Cimtec Automation Blog

Thursday, April 24, 2014

5 Advantages of Hiring an Automation Consultant

An automation consultant is a specialist who can provide sound information and guidance to businesses seeking new, replaced or upgraded automation equipment. By offering a wide variety of automation products and solutions, CIMTEC's consultants are a valuable resource for businesses. Hiring an automation consultant provides these key benefits:

  • Custom solutions - Often, it will take more than one solution to meet your business' automation needs. By meeting with a consultant, you receive a custom solution tailored to your company.
  • Knowledgeable - CIMTEC's automation consultants are well-trained and knowledgeable about the latest products, trends and regulations affecting multiple industries.
  • Save time - Missing the mark when it comes to planning and implementation of automation systems can result in lost time and money. Take the initiative to speak with a consultant about your needs before making a decision.
  • Reduce risk - Without a thorough evaluation of your requirements, it's difficult to control risks. Meeting with an automation consultant helps minimize overall risk by providing expert guidance.
  • Enhance productivity - With the proper automation products, your team's overall productivity is enhanced, leading to better performance. A combination of services, products and technology is used to develop a solution designed for your unique business. 
The team at CIMTEC includes experienced automation consultants able to provide you with a 5-year plan to upgrade and improve your existing automation system. We help you institute solutions that best meet your business' needs. To access CIMTEC's team of expert automation consultants, contact us today to learn more.

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

New Factory-made GE 90-70 Parts (IC697) In Stock Today

As you probably have heard, CIMTEC Automation is now the sole source for brand new, factory-made GE IP 90-70 PLC parts.  We purchased all of the parts that GE IP had left in stock and we currently have over 4,000 new 90-70 parts in stock, ready to ship TODAY!

GE 90-70 New InventoryNew GE IC697 Parts In Stock





Our inventory includes over 90 CPX version CPUs - IC697CPX772, IC697CPX782, IC697CPX928 and IC697CPX935 - plus HUNDREDS of IC697CPM790, IC697ALG230 and ALG320, IC697CMM742 and all the IC697PWR and IC697MDL units you could want.

All of these parts were produced by GE IP in their factory in Charlottesville, VA.  And, most importantly, they are FACTORY NEW parts - with current factory warranty.  There are people out there who say that their 90-70 parts are new - what they really mean is that they are still in the factory-sealed boxes.  But a trained eye can tell that, in most cases, these items we sourced from someones overstock or leftover stores inventory,and while still new in the box, they are several years old and OUT OF WARRANTY.  While the local provider may give you his warranty, it doesn't mean that you will get a New replacement part if it fails.

When you buy New 90-70 parts from CIMTEC Automation, you can be sure that 1) the parts are authentic Factory-made parts and that 2) we will support the factory warranty.  What does that mean?  We will either repair or replace your part, based on availability.

If we have to repair it, it is going to be repaired to factory standards because we are the ONLY Factory-Authorized repair house for GE IP 90-70 in the world!  We have all of the documentation, Bills of material, and board descriptions for every 90-70 board built by GE.  In addition, we have all of the test rigs that GE used on the production floor to test every 90-70 module.

So you can't go wrong with buying 90-70 from CIMTEC Automation:
  • Factory-made parts with full warranty
  • The only Factory Authorized 90-70 Repair Center in the world

Friday, February 7, 2014

CIMTEC at Greenville, SC Palmetto Engineering & Consulting 2014 Show

Cimtec Automation (Charlotte, NC) was proud to participate in Palmetto Engineering & Consulting’s (PEC) 5th annual showcase event held in Downtown Greenville on January 15th and 16th.  While primarily of interest to the Telecom Industry, the PEC show also featured companies involved in Industrial Automation as well.  Diverse Industries (Duncan, SC) did a presentation on the future of robotics in industrial automation as well as the consumer industry.  They also hinted at what Amazon is trying to do with 30 minute deliveries via drones. Schneider Electric (Simpsonville, SC) presented information on Arc Flash Safety.

