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Ransomware/Wiper Attack Hits Automation Control System… and the Aftermath
Paying the ransom and allowing the hackers to decrypt the compromised systems was not an option. The only choice was to rebuild each system either from scratch, or hopefully with a backup. We were about to find out how good – or not good – the customer’s backup plan was. Most of the HMI interfaces…
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What Are Safety PLCs?
Blog post by Tanner Grieve, Mechanical Engineer A safety programmable logic controller (PLC) is like a standard PLC. It can be used to control and automate pieces of industrial equipment. A safety PLC supports all the applications that a standard PLC does; however, a safety PLC contains integrated safety functions that allow it to control…
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Jay Steinman Writes Article for Control Engineering Magazine
In the May issue of Control Engineering magazine, our Jay Steinman wrote an article entitled “Defining and Measuring Project Quality.” In the article, he writes: “Quality is often described in vague terms that are difficult, if not impossible, to make quantitative measurements. Quality is apparent to the customer, especially when lacking, but what exactly is…
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Arc Flash Safety Engineering Studies – When do they make sense?
Having a solid electrical safety program is paramount to all industrial companies; first and foremost, to protect employees. It only takes one arc flash event to result in an electrical burn or worse – a fatality. Beyond safety concerns, protecting against an arc flash reduces the risk of damage to equipment, downtime and ensures you…
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Community Service at Huffman Engineering – A New Employee’s Perspective
Jeff Austin, Operations Manager I joined Huffman Engineering nearly 8 months ago. Following my 30-year Naval career, there were certain things I was looking for in my post-military “dream job.” One of the things that I had listed in my “top 5 must-haves” was my new job had to provide a valuable service to the…
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Control Engineering Philosophy
Blog post by Howard Huffman, PE Although PLCs and other control equipment have evolved over the years, the approach to developing high-quality control systems programs has not changed. During the design phase of a project the project engineers at Huffman Engineering Inc. need to consider the customer, the customer need and the abilities of the…
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Redundancy in Navigation for HMIs
Blog post by Mark Meelhuysen, Mechanical Engineer Most of us enjoy being able to click, type, and alt-tab our way around our computers without thinking twice. But what about Human Machine Interfaces that we use to control processes and track relevant information? It would sure be convenient to navigate HMIs with just as much ease…
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It’s not broken, why fix it?
Blog post by Keith Mandachit, Senior Engineer When I first started as a controls engineer, the year was 1996. Allen-Bradley’s flagship Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) then was the PLC-5. My colleagues and I have implemented many control systems utilizing the PLC-5 that are still alive and ticking today. One of the reasons it was loved…
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Testing & Training Room
By: Justin Gilg, Electrical Engineer Co-Op Student In order to meet customer needs and requirements Huffman Engineering, Inc. has its own in-house testing and training room. Within this room, there are various PLCs and electrical components which can be used to test programs and features. Also found in the testing/training room are a wide range…
