there any collages that offer some PLC courses or any local places where I can get some training? A while back I found there was a few courses at Ulster. Are they any good?

:site:

Click on sample lessons..

http://www.ronbeaufort.com/main_frame_page.htm

Another good source...

http://thelearningpit.com/lp/logixpro.html

And for a little more $$...

http://koldwater.com/PLC-Training-Software.html

More free stuff...

http://www.plcdev.com/book/export/html/431

PLC trainer

If you really want to learn PLC's and it sounds like you do. I am willing to pass on my AB trainer with a micrologix 1000 PLC to you for free . You can download the software as a starter kit for free from AB and I have the cables for it. You just need the laptop or desktop. You can have this as long as you are going to USE IT TO LEARN. After you learn what you need all I ask is do the same for someone else one day, we need people that want to learn not just have things handed to them. PM me if you are interested I work in orange county.

That's a hell of an offer from "Just the cowboy", what a guy! For me, the best way to learn is just to dive in. The material I went through in school was a book called "Programmable Logic Controllers" by Frank D Petruzea that went along with the logixpro simulator. I feel the labs were also a good way to get your head wrapped around ladder logic. And as mentioned there is a bunch of good material on this site and from Ron Beaufort

I was in the same bus you were in just last year.
I had my boss buy me this and I spent time going through this book. It teaches you by example - which is the best way I learn. For $20 it's well worth it.
Very helpful. I'm programming MicroLogix 1400 and 1500 the past few projects.

http://www.engineer-and-technician.com/plc-programming-with-rslogix-500/

Honestly, i would find a good introductory level PLC class and see if they will send you to one for a week. Beware of the 1 day free "training" classes that distributors put on, they are rarely nothing more than a sales pitch.

I've heard nothing but praise from forum members from Ron's bootcamp PLC classes. I recently attended one of Siemens class and even though I'm an AB guy, found it to be pretty good. I never got the opportunity to go to any of the pay-for Rockwell classes so i can't comment on those. Hopefully your company will be willing to invest $3,000-$4000 in a training class for you. If use correctly, it will pay for itself very quickly.

Insights in Automation

Good Site lots of great info.

http://www.insightsinautomation.com/tag/the-automation-minute/

Great advice guys! Thank you. I've sent Just the Cowboy a PM and am very excited to hear back from him. I'll learn the snot outta that puppy.

I'll also pickup a few books. Thanks guys! Glad I decided to break the ice.

Just The Cowboy
That is a very fine gesture, I applaud you sir! It is good to see there is still caring, concerned people.

I attended Ron's class, it was amazing and he is a great teacher. I would highly recommend his class to anyone interested. His hands on boot camp style training is a great way to learn. I would take the same class again in a heartbeat!

I have seen lots of praise for Rons class, but the one thing that concerns me is most people say it's really geared for troubleshooting and maintenance. From my position I would be working with the PLCs from scratch, updating obsolete stuff to new controllers or modifying them for new features. Not so much troubleshooting or service.

At that price I'd like to ensure that my employer is getting the best "bang for his buck" and I'd be walking out ready to conquer the world.

I wouldn't be too quick to shy away from it. Troubleshooting is a valuable skill. Debugging is just troubleshooting before it hits production.

Ron can probably offer a bit more info on the depth of programming the boot camp goes into, but I'm going to recommend a 2-step approach. The college course first (come back here so we can help you debunk any of your prof's outdated notions) to get the basics, and then Ron's boot camp to really get into the nuts and bolts on how things work out in the mean, cruel world. It'll take a bit longer, but if you haven't done any programming before, then this may be a good option for you.

JordanCClark said:

I wouldn't be too quick to shy away from it. Troubleshooting is a valuable skill. Debugging is just troubleshooting before it hits production.

Click to expand...

Ain't that the truth!

I'd say that in 9 out of 10 classes I've taken, the quality of the teacher was far more important than the syllabus. I've taken so many classes where the content was exactly what I wanted, but I walked out feeling like I hadn't learned much because the teacher was ineffective. Conversely, a course with a great teacher that only covers 50% of the topic I actually wanted can be far more effective. A good teacher can answer your questions, and adjust things on the fly to his students needs and interests.

I'll partially retract what I said about the college class. You do have programming experience, even if it's Arduino. Ladder logic shouldn't be a big leap. Maybe one of Rockwell's 3 or 5-day beginner courses may be more in order.

Mickey mentioned Logixpro. That one is high on my list of faves and is comparatively cheap ($35) for a CBT

Makeing someone happy

Give someone one of these and you make their day.