Cimtec showed off a variety of products covering their wide range of knowledge in vision, safety, sensing, and industrial systems.  Featured products included:
CIMTEC Booth at PEC 2014
Cognex DataMan bar code scanning products, both fixed mount (DM302X) and handheld (DM8500)
SICK Safety Products including FlexiSoft (Safety Controller) with an addition of FlexiLoop (Cascading Safety) 
GE-IP PAC and PLC systems, including RXi (Controller), RXi (IPC), Rx3i (PAC System), VersaMax (PLC) and RSTi (Slice IO)
Hirschmann Switches, RS30 & OCTOPUS products
Computer Dynamics PAC-PCAP10 Operator Interface with a multi-touch projected capacitive touchscreen

Cimtec not only distributes products from these and other manufacturers, we also provide engineering and integration services to tie various pieces of hardware together and provide software and service solutions on top of that.

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

CIMTEC Announces CDI Systems as an option for Cognex VisionView VGA andVision View PC

Computer Dynamics systems packaged with Cognex VisionView available from CIMTEC

CIMTEC Automation is now providing Computer Dynamics Industrial Flat Panel systems with Cognex VisionView software.  VisionView is ideal for monitoring and controlling vision systems and industrial ID readers on the factory floor, and allows operator controls specific to the application. The VisionView application software offers the following features:
  • Automatic detection. VisionView will automatically detect any Cognex vision system on your network.
  • Mix and match Cognex In-Sight systems. VisionView allows you to view up to twelve In-Sight vision systems in a tiled view.
  • Graphical interface. VisionView displays full color images, with graphic overlays and operator controls.
  • Fast image updates. VisionView provides the most recent inspection images so you can view your process in real-time.
  • Access to CustomViews. The operator controls created in the spreadsheet automatically appear in VisionView.
  • EasyView display. Items selected from In-Sight EasyBuilder interface software will appear on the VisionView screen, with impressive ease of use.
  • Run-time ability to train fonts, without a PC.  No downtime is required during changeovers. Ideal for OCR/OCV applications.

PAC-OPR Products + VisionView PC
PAC-OPR running Cognex VisionView PC The PAC-OPR products are industrial NEMA 12 panel-mount flat panel computers with 2 PCI slots.  This product is available in three different panel sizes: 15” 1024x768, 17” 1280x1024, and 19” 1280x1024.  In addition to the display choice, this system includes: a Resistive touchscreen, 1.83GHz (667 MHz FSB) T5600 C2D Processor with 2GB of DDR-2 RAM, Windows XP Pro installed (no CD media included). A 250GB (or greater) Hard Drive, 5-in-1 card reader, and DVD-ROM are also included as standard.  Monitor and control the vision application with the VisionView interface.

VAMP-WN Products + VisionView VGA
CDI Thinview Display showing Cognex VisionView VGA The VAMP-WN is a highly configurable industrial flat panel display with a wide variety of packaging options.  The stocked configurations are 15” 1024x768, 17” 1280x1024, and 19” 1280x1024 panels with a NEMA4 panel-mount front bezel and resistive  touchscreen. Monitor and control the vision application with the VisionView interface via VGA and serial connections using the provided cables. This provides the flexibility to connect smaller- or larger-size monitors for “control room” viewing of images, results, CustomViews, and EasyViews.

PAC-SSX + VisionView PC
CDI PAC-SSX running VisionView PC The PAC-SSX is an industrial flat panel computer in a rugged, fully-sealed IP65 stainless steel chassis.  This system includes:  a 15" 1024x768 TFT, resistive touchscreen, fanless 1.86GHz ATOM D2550 Processor with 2GB of DDR RAM, 32G solid state flash drive, and Windows XP Pro installed.  There are no moving parts in this system which results in a very robust, long lasting product! Monitor and control the vision application with the VisionView interface.

For more information on Flat Panel Display Systems, head over to www.cdynamics.com.  Computer Dynamics offers a wide variety of flat panel display solutions and can provide units ready to ship from our inventory as well as custom display solutions for any application need.

