PROFINEWS UK Masthead The PROFIBUS Group Newsletter
The world's most popular fieldbus standards - news and views from the United Kingdom  Issue 10, December 2009

In This Issue
 
 
 
 
 
PROFIBUS Group supports Smart Instrumentation
The PROFIBUS Group is pleased to announce that it has become a supporting partner of the Institution of Engineering and Technology's seminar on Smart Instrumentation to be held in Birmingham on 27 April 2010. The IET will in turn be supporting the PROFIBUS Conference at the end of June.
 
Members of The PROFIBUS Group will be able to take advantage of the reduced IET member rate.

The event web site, registration and full information will be available in January 2010. For any enquiries, please contact Ian Collier at icollier@theiet.org.
How to check our Events Programme
Here's how to check what's on where from our popular schedule of training courses, seminars and other events.

Visit the Training pages of our Conference website.
Download Further details, pricing and Registration Form

In case of urgency or special requirements Email Ann in Registration or call 00 44 20 7193 8018
Quick Links
Come and Join Us!

PI is the largest automation organization of its type in the world, with a network of regional offices and over 1400 globally-based member companies. PI also has a network of competence centers, training and test organizations that contribute to and support developers, integrators and end users. No other fieldbus organization has a 'community' better able to support the automation market and its end users with solutions designed to help manufacturing enterprises maximize profits.

So why not join us? It's relatively inexpensive and brings many attractive and cost-saving benefits.

Download complete Up to Date list of benefits and costs
Download Membership Application
Contact The PROFIBUS Group or tel:

:: 00 44 208 144 9597
Join Our Mailing List!
Greetings!
 
Welcome to the latest edition of PROFINEWS UK. I hope you like the new format and are finding it informative.

Seasonal Break

Along with a great many other people we will be taking a few days off to celebrate and recuperate over the Christmas and New Year period. The office will close at midday on Wednesday 23rd December and will re-open on Tuesday 5th January. We will, however, be checking our emails from time to time during this period just in case there's something urgent.

With our best wishes for a happy and fulfilling New Year,

Bob Squirrell,
PROFIBUS Group Chairman
MMU "Hall of Fame" for Certified Engineers & Installers
The PI Competence Centre at MMU has created a new section of its website in honour of the engineers and technicians that have passed its Certified PROFIBUS or PROFINET courses held at MMU.

The official list of Certified PROFIBUS Installers/Engineers and Certified PROFINET Engineers that have attended the training at the MMU PROFIBUS International Competence Centre and passed the examinations can be seen on the web at http://www.sci-eng.mmu.ac.uk/ascent/certification/profibus_profinet/

Training places available ...

Book now for 2010!

 Certified PROFIBUS Engineer Course   16-19 Mar (Also available on-site for up to 8)
Engineers wishing to build their careers around PROFIBUS in either industrial or process automation, companies wanting to benchmark their technical staff or consultants seeking a recognised professional qualification in industrial and process networking can now train for an internationally-recognised qualification as a Certified PROFIBUS Engineer. The Certified PROFIBUS Installer Course is a pre-requisite for attending this course.
 
Certified PROFIBUS Installer Course  -     9 Feb, 15 Mar (Also available on-site for up to 12)
An essential course for electrical engineers and technicians needing to upgrade their skills to include fieldbus installation. This one-day, hands-on course teaches the design, installation and testing of complete PROFIBUS networks including DP, PA and optical fibre technology. Covering bus layout and termination, grounding rules and practices, the course will teach delegates how to avoid common, but potentially expensive, installation problems.
 
PROFIBUS Commissioning & Maintenance Course  -    10 Feb (Also available on-site for up to 8)
A one-day course designed as an add-on to the Certified PROFIBUS Installer Course. Covering the practical techniques of faultfinding on "operational" PROFIBUS networks. Techniques taught on the course include the use of a modern PROFIBUS analyser and Class-II master (engineering tool) to diagnose network faults, device faults and I/O problems. Students also learn how to use a soft digital storage oscilloscope in conjunction with these tools to diagnose and accurately locate cable, connection and device faults.  The Certified PROFIBUS Installer Course is a pre-requisite for attending this course.
 
System Design Course - 11 Feb
A one-day course covering the optimal design of networked automation and control systems. Centred on PROFIBUS and PROFINET technology, but also covering the use of Ethernet & AS-i technology and system software. The System Design Course builds on the basic knowledge of the Certified Installer and provides additional knowledge on designing not only PROFIBUS systems, but also how to use Ethernet, PROFINET and other technologies appropriately.  The Certified PROFIBUS Installer Course is a pre-requisite for attending this course.
 
Basic PLC Programming Course  - 1-2 Feb (Also available on-site for up to 8)
A two-day course designed for those with no previous programming experience.  It covers basic ladder and function block programming and leads on to the Certified Open-PLC Engineer Course.
 
Certified Open-PLC Engineer Training  - 3-5 Feb (Also available on-site for up to 8)
The PROFIBUS Competence Centre at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) in the UK has introduced a 3 day course covering Open-PLC programming using the international standard IEC 61131-3.  The course is designed for Engineers and Technicians who want to gain a recognised qualification in open-PLC programming using IEC 61131-3.   The course is suitable for experienced Programmers who wish to move to IEC 61131-3 compliant systems.
 
Certified PROFINET Engineer Course   -  16-18 February
This training course provides a detailed technical knowledge of the PROFINET technology and the advantages it offers your automation and production processes.At the end of the training there will be a theory exam. Participants who pass get the title Certified PROFINET Engineer and are awarded an official certificate. Successful participants will have the confidence to evaluate PROFINET as a solution for their automation requirements and be able to design a proper application.

Certified AS-i Engineer Course  - 23-24 February 2010 (Also available on-site for up to 8)
Also offered by MMU and bookable through The PROFIBUS Group is this two-day course that teaches the theory and latest practice of the Actuator Sensor Interface. Using a hands-on, practical approach, you will learn how to use AS-i intelligent sensors, actuators and remote I/O in the most efficient and effective way and see how to integrate AS-i into higher fieldbus systems. You will build, configure and exercise your own AS-interface system from scratch. The course also includes an overview of the AS-i "safety at work" profile. Successful graduates will receive a "Certified AS-i Engineer" certificate.
 
Registration form for all the above courses or call Ann on 00 44 207 193 8018