Industrial equipment design engineers are rethinking control components as they struggle with functionality demands along with material and manufacturing costs, whether their products are new to the marketplace or redesigns of existing equipment.
A struggling manufacturing sector has forced industrial equipment design engineers to squeeze suppliers on price, ask suppliers to hold inventory, and opt for cheaper, equivalent components as Band-Aid substitutes. While many design engineers may think their move to equivalent components was the last cost-cutting gasp, some open-minded innovators climb above the fray for a new, wider perspective, a perspective that embraces the too-often-overlooked custom control alternative.
"Many industrial equipment design engineers have no custom controls experience," contends Bob Garavaglia, division manager at Indeeco Controls, a manufacturer of both off-the-shelf standard and custom controls. "When things are going good, there''s little incentive to look beyond familiar options and they typically go on incorporating off-the-shelf components. But when things get tough and engineering departments must cut costs, those who think out of the box can have a competitive advantage over those handcuffed by always-done-it-that-way logic. (Shown here, a group of Indeeco custom controls.)
"Enlisting the support of an outside custom control vendor adds a professional specialist staff without expanding the OEM''s engineering department. Custom controls are capable of rewarding everyone at the OEM. Engineering departments get added performance. Sales departments get added features. Marketing departments benefit from improved brand identity."
Custom controls make the most sense when multiple control component functions are combined into a single unit. The single unit takes less time to install, significantly reducing manufacturing costs. Depending on the specific application, advantages in material costs and inventory requirements are realized. An added custom control bonus occurs when unique features and performance benefit opportunities are identified early in the design process and then built into the custom control. At their best, custom controls do everything the multiple components do, plus they improve performance and add valuable competitive selling points and brand-building features. (Pictured at right and below, custom control with individual controls it replaces in the background.)
To illustrate the point, Garavaglia relates, "When an OEM manufacturer of electric heating equipment had us design a custom control, we found an original product design with two thermostats, two timers, three contactors, and a switch in their existing control scheme. With a single, microprocessor-based custom control, we significantly reduced labor in wiring those eight individual components. Inventory requirements were immediately reduced. On top of everything else, we were able to implement several software features and diagnostics that added value for their end users. Since these features were added as software, there was virtually no additional cost to the custom control price and the customer achieved their original goals and added unexpected value to their product."
So, what''s been the big hurdle for custom controls in winning over industrial equipment design engineers?
Custom control objections generally relate to three issues, according to Garavaglia. First, and probably the biggest hurdle, is the fact that most design engineers have no idea about a custom control''s true capabilities. Second, design engineers are often caught up in short-term problem solving and they think it takes a long time to develop an often-perceived expensive custom control. Third, they may have tried developing a custom control in the past and had a bad experience (typically regarding development costs).
"Admittedly, development costs are not the same with all companies involved in designing and producing custom controls," Garavaglia notes. "Development costs run the gamut between companies. Some companies want several thousand dollars before they''ll work on a project. Others, such as Indeeco, do not charge any development fee in favor of earning that investment back long term through production orders.
"Regarding development time, Indeeco has a prototype available for testing within six to eight weeks after specification approval. Working with an experienced company keeps the cycle short."
According to Garavaglia, prime candidates for a custom control solution are the design engineers who constantly find themselves in introspective dialogue with colleagues and themselves. They''re the ones saying, "Off-the-shelf controls don''t give me exactly what I''m looking for. It takes too long to install and wire all of these controls. Our customers find it difficult to program and use a process controller. I wish my process controller had a timer or logic functions. I wish my PLC had analog inputs and/or outputs. I wish my PLC could be configured in the field."
For industrial equipment design engineers with those thoughts running through their mind, Garavaglia advises consultation with any reputable custom control developer. Custom control developers are an asset that can pay make-or-break dividends in an economic climate where every specification decision weighs mightily against the bottom line.