Happy birthday, Automation Federation!

It’s been a productive year since the Automation Federation was founded. Over the course of the year, we’ve seen a lot of interest from the automation community. Many of you want to learn more about the Federation and how it’s organized. We’re thrilled to see so much enthusiasm, and we’re hoping to give you a good overview of the organization through this Q&A column.

Q: What are the overall objectives of the Automation Federation and why was it formed?

A: The Automation Federation is the organizational umbrella for the profession of automation. The Federation strives to address far-reaching strategic challenges faced by automation professionals around the world, as well as complex technical issues within the various industries that we represent.

Our member organizations have come together to represent the profession, and they speak with a unified voice that is louder and more powerful than any single organization could have on its own. We strive for a true collaborative environment supported by a robust infrastructure that allows each member organization to maintain autonomy, focus on their technical expertise and core competencies and pursue organizational objectives and goals that lead to continued growth, while leveraging the Federation’s model to work together to meet the needs of the greater automation profession.

Q: Who does what within the organization?

A: ISA, OMAC, WBF and WINA supply the resources and intellectual capital that we need to address the strategic issues that the profession is facing. Technical issues are handled by the member organizations based on their competence in different technical arenas.

As the Automation Federation’s managing director, I serve as the COO, responsible for the overarching continuity of operations between all of the organizations. I work to establish effective communications and identify and manage the collaborative initiatives of all of our member organizations. In addition, I serve as the executive director for each organization, further enhancing our ability to encourage collaboration.

The chairman from each member organization is a member of the Federation’s board of directors and helps to set strategic priorities, objectives and direction for the organization. The member organizations also maintain their own individual boards of directors to influence the direction of their organizations.

Q: Does each member organization have a 'specialty’ that they focus on?

A: All of our member organizations have core competencies and technical expertise in certain parts of automation, but they also have a lot to contribute to the larger goal of advancing the profession. The Automation Federation gives them a chance to contribute to that larger goal without diverting limited valuable resources to start their own initiatives.

We strive for a true collaborative environment, supported by a robust infrastructure that allows each member organization to maintain autonomy, focus on their technical expertise and pursue organizational objectives and goals that lead to continued growth, while leveraging the AF model to work together as a single body towards meeting the needs of the greater automation profession.

Historically, ISA has focused on standards, certification, education and training, publications and conferences. WBF has developed significant expertise in batch process and manufacturing execution systems. OMAC focuses on manufacturing, machine tool and packaging technology. WINA is made up of experts in wireless technology and applications.

Each organization has abilities that lie outside of these traditional areas of expertise, though, and through the Automation Federation, they’re able to move into new markets and offer new services. Plus, as technology advances rapidly in our industry, we’ve seen the traditional market segments blur and produce more opportunity for organizations to shift their focuses.

Q: What’s in store for the Automation Federation?

A: As the Federation grows and the member organizations become even stronger, we’ll continually deliver on our promise to change the world of automation.

Currently, we’re working on plans for addressing the shortage of automation professionals in the years to come. The member organizations will develop individual plans and we will help to coordinate and maximize their efforts to drive more interest in our profession. We’re working with academia, legislators and other professional societies to develop plans to address this all-important issue.

We’re also working to develop our relationship with lawmakers in the United States so that we can represent the automation community in Washington. On the global front, we’re continually having important conversations with our automation colleagues around the world to identify opportunities for collaboration.

These are just a few highlights of the many issues we’re tackling at the Automation Federation. We’re confident that with the work of each individual member organization, and our continuous collaboration, we’ll change the world of automation in a positive way for the next generation.