Customise or compromise

In challenging economic times, we can do well to stop and reflect on some of the past methods our industry has used to solve engineering challenges - techniques that now seem simple yet enabled many systems to be automated and industrial plants to operate reliably and efficiently for many years. By evaluating these past techniques, we can see if they are still relevant in today’s ever-changing environment.

One of my first roles as a young electronics designer was to develop equipment for an emergency shutdown system. This was to be installed in a major water treatment plant. The design incorporated relay logic and level detection, and had to remain energised for the life of the plant. No off-the-shelf product was then available so it was my job to make it happen. Fortunately, all went as planned and it is still in operation 30 years later. The customised design, in this case, was a necessity. Sometimes it can also be a desirable way to achieve more than just the initial goal.

Providing clients with ‘customised’ solutions for their process control and industrial automation requirements has many benefits. Back when customer loyalty was more than just two consecutive orders, there was a real desire to build on customer relationships and foster long-term partnerships with suppliers.

There can be no better way of suppliers and customers forming closer ties than having the opportunity to design dedicated equipment that forms an integral part of their system.

These close customer-supplier relationships help to facilitate better engineering outcomes and foster long-term partnerships.

Over the past three decades, I have seen the gradual decline in suppliers offering tailored product solutions. One size fits all seems now to be the norm. Has it just become too hard, or are we getting lazy? There will always be a place for off-the-shelf solutions, but if we spend some time evaluating the real benefits of a more tailored approach we also end up with a far better understanding of the total system.

I have always approached functional design with the goal of simplifying each process to its basic core functions and then adding in only those features that contributed to safety, efficiency and longevity. Applying this approach to customised products enables us to develop easily manufacturable sub-units that together implement the desired functions. One of my goals has always been to reduce the possibility of electrical interconnection wiring faults between subsystems. This can be realised if utilising a customised design, as a modular ‘plug-in’ or backplane’ approach is readily achievable reducing cabinet wiring to a minimum. Designed-in redundancy and forethought to expansion are both necessary factors that can be incorporated at the outset.

You can achieve the best outcomes without compromise if you stop and evaluate the possibilities that a tailored, fit-for-purpose solution can offer. If we all considered this approach, then just maybe we could stop more work from leaving our shores.

*David Head has worked for Weidmüller Australia for the past 30 years. He is currently responsible for the company’s Electrical Connectivity and Application Specific Products.