Monday, September 16, 2013

Learn more about using Industrial PCs


Screen shot 2012-05-25 at 10.36.07 AM


With the recent launch of the new Computer Dynamics website, we have added a blog which already has several articles of interest for people using, or planning to use PCs for monitoring and control in an Industrial environment.  For example, we have already posted articles about using Windows XP (which will soon go end of life) in the Industrial space, as well as articles on processor performance to help you understand how to choose the right processor for your application.  There is also an article on different touchscreen and display technologies which serves as a primer for the several viable technologies available today and describes why you might choose one technology over another for a given environment.  For an example article on display and touchscreen technologies, head over to http://blog.cdynamics.com/2013/08/flat-panel-and-touchscreen-technologies_15.html.  From there you will find all of the articles referenced above as well as additional content as we add more topics regularly.  If you haven't already, head on over to http://www.cdynamics.com as well to view the products in the Computer Dynamics line.

Monday, July 15, 2013

CIMTEC Automation Invites You to Attend PROFINET Training on Sept. 12th

CIMTEC Automation LLC is participating in the upcoming PROFINET training seminar being held in Raleigh North Carolina on September 12th 2013.

CIMTEC Automation sees this event as a unique opportunity for engineering and technical professionals to gain a thorough understanding of PROFINET. This event is sponsored by CIMTEC and other member organizations making this a free event for all registrants.

profinetThis event will cover:

Introduction
- Organization behind PROFINET
- System Architecture: PROFINET and other buses

PROFINET Fundamentals
- Industrial Ethernet Overview

PROFINET: How do I…
… connect IO & a legacy fieldbus?
… get data from sensors/actuators?
… integrate machines & do motion control?
… install my infrastructure & use wireless connections?

Wrap-up and Resources

  Register Now,
  Seating is Limited!



Event Details

Training Class DATE

September 12th 2013Training Class LOCATION

Raleigh, NC (Hilton North Raleigh)


Training Class TIME SCHEDULE


8:00am                Registration and Light Breakfast

8:30am                Class begins

10:00am              Morning Break, coffee and other beverages

12:00noon           Hosted Lunch

1:00pm                Class resumes

3:15pm                Afternoon Break, snacks and beverages

4:30pm                Class ends


  Register Now,
  Seating is Limited!



Friday, July 12, 2013

DVT Machine Vision Users...the Time is Now! DVT Cameras are Obsolete!

DVT Cameras have been obsolete for years now, with no spares on shelves anywhere…what is your plan to migrate forward safely and effectively?  Don’t get caught in a down situation with obsolete equipment!
DVT to InsightIt is well known that Cognex acquired DVT and assimilated the best features of both worlds together to move forward into the future of machine vision.  The result…“EasyBuilder” for In-Sight Explorer gives users a Point-and-Click environment for bringing your machine vision application to deployment faster and easier than ever before!
Cognex EasyBuilder
The image-centric interface with application steps walks users right through setting up a vision system start-to-finish.  It is intuitive and simple to use, while also being more capable than ever with the latest vision tools and algorithms from Cognex!

Cognex has also released their latest addition to the In-Sight product line – the In-Sight 7000 Series.


In-Sight IS7000
The In-Sight 7000 delivers unprecedented capabilities that allow you to perform super-reliable inspections no matter how tight your space is or how fast your line moves – and you get it all in a compact industrial IP67 package designed for the harshest, most demanding conditions.
Maximum speed and flexibility in even the tightest spots…


  • Auto-focus lens – M12 integrated lens mechanically auto-focuses to handle an assortment of parts and quick changeover on your line. With the integrated auto-focus lens, also comes an integrated ring light available in a variety of colors for every application.

  • Smarter tools – You get In-Sight measurement, location and inspection vision tools and the flexible EasyBuilder environment to make all inspection, defect detection, guidance, alignment and measurement applications easy to set up and deploy.

  • Faster image capture – Benefit from high acquisition speeds with a maximum of over 100 image captures per second giving you reliable inspection performance on even the fastest bottling and pharmaceutical production lines.

  • No additional power required - Power and control specialized lighting directly which eliminates the need for external power supplies.
    Seamless communication – Cognex Connect™ offers the widest range of built-in communication protocols. The In-Sight 7000 features built-in Ethernet, RS-232 Serial and multiple discrete IOs. The system can communicate directly to a PLC or robot controller and manage multiple smart cameras remotely from a networked PC or HMI.
    Size – 75mm x 55mm x 47mm, offering the most streamlined profile for In-Sight vision systems.

Please contact us today about your machine vision needs!

call 704-227-4600, or e-mail our applications group at engineering@cimtec.com