Top 5 Control Engineering articles, July 6-12: Salary and career survey, PLC basics, oil and gas employment, more

Articles about the 2015 Control Engineering salary and career survey, PLC basics, oil and gas employment, monitoring aging equipment, and automation and control integration tips were Control Engineering’s five most clicked articles from July 6-12. Miss something? You can catch up here.

By Chris Vavra July 13, 2015

Control Engineering Top 5 most read articles online, for Jul. 6-12, covered the 2015 Control Engineering salary and career survey, PLC basics, oil and gas employment, monitoring aging equipment, and automation and control integration tips. Link to each article below. 

1. Control Engineering salary and career survey, 2015

Control Engineering research: While slightly less is expected for salary and significantly more for bonuses in 2015 compared to 2014, concerns about shortages of skilled workers remained highest on the list of challenges. 

2. Support-focused enterprise controls: PLC Basics

PLC programs do not behave like scripted language programs used by most computer applications. A basic understanding of control application fundamentals is crucial for designing an effective support-focused system.

3. Thirty years later, the industry is losing its best and brightest, again

In the 1980s, the oil and gas industry was going through the same crew change as it is now. Highly educated workers were laid off and the cycle is repeating itself. Will the industry learn its lesson this time?

4. Monitor aging equipment without replacement 

Electrical gateways provide an inside view of a facility’s electrical distribution and control equipment. Older pieces of large equipment, including motor-control centers, switchgear, and panelboards, were not engineered when proactive energy management was a primary concern. 

5. Four tips on automation and control integration

Spend money on the right things, hire the right people, develop a common infrastructure, and be nimble or die were among the best bits of advice from the 2015 CSIA Executive Conference.

The list was developed using CFE Media’s web analytics for stories viewed on controleng.com, July 6-12, for articles published within the last two months. 

– Chris Vavra, production editor, CFE Media, cvavra@cfemedia.com.


Author Bio: Chris Vavra is web content manager for CFE Media and Technology.