Posted to News on 22nd Feb 2007, 12:38
Date and venue for free ASi-Tech 2007 seminar
The AS-Interface UK Expert Alliance has announced that the ASi-Tech 2007 event will take place on 22 May at Old Trafford, Manchester.
This free one-day seminar covers all aspects of AS-Interface, including an introduction to the technology, opportunities to gain 'hands-on' experience, and advanced information about the latest updates - such as the new V3 specification that extends the scope of AS-I throughout the factory, and ASi Safe (previously known as AS-i Safety at Work), the functional safety networking system that combines safety and automation control on a single cable.
Products are now starting to come on the market ready to utilise the latest v3 specification. The Asi-Tech event will therefore be an excellent opportunity to find out more about v3 and see some of the first v3 products.
For those attendees that have a particular interest in machinery safety, safety backgrounders will be available.
Geoff Hodgkinson, Alliance Chairman, comments: "The Alliance exists to promote competence and good practice across the automation spectrum and Alliance Experts will be prominent at ASi-Tech to explain how our technology fits in modern plants. A key theme will be 'getting it right' in terms of design, installation and commissioning. My members often have to visit sites to put right systems that have not been correctly designed and installed. A main message will be 'buy from an Alliance Expert and get it right first time'". ASi-tech will include two papers describing how not to fall into common installation traps - plus a further paper that takes a light-hearted look at some horror stories and point out how to best avoid them.
People who have not yet implemented an AS-Interface network will benefit from the event's 'hands-on the yellow cable' session. In addition, there will be presentations covering Functional Safety standards and practice, applications in the process industry, and integration of AS-interface with higher level fieldbuses and Industrial Ethernet.
ASi-tech is aimed at engineers at all levels in a production plant. The basic technology is easily accessible for all types of engineers, including mechanical and electrical persons. Systems designers, integrators and, of course, functional safety experts should also attend.
Geoff Hodgkinson concludes: "Since our last road show in 2005, AS-Interface technology has developed significantly, both in terms of its technical scope and market share. Latest figures show that there are now 11,000,000 installed AS-Interface devices globally, which means we are second only to Profibus in penetrating world automation networking markets at the lowest field level. Functional safety, one of the special capabilities of AS-Interface, continues to be our fastest growing market, while process automation and discrete manufacturing remain strong. But there is plenty of growth still to come, and ASi-Tech 2007 will be an ideal place for both potential and existing users to find out more about the benefits."
To book a place at ASi-Tech 2007, visit www.as-interface.com or telephone +44 (0)800 169 2331.
About AS-Interface
Applications for AS-Interface include machine automation, functional safety, process control and electrical distribution. AS-Interface is also ideal for partnering higher level fieldbuses such as Profibus, DeviceNet and Industrial Ethernet.
The new V3 specification enables AS-Interface networks to incorporate higher I/O counts (eight inputs and eight outputs, for example). Enhanced analogue capability is another feature, meaning that more complex serial communications can take place between master and slaves - for parameterisation or visualisation, for example. Other features of V3 allow synchronisation of output switching and high-speed analogue services. In essence, AS-Interface has moved on from its origins as the 'simplest automation networking system' for basic conveyors and become a much more sophisticated and powerful option for networking many types of automation system, with a special emphasis on functional safety and integration with higher level fieldbuses. However, none of the simplicity has been lost, so installation is still easy, fast and low cost, and old networks still function perfectly well with newer products.
